I used to design and implement up and resampling algorithms (and others) for image processing of satellite and aerial photography imagery.
Never for digital audio. The problem is different there but the principles are similar.
DCS Ring DAC technology (expensive) is the one I know of from a few years back that struck me as the best in regards to its ability to randomize noise and produce best results on paper. I’ve heard DCS gear and what I heard was consistent with what I expected.
I wonder to what extent other vendors have done anything similar in recent years to close the gap and maybe even help bring the cost down?
Theoretically, I would rather have a non oversampling DAC done well than an oversampling one done just so-so.
In practice these days, as I mentioned most good quality DACs I hear even at modest cost sound very very good and I care less about the technical details than what I hear, although if buying without opportunity to hear, it never hurts to know how things work in comparison under the covers. Assuming the information provided is accurate and reliable of course. In many cases, its just a black box with little information on how things work. You always only know for sure by listening.
The DAC in my main system is a several years old non-oversampling mhdt Constantine I picked up used a few years back for less than $400 mainly as an experiment. I’ve never a/b compared to DCS, but the sound reminds me of DCS in many ways and its been a keeper.
Recently I’ve experimented with analog out from newer Iphone and Ipad. The sound is a lot different than the mhdt but surprisingly good and perfectly listenable as well in its own terms.
I also have a Bel Canto c5i digital integrated amp. Its also most listenable and a big hitter in terms of sound quality and features, but sounds much different from the others still.
So lots of very good flavors of digital out there these days at all price points. You just gotta pick a few and try.
