The X26 PRO has been my dac since January and I am completely satisfied with its delta-sigma based chip. I never went up the chain with R2R but the Aries II did not do it for me. With the Gustard, set the filter to gentle and it will bring the sound close to R2R but with so much more details. Set on vivid and even more details but can be overly bright with some recordings. Either way the Gustard X26 PRO offers filter adjustments that give you the best sound no matter the darkness or brightness of a recording. So it makes me think that moving to the R26 would be an insignificant improvement, or lack thereof, from the X26 PRO. I read on another site this guy got both and said if you don't have the PRO, buy the R26, if you do, don't. Good advice.
Gustard R26
Is anyone else looking forward to the reviews coming out on the Gustard R26 r2rDac? I am interested to see if it can compete with the Holo Spring at a lower price point. How will it stand up to the other r2r dac’s out there right now. It does present well and is feature rich right out of the box. Is it a true proprietary resistor board or is it off the shelf and tweaked? I know the other Gustard equipment is well received and liked so my hopes are high for this as well.