DAC Under $3000
I am considering the purchase of a new DAC. Budget is no more than $3000. I lean towards clear, detailed sound with good separation. In the past I have had PS Audio Stellar, Benchmark, and Merason Frerot. I thought all were good, but not necessarily "special". Suggestions please. Thanks!
TEAC NT-505X is defintely worth consideration. Nice built in streamer. (also preamp and headphone). DAC alone was a bit better to me in my system than my Schiit Yggdrasil A2 wrt detail and space. Yggdrasil a bit better bass and perhaps dynamics. (via iFi Zen Stream with ipower.) Via its built-in Streamer, the NT-505X made a subtle improvement. NT-505X will also accept a 10MHz clock (e.g. the TEAC CG-10M, which I use with my TEAC UD-701N and provides a very nice upgrade.) |
@facten : Thanks for your response. I guess my answer would be that I am hoping to hear a bit more detail and spaciousness. I have seen comments in the past where folks have said their DAC allowed them to hear detail they had not heard before - "it sounded as if the artist was in the room". I have not gotten that with my current/past DACs. I realize you must take the whole system into consideration, but thought I would start by exploring a DAC change. To everyone - thanks for all the feedback thus far! |
