DAC suggestions for a reasonably modest system

@cundare2 

I was surprised not to see HFR until your post.  But they are streamer DACs, so perhaps that was the reason.  If you were to isolate the DAC portion only, aside from the comparison to the 103D, where would you position it in the spectrum of available DACs?  It does look like the 250RS puts a lot into the GUI and streaming function, so I'm wondering if the DAC gets short shrift like in the BS Node.

Couple Wadia 321s on here for $1.7K.  Good implementation of ESS 916 chip. balanced , multiple inputs. 

negative: out of production and large foot print. 

HFR is a big topic! People either seem to love ’em or hate ’em.

There are only one or two other DAC/streamers I know of that have an iPad-style GUI like that of all HFR products.  Unfortunately, those units have gotten a reputation for being buggy, based on early shipments. My unit, however, was manufactured maybe a year after its initial announcement and was pretty much bug-free (and it supported online updates).  I did suffer a hardware failure, though, so I don't know if I'd buy one that didn't have a warranty.

Disclaimer: At the time, I had a modest digital system that didn’t have a higher-end DAC, or offer the SQ of my vinyl signal path. I listened to digital content mostly through my Oppo disc player, LG "audiophile" ThinQ phone, and a $2000 Marantz AV receiver. Today, having been bitten by the digital bug, I’m more interested in Aurenders and Ayres.

But despite all that, I could have lived easily with even HFR’s entry-level RS250A, especially given that an integrated streamer, large touchscreen display, and preamp were includded in the price. Its biggest selling point for me, however, was its connectivity, Android GUI, and impressive functionality. I had it streaming 4K YouTube videos to my 75" TV, and its huge array of I/O options made it easy to simultaneously integrate into both my audiophile stereo and my maybe-sorta-audiophile home theater.

I recently committed to spend four times the 250's purchase price on an Ayre DAC, but if that deal falls through, I’d still consider one of the higher-end HFR streamers or DAC/streamers. Once you have one inhouse, you get spoiled. The 250A might not the best possible SQ, especially when compared with the much pricier Denafrips, etc., that are (rightfully) popular here.

But the difference in SQ isn’t all that great on most mid-priced systems and, as much as I would have once choked on the words, this was one of those few instances where functionality, ease of use, and connectivity were just as important as SQ.  In aggregate, maybe even more so.

Yes, YMMV, but that was my experience.

RME ADI-2 DAC FS PCM/DSD best bang for buck at $1300