Best DAC for around $2,500 or less

Here are my comments from my listening experiences - don't take them personally please  I build a R2R DAC but way out of your price range.

From what has been mentioned above - I was not impressed at all with the following:
Wyred
Schitt
Benchmark
Mytek
Lampy AMber
Bel Canto

In your price range:
Ayre Codex - heard this at Audio Connections - very nice sounding

Audio Mirror - see SnoPro comments regarding his comparison of the Denafrips - I trust his ears personally - I think there are upgrades offered for this unit 

I would also look into the Electrocompinient (spelling) - I heard this over the weekend and it was way musical and open with excellent sound stage dimension - so musical you could listen all day long to any type of music.

Also, just because a DAC has R2R does not mean anything unless the design is good.  The DAC we offer has an R2R discrete but it also has a 30 pound power supply, uses V-Capacitors, AC filter chokes, copper plates, etc.  I have also built the same design using the Sanbre 32 bit.  Both sound excellent - we prefer the R2R for overall musicality.  You can by R2R DACs form China that would not sound anywhere in the same league.

No offense please.- your experiences may be much different that what my ears heard.

Happy Listening

There is no ’Best’, and really no way around trying to figure out what your own preferences are based on listening.  Someone's "this DAC is overperforming over that DAC" comment need to be taken in context that their definition of overperforming may not be yours.

I currently own all three of below, and appreciate them all in their own way:

Chord 2Qute (predecessor to the Qutest, which likely is another level of improvement) - may daily driver in my ’main’ system of Naim 282/250/ATC19s because I love the balance between great insight while still feeling a certain drive and ’verve’ (sorry, terrible word) to the music that keeps my attention

Benchmark 2 (currently used as headphone amp, not in a system otherwise) - wow, the most insight/clarity/detail out of any of the DACs. it’s remarkable what details it can pull out of tracks you thought you knew. But for day-to-day listening, it is *not* my preference, so important to understand what may sound most technically accomplished may not be what you prefer day in and day out

BorderPatrol SEi (currently in my office w/ a Supernait 2 and ProAc Tablette 10s) - probably listen to as much if not more than my main system during this WFH era, and I absolutely love this DAC, especially with the tube engaged in the rectifier. Yes, it doesn’t do high rez, and yes I know it has crap measurements in Stereophile... but I can listen and love Roon streaming in background for hours a day and every once in a while between meetings really crank it up and I am in heaven.

All of which is a long way of saying, absolute $s and tech specs can’t tell you what you’ll end up liking. Consider buying used (or something new with a healthy secondary market), because odds are you will learn more about what you love over time, and experimenting is part of the joy. 3 years ago even, I wouldn’t have known all of above when I first bought the 2Qute, but I dipped my feet in with the Mojo, loved that, and my appreciation for Chord has remained. ¯_(ツ)_/¯

This should be easy, go over to ASR and filter the database by SINAD for the money, done.

So basically, none of the things mentioned in this thread besides the Topping DX3.

This should be easy, go over to ASR and filter the database by SINAD for the money, done.

I wish I could say that it was that easy for me.  If that were the case, I'd have the Benchmark hooked up and sold the BorderPatrol.  Turns out, my preferences don't align to perfect measurement... but when you really think about it, I think most people don't.  Not a perfect analogy, but I bet everyone here also knows someone who (some what annoyingly) way overuses Instagram filters in their photography.  Is that a more accurate representation of the picture?  Definitely not.  Does it give them some joy / describe a mood / something else emotional the original did not?  Likely.

Where would a LessLoss Echo’s End fit in this comparison list?