Chord maybe?
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Try the Wyred4sound 10th anniversary DAC It's very analog sounding one of the reviewers put it up against his VPI turntable with the $5,000 Japanese cartridge and he said that the 10th anniversary DAC was every bit as analog sounding on that review I decided to try it and I totally agree and also as a bonus they give you a 30-day trial period so if you don't like it you can set it back to get your money back I obviously didn't. another reviewer put it up against other More expensive dacs between 9 and 15,000 and he said that the 10th anniversary DAC was better, the cos 1 which was 9,000 US, chord, bricasti, and I put it up against the $15,000 sim DAC and the 10th anniversary DAC was better. |
@audiocanada What DAC do you have now? I predict ’ll get flamed for this answer, but perhaps consider one of the Topping D90 variants for $799. It has a crazy low noise floor and is super fast sounding, quite close sonically to the $14K Mola Mola Tambaqui. Use any available remaining funds on a Synergistic Research Tranquility Pod, which projects an electromagnetic field to deflect inbound EMI while also sucking out any trace EMI in the unit. This will take any edge off the DAC while further improving control, speed, clarity, texture and effortlessness. Then, outfit the DAC with the best possible power cable you can with remaining funds. You can likely outperform the Tambaqui in its stock form for less than $5K. I know, I’m bringing up Synergistic Research and am an authorized dealer, which tends to be a very polarizing brand of discussion on this forum. But let’s not let this ruin this thread. I’m just speaking from direct experience and am trying to be honest and helpful. My reference DAC is a ~$40K T+A SDV 3100 HV which I purchased before becoming a dealer, but I still have a Topping D90 on personal backup. They are very different sounding, but the D90 is quite zippy in an exhilarating way. I have no professional affiliation to Topping.
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fast sounding is usually an attribute of amplifier and or speakers. Just keep that in mind. If your system sounds slow and boring the best fix is amp or speakers. As to DACs… If you want a DAC with less color I can tell you Bricasti DACs are pretty transparent and have multiple filters that allow for subtle but audible changes that can give you more incisive or slightly more laid back presentation without sounding analytical. Benchmark is dryer and more analytical. It’s a studio monitoring tool. But I never heard my system sound slower or faster by changing a DAC. |
Agree, and it was also the only DAC I ever sent back, fast. Fast, kind of sterile, and mostly un-engaging for me. Lesson learned, specs aren’t everything to go off of. |
+1 on the Wyred4Sound 10th Anniversary DAC. Use it in combination with their RECOVERY USB reclocker and RECOVERY DC. Assure you use your preferred brand USB cable you go for RECOVERY USB instead of what it comes with. All in under $5k. Preowned under $2k. Fast, dynamic, excellent leading edge, excellent timbre, good bass, clear treble without glare, dense images, good staging. |
wow did not expect so many great responses thanks so much yes I have a very fast muscial fidelity m6s500 amp and speakers that can keep up, wharfdale elysians that I believe use Scanspeak's mid tier drivers with amt's on top the above combo imo is very near endgame for me and has exceeded much more expensive rigs in my home at a somewhat beer budget relative to so many super costly higher end rigs today I've short listed Chord (not the Dave though too much $$$), Weiss 205, Gustard X30 might try the Laiv Harmony due to the high praise of its r2r attributes and I can re-sell easily owned the Benchmark, found it sterile owned the RME akm and found it fast with the phenomenal asscoaited feature set and also....that unit above and beyond most dacs (even those with built in "preamps") was incredible driving power amps directly (an an example the Benchmark was not even though they stated otherwise) I may also eventually move to their pro se model with external power supply thanks again all, this should keep me busy and working/saving for 2025! |
@ AudioCanada the OP... I must be missing something between the lines as on 12/18 @ 2:07 PM, you stated... "current dac is a LAIV Harmony. i think i need chip based for that fast sound, I like your use of 'zippy' adding Topping to the list"... Then on 12/19 @ 6:04 AM, you stated in part..."might try the Laiv Harmony due to the high praise of its r2r attributes and I can re-sell easily" Please clarify these statements... |
@decooney ..." Agree, and it (Benchmark) was also the only DAC I ever sent back, fast. Fast, kind of sterile, and mostly un-engaging for me. +1 @tomwipf ..."Ayre Acoustics QX-5 Twenty beat my dCS Bartok Apex in every aspect. " +1 dCS is very "European" sounding... polite. Ayre is very detailed but a bit more realistic... less polite. |
@jayctoy Definitely take my advocacy for it with a grain of salt. If you are looking for a 'zippy' sounding DAC, it definitely fits the bill. It's an Amir favorite (Audio Science Review). I don't typically recommend it, but I do see how it is special in its own way. Personally, I prefer more harmonic, tonally rich DACs. And I do strongly advocate for the accessories I listed above to be used with the Topping, otherwise it can be suboptimal. At least with Amazon it is returnable.
