DAC Question: Delta-Sigma vs R2R

I have tinnitus and some things just dont sound good-John Prine unfortunately can sound bad on vinyl for example.

I bought an MHDT Stockholm DAC  tube, RtR, NOS and the sound was much more euphoniic and pleasing compared to the sound out of my Emotiva CDP, doesnt sound fatiguing  or set off my tinnitus.

ymmv

@jonwatches1 - No abuse here! 😁 But just wondering why you would think a new cheap $300 DAC would be better than a Chord Hugo, for example, which is 5 years old or so? Enjoy yer tunes! 

@larsman - really good question.  so, I probably overstated things for effect.  I am sure the 2017 Chord Hugo would still sound better than the 2022 $300 dac.  It’s an interesting question how the 2017 Chord will compare to a $300 dac in 2025, probably when I buy a new one (I have no idea what relative sound would be like - probably still the Chord for a person with the right ears and right system)

In my case, part of the answer had to do with biggest impact.  At the time, I thought moving from a $250 cartridge to a $1,000 cartridge on the turntable would have a good and lasting impact (thankfully, seems to be correct).  I was less sure about marginal impact on the DAC

If I were pure digital, I’d buy the Chord or Benchmark; For the conversation, I thought if would be fun to contribute the idea of “hey, how much does it really matter” depending on individual listening habits - there aren’t many hours of intense listening for me, and those hours are on vinyl, so I keep thing simple, and lightly invested, on the digital side

(btw, the vinyl is as much nostalgia as anything else - I am staying far, far away from that discussion, which in any event off topic for this thread)

@larsman why you would think a new cheap $300 DAC would be better than a Chord Hugo, for example, which is 5 years old or so? 

I'll bite.  I would challenge anyone to listen to a $440 SMSL M500 MkII DAC (also a headphone amp) and swear that the Chord Hugo not only sounds better but is the better DAC. 

It may be a close call, of course, because the Chord Hugo was a tremendous bit of kit in its time at what, $3,000?

@jonwatches1 - Thanks! And depending on the rest of the gear in the system, it may indeed be very hard to tell the difference between the DAC's. I was using a Chord DAVE + M Scaler, and it was fine, but I ended up replacing that setup with a Holo May KTE DAC, which has a lusher sound, that I prefer. 

@noske - You could very well be right, depending on the rest of the gear. Personally, I would find both of those DAC's on the dry side for my tastes, but lots of people love 'em, so that's great!