Higher End DACs

Okay, guys lets get this into perspective, most of you do not have a store full of dacs we do!

The unfortunate point of all of this is there is good, there is better and there is the best of these kinds of products.

In this case ingnorance is bliss, if you care about spending less money.

We have the Lumin D2, the T2, the X1 which do represent the good, the better the best You can clearly hear the improvement as you go up the scale.

We are doing this morning a comparision the X1 vs the T+A SDV 3100 and again the sound takes a dramatic improvement in realisim, soundstage size and width, the sound becomes more real and much more musical. It is worth the price, yes if you can afford it and have the system to show you the difference.

As per the OP the T+A piece represents a fascinating opportunity to get a world class preamp that may dramatically improve the overall system’s sound as well as if he prefers the clearner sound of the T+A as a preamp then he can recoup some of his investment by selling the Mcintosh preamp.

When designing a system you can go with what "fits" which can mean anything or you can buy the best that you can.

If you remember the Linn concept which is the sound starts at the source the better the source the better the sound you can create.

Also a digital front end of this calibre means that the OP can continue to grow into this system by eventually moving into even better electronics if he prefers over the Mcintosh amplifiers, which would again he could continue to evolve his sound.

A top of the line front end would not be wasted in the context of the OP’s system, wether he choose DCS, MSB or T+A all of these top of the line front ends will help improve his system more so than a much cheaper front end.

Again we are writing this while doing exactly that same comparison on a $20k amp, a $32k pair of speakers, and just comparing two front ends, a very very good one ,the Lumin and one of the best in the world, the T+A, in the context of our system you can clearly hear the superiority of the better setup and yes it is worth it, however, without having the Lumin, the Formula and the other less expensive digital front ends to compare with you would be happy with one of those if you never experienced the next level you can accheive with a stelar dac such as the T+A.

Try the same comparison with a good car such as a entry level Mustang and the new Corvette does the extra $20-30k make you happier 

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ, Lumin, Aqua, T+A, dealers

Well in this case the source is the servers at Tidal or Qobuz and to add a little perspective I am not trying to sell anything if the OP ends up with a mega buck T+A or a NAD C658 as long as he is happy with the sound then it’s all good.

@asiufy @djones51 @rgmd11 @kren0006 @lalitk @thyname @4425 @hgeifman @audiotroy 

(and everyone else who has taken the time to post on this thread!)

thanks so much for the responses to my latest post enquiring about 'fit' of many of these units with my existing system.

I REALLY appreciate how respectfully and considerately some of you are raising current 'limitations' (maybe I should use the term 'considerations')lol) of my components wrt to some of the higher end DACs and players discussed.

Of course there are several factors that have driven my current setup, ranging from SO aesthetic approval, familiarity over the years with those brands/models, hearing them sound very pleasing to me with various analog sources, etc.

As part of the spirit of my post was to learn more - I would be curious to understand which Mcintosh components (or if its all a mismatch with my B&W 800's) I have that would be considered the primary mismatch (perhaps its all of it, as the ethos is just fundamentally different between Mcintosh/B&W and transparency/detail/resolution that the highest of the high end sources are looking to achieve) - and, particularly, what is it about them each that would be considered 'limiting', in this context?

Is it they are overly rounded off/colored?  for the amps, is it they lack power/headroom?  I would love to understand this better.  For example, it was noted the T+A SDV 3100 preamp might be a 'better' fit than my existing than my c1100 - why?  what characteristics make it a better fit?  if the 611 power amps are not great for this - why?  I am not arguing at all that the Mcintosh components are the right for this level of digital, just trying to sincerely understand why they are not.

Also, this part of the discussion got me to thinking - one of the things that people seem to potentially like in the analog world is 'musicality', sweetness, warmth, etc....is it fair to say that components that may be excellent with even some of the nicest turntables and tonearms out there aren't necessarily going to excel in the world of digital playback - and vice versa?

Or is the audiophile principle of 'transparency' just a universal truth and a set of downstream components from various sources (whether they are digital or analog sources) that achieves that transparency is what one wants for both analog and digital.

Finally, I just would like to thank everyone again for such great perspectives, considerations, and input....This IS a journey for me.  Some of my specific questions above are also about understanding where I am with my current system, what level of digital component quality and spend offers me as phenomenal performance as I can get with my current system, if I wanted to evolve beyond current limitations how I should view what those limitations are, what would need to change to overcome current constraints, and how something that 'fits' now and offers that 'as phenomenal performance I can get' within my current system and yet still provides a tangible pathway for upgrade if I got that route (without feeling like I 'wasted' money on a lesser component, now, that doesn't match with a potentially upgraded system later). 

Unless your reference is unamplified acoustic event, there is no universal truth. The first poor performance in the chain is microphone choice and then placement...
your Mac stuff is fine, you don’t need to throw the baby out with the bath water. Go listen to and better yet borrow a variety of DAC’s and or streamers.

An activity I strongly recommend, especially for those who already know it all, is an aural workout session at 2L Recordings ( The Nordic Sound ) downloads bench - many formats with same microphones and placement..,,,