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Best DAC under 2k US ?

I'm thinking of a DAC for my nearfield focal monitors (CMS series). I'm looking for a nuetral to warmish sounding DAC without overly harsh or bright tonality and also musical.

I don't know much about DAC's and I can't audition where I am right now.

Calyx DAC, Bel Canto, Peachtree, Ayer, W4S, Weiss Minerva. Anything else?

Which would suit me best.

Thanks
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aquablu8
elberoth2's avatar
elberoth2
1,223 posts
 
I second the Metrum Octave.
aquablu8 OP
19 posts
 
Metrum octave vs Linn Magick DS or Akurate?
lewinskih01
909 posts
 
Calling Ray Charles
raytheprinter's avatar
raytheprinter
1,234 posts
 
Has anyone heard of the Exasound e18DAC ? 1999.00 Risk -free in house testing. Mick at Supratek has written a bit about it in his blog,Supratek News.
mcondon
235 posts
 
What about a used PS Audio Perfect Wave DAC? There are a boatload of them for sale on Audiogon right now. Apparently, owners have a hard time giving them away, which might be all you need to know.

(I actually own the Perfect Wave DAC. It sounds very good with the Perfect Wave Transport, which I think may be the stand out PS Audio digital component. In all honesty, the DAC sounds pretty mediocre from every other digital source -- S/PDIF, AES/EBU, and the PS Audio Bridge. Even with the MK2 upgrade, the DAC doesn't sound that great unless you also own the Transport. And even then, the DAC has a pretty narrow soundstage. In some ways, a cheap Northstar M192 I once owned threw a much more convincing, absorbing soundstage than the Perfect Wave DAC. And the Northstar sold used for about $800.)
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