are the better DACs starting to converge on the same good sound

Good question. I am curious to hear what people say. 

We certainly would not say, "Are the better cuisines starting to converge on the same good taste?" Excellent foods taste different without converging.

The question raised, for me, is whether that is true of sonics. My guess is "yes" but the degree to which the DAC is a large contributor to those divergent cases of excellence is an open question.

@lordmelton  I assume you have a half way decent system and can hear differences between DACs. Have you ever listened to entry level DACs through your system? If so, do you notice similar issues with them? 

@lordmelton 503 posts 06-17-2022 at 03:44pm

“ … Whether it’s a DAC, cable, preamp or whatever you need to have a half decent system to reveal the differences.

That being said some people really can’t hear differences between a cheap or expensive DAC…”

MY TAKE:

(A) ) +1 on the prerequisite for a high-end system actually capable of having the advanced audio resolution threshold where differentiation starts and matters.

(B) In my experience, the clear differentiation between DACs starts at about $3K and going north from there. That’s the point where the design and the build quality starts to separate the contenders from the pretenders, with a step-up in audio performance.

for example:

• Robust linear power supplies and isolation from the signal path.
• Steel chassis and metalwork. Machined and anodized aluminum dress panel.
• Dual high-end DAC chipset used in in dual-mono configuration Balanced mode for improved SNR.
• The output is sent through the high-end unit’s custom discreet and fully balanced Class-A output stage.
• Most have an upgraded design before the incoming digital signal even gets to the DAC chips. The high-end units remove the embedded timing information from the incoming signal and re-clocks the data against its own proprietary master clock, thus minimizing potential jitter issues.
• invariably, they have a clean and well thought out layout with high quality parts and construction used throughout.
• You will expect a large toroidal transformer, connected to robust power reserves and filtration on the main control PCB, that powers a series of individual boards. If it has anHDMI board, it is separate from the dual-input USB board which is separated from the DAC / output-stage board as well.

- here’s a further blurb to read:

Cheap DAC vs Expensive DAC – What’s the Actual Difference?

https://www.musicservertips.com/opinions/cheap-dac-vs-expensive-dac/

In general, I would have to say yes high quality DACs are converging on a similar good sound. About 20 years ago this was occurring rapidly between tube and solid state gear (particularly preamps and phonostages) where the issues with both were getting mitigated and the sounds converged.

I had a Berkeley Alpha Reference DAC along with my Audio Research Reference CD9SE DAC/CD player. I was able to route the digital signals through both at the same time and compare them directly with volumes matched by my preamp. These two DACs were so incredibly similar it was amazing… for High Rez files and CD or streamed content. Amazingly similar. After comprehensive comparisons I liked the Audio Research I tiny bit better… it had a slightly more fleshed out mid range. But very seriously good.

I also spent time with a top of the Line Linn DAC. Also, outstanding.

One thing to note is the sound coming from my digital end that it is very much at the same level and character as my really good analog end. That does not mean that every high end system will sound the same since differences in the amp, speakers, and preamp will have a different character depending on the musical objective of the company who makes them. All of my equipment is Audio Research… so, swapping just the DAC is a good test of this component. Had I swapped amps (say to Pass) there would have been a huge difference…

@asctim Yes, I have a decent system but it's not just down to that.

Musical instruments have specific sounds a Gibson is going to sound different to a Fender.

I can tell differences between entry level and very expensive DACs based on sound quality not just on price.

To me I look for realism, does a piano really sound like that?  Does the artist really have that accent?