Berkeley Audio Design - is there a reason why these go up for sale if they are that good

I recently upgraded my digital front end and ended up purchasing the Berkeley Reference 3. My previous DAC was the Berkeley Alpha Version 1 prior to that a Mark Levinson 360S. I will offer my personal opinion and also reference comments from professional reviewers.

Comment 1: Berkeley audio has a house sound. All of their DACS are going to sound similar with the differences being in bass impact, amount of detail presented and sound stage width. As an example  I have both the reference and alpha set up in my system. One night I listened for half an hour before realizing I was listening to the alpha instead of the reference.

Comment 2  from The Computer Audiophile: “the RS3 delivers each instrument as if in its own world. Each instrument is reproduced in its entirety, supremely delineated from the others” and “The sound of the RS3 is what I consider raw / unaltered”.  These comments are exactly what I observed.

Comment 3 from The absolute sound – Robert Harley: “expressive rhythmically” and “The sound is more vibrant, open, and lively but without any attendant increase in brightness or listening fatigue.” These comments are exactly what I observed.

Comment 4 the reference 3 is a resolution monster. You will hear details that you have not heard before. I would not define the details as razor sharp. This can be both good and bad. If your source and electronics are not up to this level of detail you will not enjoy the sound. I had to upgrade my source (mac mini/ raspberry pi to aurender) and preamp ( CJ ET5 to Merrill Christene)  to fully enjoy the reference 3.

Comment 5  listening fatigue: This is where things get interesting. With the reference 3 I can now listen to music that I could not listen to before. However with the increased amount of detail I find some music that I enjoyed before to now be irritating. As an example I now find drummers who are constantly banging on cymbals to be irritating.  

Summary: I find the reference 3 to be lean, raw and exciting. Now when I listen to music my toes are tapping and my head is bobbing. It does not present a smooth and refined sound. Hope this helps in your search.

I want to realx to my music

You are in the wrong format.

don't seek input and opinion from the willfully ignorant.

We use a variety of A2D and DAC in the recording studio , Berkely is always on offer as it is generally more detailed and incisive. I would suggest you add the Brinkmann Nyquist II and Aesthetix Pandora - Signature to your audition list. You might also consider Audio Note and Lampizator...both excellent.

As to used units for sale...i would consider that the normal state of the market...

Have fun, enjoy the journey , the music

Jim

There is a simple reason why things go up for sale: People don't want them.

The ultimate review of audio value is the used market. It is actually one of the more reliable indicators of value. The really good stuff, people hang onto. When they do sell it tends to be for less of a discount, or none- or even a premium.

This is so obvious, and yet there are people who think the best "deal" is the greatest discount. News flash: nobody discounts except to sell fast, or to sell crap.

When I go looking for components one of the last things I do - not first, last- is check the used market. It never happens there's much there. Because I select only the good stuff. The stuff people want. Not the stuff they want to sell. If I ever found a lot of what I want in the used market that would be a concern.

You want to give up some detail for musicality. Your words. You want to relax into the music. You question why so many are selling something so supposedly good. You are right to wonder. You are in the wrong format.