Best DAC to also use as a preamp

"06-03-14: Kana813
Grannyring & Zd542,

I suggest you contact Steve, I'm sure he'll cut you a great deal as soon as he gets done patting himself on the back.;-)"

I don't see what the big deal is. I think the list price on Steve's unit isn't out of line for what he's giving you. (Not taking into account the whole remote issue). A few years back when I bought my Wadia, one of the things I was pretty happy with, asside from the remote, was how close it sounded to other products that were a lot more money. When I get one of Steve's dac's, even at full price, I expect it to sound quite a bit better than my Wadia; and it costs thousands less. I'm really saving money here. I'll probably get an extra one for my bedroom.

Has anyone tried the new wyred4sound SE's in preamp mode? The Aurelic Vega?

The answer depends on whether you need analog inputs. If not, the PS PWD II is a great sounding unit. As has been noted, it's very musical. Because PS has come out with a new model, they are available cheaply used (including from me, so maybe I'm not objective -- but who is?). The Auralic also sounds great. The Berkeley is $5k and has received great reviews, but I haven't heard it.

AMR DP-777 might be the best fit; also uses tubes. Long
thread on it where member audiofun rates the preamp section
highly.

The Naim DAC-V1, the new NAD M12, and the ATC CDA2 are all
also candidates for demo. Ditto the Resolution Audio
Cantata.