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I'm in week two of a 30 day trial of the PS Audio Directstream Mk2 DAC. I would say that it is is "lively and energetic". It is worth a listen. PS Audio has them on sale now for $5599. I'm comparing the PS Audio to my Lumin T2 DAC/Streamer. The built in Lumin DAC is very good but I am leaning towards the PS Audio. Again, the PS Audio eeks out a little more detail and is more dramatic in it's presentation. This may be too much of a good thing until the unit begins to break in....which is in the process now. Sounding better every day. |
+Topping D90 variant, look at the new III Discrete 1 bit. I have an older D90LE, very clean, clear, transparent “present” sound signature. I swapped it out for a Pontus Ii 12th in my #1 rig, prefer the R2R NOS with 99dB sensitivity Klipsch horns. The D90 now sits in bedroom rig between WiiM Pro and a low watt KT-88 SEP amp with Vienna Acoustics Bach speakers. Amp and speakers very “warm” vs #1 rig. The Topping set at 5v output keeps the warm “slow” amp and speakers very tight, with good treble extension. And you’ll save a lot of $$ for other toys. Don’t know much about the accessories @blisshifi advocating, worth a try if they can be returned on an in-home trial. Cheers |
Chord DACs are a little lean IME, and as “fast” as they come. A very good DAC that does it all, that just happens to be affordable is the Topping E70 Velvet. I would pit it against any DAC at any price. The nice feature of the E70V is it is sort of like having two DACs in one chassis, because one of its filter settings is not an actual filter (setting #5 I believe) and mimics the sound more typically associated with a NOS R2R DAC, but still retains the speed and attack of a good delta-sigma design. The AK4499EX chip has consistently produced the best sound I’ve encountered among conventional designs. |
@audiocanada, I use a Chord TT2 DAC with a Chord Hugo Mscaler in a system that I put together from isolated wall outlet to my Focal Utopia hp’s and my living room speakers specifically because I enjoy Chord’s speed, musicality, instrument separation, and soundstage. I’ve demoed DACs from Topping to a dCS Rossini Apex stack, mind blown, including Benchmark, Holo May, Hegel, Weiss, and the Mola Mola Tambaqui which I thought sounded really good too. I simply like the TT2 and MScaler’s sound better for the types of music that I listen too. Good luck tracking down what tickles your fancy. |
I agree with those who are wondering about the pairing of “fast” and DAC. I have a Linn Klimax with Dynamik (2018 generation). Musical as hell, lots of air and separation. It is indeed capable of fast, but musical is the attribute that best describes it. It is also insanely expensive new. I got mine on the used market and now will be sending it in for the Organik upgrade. The PS Audio DirectStream (original version) went to a backup system. No comparison, the Linn is night and day better (at 4x the cost). |
I never thought I would suggest looking at Topping, but here is a good review of the new Topping d90 III discrete - , discrete meaning it is not like their other DAC’s, it is not a R2R it is a single bit DAC. Sandu, great reviewer, talks about exactly what the OP is asking for: speed and energy (jump to just after 8:00) Could tide you over until you save up for your 5k budget (?)
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@mclinnguy He also did a review of the Gustard X-30 dac. It's had at least three rave reviews, but still seems to be flying under the radar. It's a long review. Summary is that he really likes it. :) He doesn't describe it as fast, but to be honest, I'm not sure what that means. In my mind, that depends on the music. |
@squared80 I’m curious - why do you find that hilarious and sad? |
When I think about a lively/fast/energetic DAC, my brain first thinks of Chord. I don't necessarily love them in my system but I respect what they do. The TT2 can be had within your budget and it is popular for a reason. Also look into Rockna. Their Wavelight DAC is very fast and clean, I like it better than the TT2 in my system. The big brother Wavedream might be an option if you can find a 2nd hand example. The balanced model and the signature edition are much higher priced but I think the regular or original version goes for under $5k sometimes. |
