DAC Under $3000

I’ve had the Qutest for 4+ years and think it is super detailed and really special sounding with a huge soundstage and preciese pinpointing of instruments. I’m ready to replace it due to its age. But it’s so good it’s difficult to find anything under $5k that tops it. I may try one of the ones I listed above but I’m unsure if they’ll be better or just different.

There are many DACs under $3K that outclass the Qutest IME. I owned the Qutest twice (the second time bought it for a great price with the sole purpose of flipping) and while it does have good resolution, it’s relatively 2-dimensional, lean and edgy. That’s only relative to some other good performing DACs, a couple of which cost considerably less than the Qutest: the Marantz HD-DAC1 and Denafrips Ares II. 
 

I can imagine a Qutest making for great synergy with a Mac anchored system. So of course, things aren’t always apples-to-apples. 

I recently experienced an Hegel HD 30 used with Valve Pre-Power Amp's and Klipsch Jubilee Speakers.

I have been demo'd a selectin of SS DAC's in systems I am familiar with at a price range that is up to £2500.

I have been demo'd DAC's in unfamiliar systems with a value up to £?????, but some I am sure are north of £10K.

Out of them all the Hegel is the one that has left for me an indelible memory, as a result of how much of a good impression it made. 

+++  Schitt Yggy R2R is superb... at a bargain price!

Lampizator Baltic 4

Sometimes there exists different options based on the performance requirement aka, primarily for streaming, cd and/or sacd playback, or server playback.  I use a custom built DAC for cd only playback.  It has USB input and can do higher resolution but sounds best for CDs only.