Based on what you are looking for, I believe that you will like the Weiss DAC204. This review compares it to a more expensive, currently well regarded DAC.
*DAC
I am down to the last piece of the puzzle. I am very happy with the sound of my system at this point, so I’m not sure if the DAC needs to be improved on. What I am looking for is to hear those background subtleties in the music a little more pronounced. The strum of a guitar, the stroke of the piano keys, the clicks, ticks & tingles that accompany the music. I do here that now, I just wondered if there is a way to elaborate on those background sounds (details) a bit more.
Is it the DAC that will make this happen? If it is, they say my Gustard R26 is as good as a $5K DAC, how far over that $5K do you think I have to go?
Thank you for your help and suggestions and the best to you all over the holiday season and beyond!
PS: I listen mostly to Jazz
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- 133 posts total
@navyachts the suggestion by @ghdprentice to try a Chord DAC is right on target I think. Chord has a great tone, good dynamics and offers few filter options to fine tune the sound. I was running a Chord Qutest when I had the Martin Logan Montis with Pass XA30.8 Class A amp and it was a very good match. |
IMHO (from personal experience) the cable or power cord/vibration devices can be the issue. The good news is they are a lot cheaper to address. After spending $170 for a 1.5M Pangea coax (same specs as DH Labs @ $240) I tripped across a thread here about Ali-Express Chinese cables. I have no issues saving money especially on cables. Dipped my toe in the water and ordered Nordost Odin 2 (name knock-off), both a 1.0 and 1.5m for half the price of the Pangea! Figured it would sell quick but noooo. Anyway, the Odin 2 brought my entire system to new levels of enjoyment. After sufficient break in with the 1.5 I swapped it out for the 1.0m and was further shocked that a mere half meter shorter could reveal so much more. I wound up replacing all the cables in my system, but moved to Odin 2 Gold which gives me more texture, aka fuzz on the peach. Since I swapped out the Odin 2 for Odin 2 Gold for over a year I have been searching for a Odin 2 Gold coax cable which I finally found and should be here in a couple days: price a mere $46 dollars and free shipping HTH |
The DAC is probably not the last piece of your puzzle. Seems you are streaming music. Your music source files are the last piece of the puzzle: if they are dynamically compressed, no price-point DAC will jump the shark you’ve placed in this path. You are constrained in details by the source file, primarily. In all likelihood, but were I a betting man, I’d wager. Sort that, since no streaming service will be doing it for you. Too many clients willing to pony up each month not knowing which master/remaster of any given song/album they’re getting for you to expect better from a streaming service. Its convenience you pay for in those services more than perfection, and fair is fair, eh!? |
- 133 posts total