@yyzsantabarbara
First, I don’t know what you mean by the 007. If you mean the Musetec 005 we would all be happy to see a review. However, a comparative review with the Gustard X26 Pro would probably not be a fair comparison.
The direct import Chinese DACs generally have pricing that is a fair reflection of the quality of the materials within. This is because other costs like labor and marketing are usually very low, and the competition very high. In the case of the Musetec, it uses an o-ring silver plated transformer for the analog circuit that can cost upwards of 20X the cost of the transformers in the Gustard. It uses custom clocks costing multiples of the off-the-shelf clocks in most (even more expensive) DACs. It uses very high quality European capacitors, some costing $95 each. It uses a bank of super-capacitors and a special circuit generating battery-like DC for its digital circuits. And a whole lot more. For further details, if you are interested, you can see the full description at http://www.mu-sound.com/DA005-detail.html It has always been my experience that long-time enjoyment of an audio component is enhanced by the quality of its internal parts.
As I wrote earlier, everything about the description of the Gustard seems close to that of the LKS 004, a DAC whose insides I know very well, and which I would easily prefer over the Gustard for several reasons, some described in detail in my OP and follow-up at the LKS 004 thread here. I don’t mean to diminish the Gustard in any way. It’s just that I made a careful choice when I purchased the LKS and enjoyed it very much for several years.
As for built-in optical streaming, or built-in anything else, it has always been my preference to have separates. That way when you want to upgrade (and that can happen a lot in digital), you don’t have to get rid of your whole system.
First, I don’t know what you mean by the 007. If you mean the Musetec 005 we would all be happy to see a review. However, a comparative review with the Gustard X26 Pro would probably not be a fair comparison.
The direct import Chinese DACs generally have pricing that is a fair reflection of the quality of the materials within. This is because other costs like labor and marketing are usually very low, and the competition very high. In the case of the Musetec, it uses an o-ring silver plated transformer for the analog circuit that can cost upwards of 20X the cost of the transformers in the Gustard. It uses custom clocks costing multiples of the off-the-shelf clocks in most (even more expensive) DACs. It uses very high quality European capacitors, some costing $95 each. It uses a bank of super-capacitors and a special circuit generating battery-like DC for its digital circuits. And a whole lot more. For further details, if you are interested, you can see the full description at http://www.mu-sound.com/DA005-detail.html It has always been my experience that long-time enjoyment of an audio component is enhanced by the quality of its internal parts.
As I wrote earlier, everything about the description of the Gustard seems close to that of the LKS 004, a DAC whose insides I know very well, and which I would easily prefer over the Gustard for several reasons, some described in detail in my OP and follow-up at the LKS 004 thread here. I don’t mean to diminish the Gustard in any way. It’s just that I made a careful choice when I purchased the LKS and enjoyed it very much for several years.
As for built-in optical streaming, or built-in anything else, it has always been my preference to have separates. That way when you want to upgrade (and that can happen a lot in digital), you don’t have to get rid of your whole system.