Chord Dave or Ayre QX5 Twenty DAC???

Wouldn't think it would be a tough choice if you can get over the garishly ugly design of the Dave.  From my reading the Dave is a top flight DAC.  The Ayre is not.

Having said that, can't you get loaners from local dealers and make up your own mind?  Neither of the two are cheap.

Which is why it's always nice when people answer the actual question asked instead of turning it into a recommendation thread.

@sc53 
I didn't say that the Ayre was not a nice DAC; simply that it's not in the same league as top tier DACs - which if multiple commentators are to be believed, such top tier includes the Dave.  Since I haven't heard the Dave (as said above, way too many choices these days) I couldn't say one way or another definitively.  In any case, I'm set with what I have now.   Let's see if anyone else has heard both and can add to the discussion.

Yes. I like Ayre as a company (you can see that I’m a big fan of their amplification) and like to see what everyone is talking about re their digital since they sell a lot of units (and thus have a lot of threads posted about them) due to their very reasonable prices - their earlier work like the CX-7e was garbage (the only one I owned - relied upon reviews and got burned - the rest I’ve heard at dealers in Ayre systems). They turned the corner with the DX-5 and have been improving.

Concur.  The one word I would never use to describe the Ayre is edgy - it's super smooth.

It continues to amaze me how many people still think that the preamp is not the lynchpin of any good system - running direct will never be better than running a top flight preamp.  However, I wouldn't go so far as to say that that is the case even in lower end systems - there are many cases in which running direct is better than using a poor preamp assuming the DAC is properly designed for running direct.  I found my older Wadia to sound better direct except with top preamps - of course you had to keep it above 75 for the volume if running direct so as not to lose resolution.

Definitely on the high end, it's been a pleasant surprise how much improvement has occurred in the last couple of years.  It wasn't until my latest source setup that I finally became convinced that digital has *fully* arrived  - I'm good, period. 

Congrats.  Enjoy - I expect that you will be very happy with that setup.