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Best digital converter $5k under

I have gone on a hunt listening to different setups and by far
The most balanced and , Hi tech,parts build is the Auralic Vega dac
It does everything including DSD,since i had the Bryston dac-1 i listened
To the new dac -2 my friends own both dacs Including the Berkeleydac-2
This dac was developed from several Swiss firms and Taiwan,Hong kong.
The clock is the lowest jitter I have ever seen listed under$10k
It is as good or better sounding then anything Under $8k IMO. It has a very natural warm balance, superb imaging and micro dynamics and excellent sound staging.even my vinyl friends were very impressed and for under $3500 it is a no brainer.my friend bought it after seeing a review in Computer Audiophile. I am for sure buying one this fall.do your homework
And build quality is as good or better then Anything out there even in the $10k range,that is saying a lot !!
128x128audioman58
tgx78
4 posts
 
I went through many DACs under $4000. Auralic Vega, Lynx Hilo, yulong DA-8, Benchmark DAC2, NAD M51, Schiit Gungnir, and Chord QuteHD.

Finally settled on exaSound e20 mkIII .082ps clock upgrade with TeddyPardo 12/2 power supply. (total cost was about CDN$3500)

Not planning to upgrade my DAC anytime soon.
audioman58's avatar
audioman58 OP
4,133 posts
 
For my taste I finally broke town and bought the Luxman DA-06dac
I could not be happier.to improve it even more so change the stock fuses,
And the New Wireworlds series 7 Silver Electra PC is excellent the closest competition was the MSB analog dac,for my taste with the added extra$3k power supply the MasB was a bit better detailed, but with stock power supply I liked the fuller Bass,
And layering of the Luxman better.my YG Carmel's are very neutral
And this is where the luxman shines ,very natural full sound with a very expansive soundstage ,excellent detail, and depth of soundstage .
I got a very fair deal after speaking with Paul at a Goodwins hiend.
j3294
3 posts
 
Hi Tgx78, how do you rate the Yulong Da8 compared the other DACs you went through?
audioman58's avatar
audioman58 OP
4,133 posts
 
The only thing bad about the exa sound dac is if you have a external drive ,and a digital player like the Auraliti, or Bryston bdp it will not work
It has to be connected to a laptop,or standard computer what a shame for
I almost took the plunge .
audioman58's avatar
audioman58 OP
4,133 posts
 
I just sold the Luxman after hearing the Wyred4 sound dsd-SE dac
I used to do a lot of modding with pre amplifiers, and loudspeakers
And know parts quality especially much tighter specked items count even more so in digital. The list of parts in the SE I have not seen bettered in anything even at $10 k . The only thing I truly wanted for I was comparing
This with the Auralic Vega the parts are actually better in the SE dac
Except for the clock they use a Femto clock .since I bought this dac I have been asking them for an upgrade,they said they have to redesign the board
,so what Do It I say ,it sounds great after 125 hours any brightness is gone
Now I am working on the to get 300 hours I give digital two full weeks
To fully refine. It is very good already and a step up from the well reviewed a Luxman the a Luxman was warmer more lush but lacked the detail
I had the nad51 the Meitner Ma-1 I had and was a bit more refined
Meaning slightly smoother detail very close since my revels are warmer sounding the wyred may be a better fit.f anyone wants a listen
To either the revel208 speakers, Krell 550 integrated, or wyred SE dac
Let me know .
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