Absolute top tier DAC for standard res Redbook CD

Matt, I was so happy the other night when you shared your LH thoughts.  Very very cool.  I NEED to get over to hear that DAC.  Of all the expensive ones, I haven't heard the LH and need to.

Matt Nope, I checked the old comments and you said you liked it for one day and then it disappeared off the radar. You never said anything else about it. You must have not been that impressed.

Jwm - 
1) apologies. I'll check my notes and post for you. I think I have them somewhere. 
2) wow, I'm impressed you checked though all those pages! I'm honored. 

I do remember that it was not well suited to my system. But the specifics of why escape me. It was the current iteration at the time. As I said, please don't take my opinion as gospel. I am one person with one opinion. I try to explain why I like or don't like something so you can use that. Remember that it's not ever really a review as much as a comparison. And until the DAC2X, which I am certain would be bested by the ODSX, and now the Light Harmonic, i have always preferred my ODSE (now ODSX). 

Haven’t really followed this massive thread but I can’t imagine not liking the Bricasti if that’s the case. Simply can’t imagine. It's a buy and forget piece and used direct it's breathtaking. 

4425 - you can’t jump in on this thread and make a statement like that. As I just said, this thread is not about reviewing DAC’s. It’s about PICKING the best DAC. I have not evaluated a DAC I disliked. In fact, every DAC I have owned or auditioned is worth keeping and building a system around. I’m looking for the best darn DAC (started out as red book since that was and still is the bulk of my file type) I can find, at any price. I have excluded tubes DAC’s because of my personality and the tube swapping rabbit hole that would cause me never ending obsessive tube rolling, countless dollars and sleepless nights. I’m not saying that the best DAC in the world is solid state, but it is for me. I have heard the Golden Gate and it’s truly awesome, but simply not for me; like horn speakers (which I also love but just don’t have the space for), spicy Indian food and smoking Hookah; not for me......

There are certain DAC’s that have fan clubs..... Bricasti amongst them. Ayre, Lampizator, DAVE and DCS all have their dedicated groups of devotees also, who will defend their brand to the end. Good’on’ya!!! They all can make music and do it right. My goal was to find the one that made my system, in my room, with my ears sound the best. So anything I say about a DAC is in comparison to another and which I prefer. If it made it into my room, it’s a damn good DAC! I love Ferrari and Lamborghini, but I prefer Ferrari. That doesn’t mean i don’t like the Lambo.....

That all said, I found my notes and the highlights about the Bricasti were that the ODSE (my giant killer) offered a more complex, layered presentation of the music. In comparison, the Bricasti lacked a sense of "live" that the ODSE gave in spades. I also felt like the Bricasti had a flatter depth of stage in comparison, but that it’s spacial definition allowed individual events to happen seamlessly within their space. The ODSE did that equally well, and in the end it stayed and the Bricasti went back for someone else to enjoy.