Thinking about getting a R2R DAC

Thanks everyone for your responses!  I'll look into the Audio Note idea and the Audio Mirror Toubador III.  I'm still considering the MHDT Orchid.  I've heard mixed things about the multibit offerings from Schiit but they offer a great value.  (I had their $120 phono stage for a while and was blown away by how good it sounded for $120!)  I'd love to hear the Border Patrol but the distortion gives me pause.  I know there is good euphonic even order distortion that is pleasing to the ear but I think my preference is more in the middle of the euphonic vs ultra resolving spectrum.  @jjss49 I agree that there's really no substitute for listening.  As an out of work musician I don't have the funds to buy a bunch and compare at home unfortunately.  Can I come over and listen to yours?  JK

@jjss49 That's an amazing array of DAC's man. Wow. Do you have a spreadsheet where you baked them off against one another? I'd love to have the experience of trying such a range. OP, this is why this forum is so helpful, not to mention @thaluza rich descriptive abilities. I wish I had this post when I was trying to pick a DAC. Cornucopia! 

@jjss49

I am thinking of giving the Jolida Black Ice a try. Was curious if you tried the headphone output on it. I'm currently using a Qutest/Headphone amp combo right now and I am thinking of downsizing and pairing the Black Ice with an easy to drive headphone. How does it compare to the Qutest? Any other DAC's that stand out on your list? How about giving us a ranking and blurb on each?

@thaluza, I just picked up an R2R Mojo Audio Mystique V3 Balanced and after going through a list of DACs over the last 6 months in my system have liked it the best as well.   I've owned the SimAudio 380DSD (kept for 5 years), Bricasti M3, RME ADI 2 FS (which I still own), Topper D90, and now the Mojo.

I find the Mojo incredibly musical and to me it simply sounds more like live music than the others.   It also packs bass and dynamics that I wasn't expecting (which is what I liked best about the M3).   I find the high frequencies good but not as detailed or as forward as some of the others.   To me, the high frequencies do not offend and sound very natural, but it is not the last word in detail retrieval.   Personally,  I'll take the musicality vs the mega detail retrieval.   The D90 was amazing at detail retrieval but I found it forward and too fatiguing for me to listen to after a short while.

@ddafoe, my perception of the Mojo and high frequency detail was upended when I bought a pair of Altec Lansing Valencia speakers last month. The horn based Valencias have their faults, but their presentation of cymbals has been revelatory to me. I give the Mojo at least some of the credit for the clean, full bodied, unforced sound I hear. I would bet that some of the other dac’s I tried, or the Topping D90 that you owned, would not be so friendly with the Altecs. The Mojo is a fine example of a well implemented R2R dac.