Too many choices for R2R DACS--opinions appreciated

@willywonka 

That is very disturbing and has somewhat soured me in buying a Chinese DAC. I was going to buy a Holo Audio May today but may need to rethink my options. Even though your problems were with Audio GD, they have no control over Chinese Customs.

Be careful, as you are conflating in a manner that may restrict your choices unnecessarily. I am not aware of any similar stories relating to Denafrips or Holo Audio, to pick two obvious examples, and doubt very much that anything similar would happen if a return were necessary.

It is damning that Audio GD behaved as reported, and I wouldn't go near their products because of that alone. But while I have moved on from a Denafrips DAC, my dealings with Alvin, their worldwide representative, based in Singapore, were comparable to the positive experiences that I have had with American and European companies.

If you are interested in a Holo DAC, why not contact them and ask specifically how returns would be handled. My bet is that you wouldn't be on the hook for any Customs charges, even if it were necessary to ship the unit back to China.

It's not my first experience in dealing with a Chinese made DAC. I bought a Yulong Sabre DA3 a number of years ago that was shipped directly from China. Also no need to contact Holo Audio, their not so good return policy is already spelled out on their website. Warranty returns and just regular returns are handled differently but they don't accept any returns on a Holo Audio May from what I see. This is always a risk we all have to decide on when we buy from a Chinese company or even a boutique company who is a one man show. As much as I want to buy from Holo Audio there are risks with them being a one man show and a Chinese company. There are risks in everything! 

I came across this on the Lampizator site.

http://www.lampizator.eu/lampizator/TDA1541%20corner/TDA1541.html

The TDA1541 is the DAC chip of the MHDT Orchid.

I currently have an original Schiit Bifrost and a Denafrips Pontus ll.  It’s a PITA, but comparing them was interesting.  The Bifrost is great, but the Pontus ll is a totally different animal! Much better bass and better mids and highs. Definitely less analytical.  If I get the funds, I’d like to try other RTR DAC’s.

All the best.

JD

Once again, thanks to all for the opinions and very helpful information. At this point (though it’s not set in stone--yet) I’m flipping back and forth between the Holo Audio Spring 3 KTE and the Sonnet Morpheus II. Reviews seem to favor the Holo DAC (narrowly), but there are downsides, principally the point of origin for shipping (Singapore, I think) and a rather long wait for the DAC to be assembled. There is a domestic source for the Morpheus which is a distinct upside, but it’s located here in California, so there’ll be a pretty steep sales tax tacked on. In the end, it’s probably a wash, price-wise. I did notice a Morpheus for sale at a pretty good price on USAM BTW, but you never seem to see Holo Spring 3 on the used sites. That could be a clue in itself. I’d welcome opinions. BTW, I’ve watched any number of Youtube vids about these DACS, which are pretty helpful but can’t really give a realistic idea of how one or the other would perform in my system (see original post).