Biggest questions: Have you totalled up the total money you spent chasing the "perfect" DAC sound; Does your spouse know the figure; and where do you hide the Goose laying the golden eggs to afford this hobby?
Inquiring minds are eager to know!
dacs that I have had in my system - a listing
i comment quite a bit on threads about digital/analog converters, as i have tried many since the covid period in early 2020, when i recommitted to my hifi and getting streaming and a truly modern digital front end implemented in my main home system
i have had questions on what dacs i have actually tried -- so last week when i was sleepless on a long transcontinental flight home from a holiday, i made a listing, which i post below
almost all dacs below have been owned, and spent extensive time (at least 2-3 months) in my system, obviously there have been changes in my system over this time, and not all dacs were owned at the same time
i post this here so others can refer to this here - i looked, but i could not find a way to post this on my 'system' page
the asterisk-ed entries are still in hand, currently:
2020
topping d90 mqa
ayre codex
mhdt stockholm
mhdt orchid
mhdt istanbul
denafrips pontus original
musical paradise mpd1
ps audio d link iii modded cullen
bs node 2i
2021
denafrips ares 2
denafrips pontus 2
denafrips terminator
auris d1d vu
audio mirror tubador 3 se
van alstine fet topp*
van alstine fet hybrid
rme adi 2 (akm)
schiit modius
schiit gumby
schiit yggy*
sonnet morpheus
border patrol se i
metrum jade
metrum octave
metrum hex
metrum adagio
musical fidelity trivista 21 (modded)*
weiss 501* (now 4ch)
2022
chord 2qute
chord qutest
chord m scaler* hugo tt2*
mhdt orchid modded*
audio note kits dac4 pro
msb analog w powerbase*
denafrips venus 2*
denafrips pontus 12
audio gd master 7
musetec 005
bs node n130
bricasti m1se mdx
doge 7
hegel h90 190 390 590* (internal)
2023
gustard r26*
eversolo dmp a6 master*
mhdt toucan
orchard pecan pi*
cambridge audio cxn2 modwright modded tubed*
- ...
- 113 posts total
I have heard these and ,not very impressed , imo roughly $5k in up to truly get into high quality digital. By far the best which I am still saving for is the class leading T+A200dac at $7200 retail is a true bargain , and has HQ player built into it with multiple settings if you choose to since this too is built into Roon even Innuous now implement this , this dac my myself and 6 others I have spoke with in New England it meets or beats anything in the $15k and under club it is That good . That my early 🎅 Xmas present 🎁 this year. And whatever the Mrs won’t approve of - lol. |
Can you honestly remember the differences between them ? And especially if they have multiple filter options? I recently hauled a Denon SACD player out of storage that hadn’t been played for seven years and was surprised at how much better it sounded than I remembered, once it had warmed up. Otoh my amplification has changed . I’m guessing that the rest of your system has not been static during these years |
A remarkable list, @jjss49, and thanks for your various, thoughtful impressions. On the other end of the spectrum, I have owned a grand total of two DACs, despite having been 'in the game' for 40 years! The first was a Denafrips Pontus II, and, interestingly, my current Aqua La Scala, is not on your list. Luckily I have no desire to change. |
- 113 posts total