Absolute top tier DAC for standard res Redbook CD

Guido- having previously thought that even the mighty Aeris sounded best with a preamp, I can understand the thought of requiring gain from a preamp. But after hearing Jeff Rowland's voicing system sans preamp I have a different attitude.

I believe that there are certain products that are very specifically constructed and deigned to sound their absolute best with their own mating gear and can skip the added gain from a preamp when doing so. Rowland, Ayon and MSB come to mind. I believe that these products truly sound their best when mated with their purpose designed sister amplifiers. Impedance, gain, etc are all perfectly matched to eliminate the need for a preamp completely. If not mating them with like manufacturer, a preamp permits the user to integrate those wonderful components into a mixed system and maintain their magical performance.

I know you tried to tell me this 2 years ago. But I just wasn't ready to listen. Grins.

The Aurender N10 is in the house and I will start cooking it tomorrow. I'll report quick first impressions including ease of setup and control, and then throw about 200 hours on it before I really listen and compare it to my Mac Mini.

I use the resonessence mirus dac. It allows me to not be hooked up to a computer. I use sdxc sad cards 2-256 gb. I got 100 of my best recordings up sampled to 2xdsd using korg audiogate. The sound is sublime. Deep soundstage excellent transparency. I never really wanted to be hooked to a server or computer. This allows me not to be. The sd cards are another approach to this high resolution music that's not talked about. I only get it done for the Best albums. Anyone reading this you ought to give it a try. No one ever responds to my posts here but if you have an opportunity to listen to this give it try.

Thanks Calvin.

Someone a while ago, maybe you (sorry don't remember who) brought up the Invicta and Mirus dacs. I read up on them and they look awesome. I never had the opportunity to hear one but I was intrigued by their design and parts utilization. I'll bet they sound great.

Thanks for the input!

@mattnslip. Thanks for the reply. I guess when we have huge libraries of music it's like we skip over things we like. With the sd cards I got the 110 best and well recorded albums in my collection and I'm enjoying them in dsd quality. They sound wonderful. I don't have to worry about the server. The power supply to the server. I don't have to worry about cpu noise, interference or other stuff. I get the album. I have it up sample by korg and put it on a card and I am done. Plus the sound is sublime. You here deep into the recording and it has an excellent soundstage. Detail and layering are excellent. Transparency is class a. I'm very happy with it. This company is owned by the brother of the guy that developed the ess sabre chip.