which dac?

Hmm--you own an Apollo? That's a very fine CD player.

I've owned both the Apollo and a Bel Canto DAC2. The BC DAC is wonderful, but I can't say that it was superior to the Apollo -- just different. I haven't heard BC's new DAC3. One thing worth noting -- when I used the DAC2, it benefited greatly from a good interconnect between transport and DAC. I started with a 75-ohm Canare cable, which worked fine, but the sound improved when I used a Kimber Illuminati cable.

If you're basically happy with the Apollo, maybe you'd like to move up the Rega line to the Saturn?

Dodson 218 if you can swing it (and find a used one), or 217 MkII, which also was great. These have stood the test of time in my system. They don't do anything wrong and a lot right.

Nglazer

Gilman61255

make a decision yet?

Bob R
What JA said was the BC3 was the best 'DAC he'd yet measured'... NOT the best DAC yet. He pointed to the Weiss, and one other 5 or 6 times the BC3's price tag.

...and disporportionately compared the BC3 to the Benchmark. I guess there aren't too many DACs in the mid 2K slot for comparisons sake... but then he owns the Benchmark and likes to compare it to about anything... as he did with the Lavry Blue as well. Talk about disporportionate comparisons!

Personally, the Lavry DA 10 is a fine sounding unit. IMO

Blindjim,
Too bad you're not closer. I would loan my Bel Canto Dac 3 to you, so you could do some comparisons. Honestly I don't think there is a such thing as the best. I do believe you'd like the BC3. Whether you'd like it over the Lavry I do not know. I will say the BC3 is a seriously good sounding Dac. It will make you think twice about spending more on a digital front end. If nothing else comparing the two would be fun!