Anticipating next upgrade after B&W 803 D3?

@jkmcc

glad you made your post after lurking for so long... you have an excellent system, i am sure it sounds just wonderful, very musically well rounded from what i know about your various pieces

re the qutest - 3 points:

if u want a broader set of viewpoints, suggest u post in digital section - this question is out of place here in this thread, you won’t get full breadth

i am very familiar w it, it is a lovely sounding unit, exceptionally clear and rhymthic, great imaging. one of the best in the price range - having said this, i would say the chords are in the ’very clear and not romantic’ camp of sound - other competing top dacs are more rounded, fuller in their sound, so it is a matter of system matching - it may well fir perfectly in your system w vtl into vandy's -- both are on the warmer lusher side of neutral

the qutest has several selectable digital filters built in, so the sound can be tailored to some degree, but even on its slowest/mildest filter it will still be on the 'clean and clear' side... you can also add the m-scaler (for $$$) and it takes the smoothness and ease of presentation of the qutest up a couple notches

hope this helps

@jjss49 

Thank you for your notes about the Qutest. I look forward to having it in my system for the long term. 
And again, to @emergingsoul, If you like your speakers, have fun building your system around them.

Best, John

Thanks jkmcc for your comments.  I am considering the Qutest chord but approaching cautiously. Need to learn a lot more about dac offerings.  Price of m scaler upgrade is huge.
Having Done many upgrades Over a short period it speaks to going more slowly and learning more.  So DACs under review now.