Hello,
A $300 DAC cannot beat a $2000 DAC let alone a more expensive one. Their are only a handful of companies that make the SACD transports. PSAudio, and Ayre both used Oppo in really expensive players. In the end it was their amazing DACs. All of the components are important usually with a weak link in the system. One that I was not expecting was the power protector. I was using pretty high end Furman power conditioners. I tried the Puritan PSM-136 and PSM-156. Both were leaps ahead of the Furman products that cost the same. Everyone says start with the speakers. I say if you can afford it start with the outlet on the wall. I do think it’s amazing how much better a $29 DVD player sounds on a good DAC and even better on a really good DAC. Most of us cannot afford our end game speaker until the end of a game. I just listened to a pair of active KEF speakers on a blu node streamer total cost $1000 Very amazing. Most people should start this way since just about every TT listener is streaming.
A $300 DAC cannot beat a $2000 DAC let alone a more expensive one. Their are only a handful of companies that make the SACD transports. PSAudio, and Ayre both used Oppo in really expensive players. In the end it was their amazing DACs. All of the components are important usually with a weak link in the system. One that I was not expecting was the power protector. I was using pretty high end Furman power conditioners. I tried the Puritan PSM-136 and PSM-156. Both were leaps ahead of the Furman products that cost the same. Everyone says start with the speakers. I say if you can afford it start with the outlet on the wall. I do think it’s amazing how much better a $29 DVD player sounds on a good DAC and even better on a really good DAC. Most of us cannot afford our end game speaker until the end of a game. I just listened to a pair of active KEF speakers on a blu node streamer total cost $1000 Very amazing. Most people should start this way since just about every TT listener is streaming.