Prima Luna have released the Kracken (striketrough) I mean DAC

@gakerty , there’s a fairly long thread on audiocircle in the discless circle focusing on the mp-d2. The sound is fairly easy to tailor through tube, cap, and chip swaps. Also, your 12au7s could be put to use here. There’s an internal switch that allows for 12.6v filament signal tubes.

My version had the AKM4497 chip, Silver/Gold oil M caps, a pair of NOS Amperex tubes and a number of vintage 5U4G rectifiers.

I feel this DAC is one of the best bargains on the market, especially on the used market. It runs dead quiet, has fantastic sound, and is easy to integrate into systems without having to go through whole component swaps. Signal tubes and rectifier tube swaps offer a lot of flexibility. I would have been very happy to keep the MP but was tempted by all the Holo May dac talk and caved. I needed to sell the MP-D2 to help fund the purchase. I have no reservations recommending the MP-D2 to anyone in this price point, and I feel the MK2 models offer the best bang for the buck.

@rixthetrick: Can’t imagine your NOT skimming a wee bit of that cream off the top of your pail-ful of deeeelishus fresh cow’s milk you’re bringing home!

Wondering also if THIS is how pigs react when they realize their slop trough has just been refilled?

@yakbob: You mentioned in passing that, and I quote, "I would have been very happy to keep the MP but was tempted by all the Holo May dac talk and caved."

Having ’caved,’ how do you feel about your Holo Audio ’MAY’ DAC?

As it happens, I, too, gave in to all that talk and got myself a Holo Audio MAY KTE, their top-of-the-line model. It took a lot of break-in time (>500 hours) before it began to truly sound its best, but the pay-off for soldiering through that extended break-in period has been well worth it to my ears.

@yakbob - My current DAC uses the AK4497EQ chip, with output transformers.
I am waiting for the same Australian designer (and friend) to get some AK 4499SEQ DAC chips at the end of this year. Running a pair in the DAC with output transformers again. Should be interesting.

@erictal4075 - so, is it true pigs can't turn their heads to the sky?

Apologies to rixthetrick for the thread derail. I originally jumped in here as I was considering the Primaluna DAC at one time.

@erictal4075 , I own the L2 May DAC, and despite the original buyers guilt of dropping $5k on a dac, I don't regret it. Short of outright failure, I don't think I'd find a reason to "upgrade" in the future.

When compared to the internal DAC of my CD/SACD player (Yamaha cd-s2100), the May presents a 3D illusion in the room, with much better soundstage depth, width, and thrust. Swings in music are more dynamic, whereas the Yamaha's dac is more 2 dimensional, and lacks the dynamic swing that pulls you in. The Yamaha sounds "nice", relaxing, and polite, but it does not engage.

I'd place the MP-D2 somewhere in the middle of these 2 experiences. While the pricing on the MP-D2 has gone up, I found it a steal at the $800 black Friday price i paid. I've not heard the Evo 100, but have to believe the MP-D2 would compare favorably in sound quality with the right parts/tubes installed. The PL casework is better, more robust and in my opinion better looking than the MP-D2, which has odd dimensions, thinner gauge case, and decent, but not outstanding build quality.