OP, your thread is like so many others here: Help me choose a DAC. People ask because there are so many DACs and it’s impossible to audition them all. Many of the best ones, and best values, are sold directly and not through B&M dealers. They all seem to have the same ins and outs. They all seem to have their adherents. The critics say they all sound great.
The usual response is: buy the DAC I have. I really like it. And it’s a great value. I could say that, but why would anyone care. Then you will hear from dealers who write with certainty that, for the right price, they can set you straight.
My suggestion is that you stop writing and start reading . . .right here.
This is probably the best forum for the purpose. All important DACs are written of here at length by actual purchasers and users. They will tell you how they listen to music, what kind of music they listen to, what else in in their system. They will tell you what a particular DAC brought to their music that other DACs did not. Some have experience with many DACs (though sometimes it’s hard to figure out why--could simply be hobby-driven curiosity. It’s a treasure trove of information. They’re not like the critics; many will tell you that they sold a DAC because it didn’t measure up. Scroll down and see which DACs get a lot of attention--some for the right reasons and some for the wrong reasons.
Use the forum. It will serve you well. It’s kind of . . research, a bit of work.
I would simply add, without recommending a particular DAC that he actual digital to analog conversion, of which so much is made, is probably the least important component of a DAC. Great DACs have been made with every type of conversion be they DS chips, R2R chips or discrete, and FGPA chips, which are chips individually programmed, usually partly DS.
As in every other audio component, the best quality comes from a great power supply and fine, discrete, analog output stages.