T+A DAC 200 would be my choice at the $7k level.
Lampizator Baltic 4 also sonically punches above it’s price point also but with a warmer tube presentation- can tube roll to adjust sound.
Hegel H390 DAC
I hesitate to add yet another DAC related thread but I haven't seen this particular question asked before, so....
After owing an H390 for a year, I just got around to listening to it's onboard DAC. What? Huh? Why? I was biased -- convinced I wouldn't like because it wasn't described by reviewers as overtly"warm", like my Aqua La Voce S2.
As someone who always advocates making buying decisions based on listening, I feel quite sheepish making this confession but as this is an audio forum, not group therapy, I'll move on to the main point.
I was shocked to discover I actually prefer the Hegel's DAC to the Aqua. In my system, in my room, it is more transparent, smoother and more effortless. And, to my surprise, it conveys more emotion.
The only downside is that the Hegel's DAC is somewhat leaner in the mids than I'd prefer.
Question: which outboard DACs have a similar but more fleshed-out sonic profile under 7K, new?
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Update: Cables needed for dac loop arrived today. Tonality with Aqua back in system in dac loop mode is no longer lean. The good news : noise is still absent. The bad news: sibilance has returned. I will try different xlrs to see whether the current ones or the Aqua might be the source of the sibilance.
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@stuartk interesting. What cables are you thinking of trying? |
A fellow forum member has volunteered to lend me some DH Labs. I’m not concerned about the digital cables. It’s the XLR ICs that I want to swap out. I can return the newly acquired Audio Art XLRs if necessary. I’ve researched the topic of dealing with sibilance and encountered quite a variation of opinion: 1) It’s in the recordings. 2) it’s an AC issue 3) it’s a vibration issue 4) it can be dealt with via speaker positioning (I haven’t found this to be true, so far) 5) it has to do with the DAC. Substituting my old Jolida CDP for the Jay’s (both as a transport and a CDP) failed to improve the sibilance issue, so it would seem the Jay’s is not to blame. I find sibilance extremely annoying. I don’t really want to give up listening to certain female vocalists but I may have to, until I can afford to put serious $ into the system. |
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