Theta Pro Basic II DAC......still a contender?

Chad, depending on which Monarchy DIP you have a DIP upgrade could go a long way. If you have the old style DIP with the RCA connections on the front and the power on the back then it uses a PLL to de-jitter, and this can be improved.

I went from an old DIP to the new DIP classic (the latest incarnation, contrary to the name), which uses an asynchronous sample rate convertor chip to de-jitter the data stream, instead of the old phase locked loop. In combination with my Monarchy 22A DAC the sound took a big step forward with the DIP classic.

From what I understand this de-jitter method is the same as is used in the highly touted Benchmark DAC-1.

If you trade your older DIP against a DIP classic I expect it will cost less than $100 for the upgrade.

IMO Theta Basic II is still an excelent sounding dac for the (used) price. It eats most of the current budget players for breakfast. It is very highly sensitive to jitter though, so a good transport or a reclocking device is a must. I have tried both Theta TLC and Genesis Digital Lens, and the latter is vastly superior. It works magic on all Theta I have tried - Basic II, Basic III/IIIa, Prime II and Gen V/Va.

Do not be worried abot the bits thing - the Audio Note DAC 5 Sig, arguably the worlds best, is also 18 bit.

One of my "Special" audio moments involved a Basic II fed by a CEC spinner (& ARC LS-2B, ARC 130 amp, Dunleavy SC-IVs and Dunleavy wire ).
The sound of this system will never be "dated".

Thanks guys, maybe I will leave well enough alone but entertain the Monarchy upgrade, Happy Holidays!