Different R2R DACs

This may be  out of your $5000 price range, but I would highly recommend the MSB Analog DAC and Power Base if you can find one used.  It is a fantastic R2R DAC that throws a great soundstage and a nice detailed but not harsh sound.  I was very happy with mine, and upgraded to the MSB Discrete with Premier Power Base, which is even better at a significant cost.  However, the Analog will give you a lot of that for a fraction of the cost of a new Discrete.

Ive owned alot of great dacs: chord Dave, Totaldac D1tube mkii, Lampi golden atlantic, Aqua La Scala, msb discrete with dual power supplies/prousb to name but a few. I presently have a Merason dac1 in one system and a Meitner ma3 in another. They are both exceptional performers. Amazing actually. 
 

The Merason dac1 is a flat out bargain. The ma3 at almost twice the price is better than but different from the merason. Find a place to listen. I could be happy wiith any of the aforementioned dacs but the merason and the meitner should be heard if you are in the market. Merason no mqa, meitner yes mqa however i couldnt tell you how it sounds with mqa. Peace.

I had the Terminator w latest dsp board in my system for a year.  IMHO it was a very good.  Leaned sligtly on the warmer side, but detail and clarity was spot on.  

I have since gone back to an ANK 2.1 dac.....still one of the best.

Another R2R dac line that i have listened to, that is clean, detailed and neutral is Merason, both the Frerot and the DAC1 models are quite good.  They may fit the bill for your preferences.  

First whomever said R2R DACs are the flavor of the month is completely wrong.  We build both types of DACs  Sorekris R2R modelue and Sabre 32 Bit.  THey are differnt sounding but the R2R are not soft sounding in comparison.  They are definately more musical and less forward sounding.

Part of the problem like most is that you are swapping out DACs they are similiar in design.  To design a componnet that either is tube versus non-tube is the first question.  The most important design feature is the power supply.  We build DACs that have 30lb power supplys for our tube designs.  That is where you get the main differnce in sound.  That is where you begin to get reference sound from.

Stop looking at one feature of any component and begin learning what makes them sound different.  How do you get a beautiful soudning mid-range, how do you get layering, who do you get a big soundstage, dimension, tone, bass definition,etc.

Happy Listening.

I stream Qobuz with Magna Mano via I2S to Denafrips Venus. Very nice clean and detailed sound.