Absolute top tier DAC for standard res Redbook CD

Agear,
I agree 100% with your statement. You have to listen as Matt is effectively demonstrating with his speaker auditions.

Guido - excellent point. I can't imagine these speakers have many hours on them at all. They are essentially brand new. Thank you for reminding me of my core processes. I will immediately start burning them in, I'll bet that's it.

Audiolabyrinth - The T&F are made in Austria, Dynaudio are Danish and Marten are Swedish. Those are my 3 front runners right now. The JBL DD-67000 are dual 15" drivers and are 38" wide; way too big for my small room. I have heard them and they are great, but not a match for my needs.

Bill_K - I measured the Lawrence Audio Double Bass while I had them on loan and they measured practically flat as a line in my room. They were technically exceptional, and completely uninvolving. I was fascinated by the many peaks and valleys of the Coltrane Tenor and the magic they created. My new Consequence Ultimates measure even worse then the Tenors did, but the proof and truth is in the ear of the beholder, not the measurements.... I know John Atkinson disagrees...

If all goes well, I will shortly be comparing the Emm Labs DAC 2X with the Aesthetix Romulus Sig, and my ODSE. Keep your fingers crossed.

Matt, are you planning to audition Lampizator Golden Gate? I am asking as I plan to upgrade my Lampi L4 and GG is one of my top choices. Other candidates are Bricasti, TotalDac and Rockna. Sadly, MSB Analog is no longer on the list. I have been listening to MSB Analog + Powe Base for the last 3 weeks and comparing it to my Lampi L4. No contest, Lampi is better on all fronts, especially with DSD. It's a pity, I've had really high hopes for MSB. Other MSB models may be better, but they are out of my price range.
I would love to try ODSE, but not sure if I can get one in Moscow, where I am based. Any other recommendations?
Thanks

Matt - I know there's quite a list of speakers you've tried and I may have missed your mention of them, but have you considered any Sonus faber speakers? I just heard their Guarneri Evolution monitors and was blown away by them. While there are other speakers that are more impressive upon initial listening, I haven't heard any that are as seductively smooth in the mids along with such sweet highs. Of course depending upon your musical preferences they may or may not hit your sweet spot, but they do it for me and thought you might want to audition them. Their larger models like the Amati Futura and above are more full range designs. I also heard their lower priced Olympica line, and while they're very polite and easy to listen to I found them lacking the 'magic' that their upper models have in spades. Good listening!

Hi Bill. I am very familiar with Faber. The Strads are sensational and the Amati Futura is as well. Their new Lilium is stunning. The Strads and Futura are both rear ported and won't work in my room. And i spoke at length with the guys at Faber about the Lilium and the consensus was that with the top firing woofer and unique poring system it would be a hit or miss in my size room. No one was willing to put them in my room to try, so I moved on....

Abedirov - I would be happy to try it but I'm not willing to buy one to do so. The guys at Lampy have offered me a Baby 7 to try, and I look forward to that. I'll post if that happens.