Any reviews/input on Cary Audio Xciter DAC?

Hi Moofoo, here's some followup. Redbook CD playback, Cary Xciter vs. Sony 5400es: (Caveat: my Xciter DAC was thoroughly broken in by the previous owner, but my new 5400es has been on for 200 hrs, played about 30 hrs.) At this point the Xciter DAC (using the 5400es as a transport via a 0.5 meter digital coax) is equally detailed and spacious but pleasantly smoother and sweeter than the 5400es built-in DAC. The Xciter just never seems to have any digital edge, whereas the (still breaking in) 5400es DAC doesn't produce quite the same feeling of "ease" while listening to RBCDs. According to some the 5400es requires a long break-in period, so it is likely to smooth out over time.
Xciter Toslink input: Tested via Samsung BDP-2500 BD player ouputting 48khz PCM > 0.5 meter glass fiber Toslink cable > Xciter. The Dolby Digital soundtrack on Diana Krall's "Live in Paris" DVD sounds better through the Xciter than I thought possible from a lossy compressed standard DVD soundtrack. The Xciter sounds deeper and more dynamic than the Samsung, which although it's an inexpensive BD player, uses the ESS 9006 DAC chip which is quite good.

Thank you for the additional information. Much appreciated. I received the Xciter DAC today, set up the coax input with a Moon Audio supplied digital cable, and am running it from a secondary system CD player (at 44.1 kHz)for a few days - before I even listen to it. I would like to burn it in for about 96 hours, but I am not sure I can wait that long to check it out in my main system. Looking foward to it!

OK. I spent the last couple of days listening in my main system after 96 hours of burn in. This DAC is great, and it just blends well with my other components. It has a wide, rich, expansive and very detailed soundstage and you are correct, it has an analog, smooth sound. I can't agree with your observations more and look forward to using the other inputs and other sources. I am more than pleased with what I am getting through the coax connected to my CD player. I have not tried laptop output yet but will eventually. I know the Xciter is somewhat being marketed to a PC/desktop type use, but I think this thing belongs in a larger system - in other words - justice may not be done to its capabilites if you listen to it through desktop speakers. It brought another level of improvement to the digital front-end of my main listenting system that I did not think it would. The soundstage consistently went outside of the outer edges of my floorstanding Snell speakers. I listened to a variety of CDs, mostly rock and acoustic:

Beth Orton - Daybreaker
King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King
Brian Auger - Straight Ahead
Leni Stern/Wayne Krantz - Separate Cages
Suzanne Vega - Beauty and Crime
Jorma Kaukonen - Blue Country Heart
Jeff Beck - Blow by Blow
Chris Whitley - Living with the Law

Next up will be jazz. It is great to get a product like this since it makes you think of all those CDs you can't wait to hear! Now...if I could just replace that old Adcom power conditioner with ...a Hydra 6. It is all about getting to the music!

Would wait for the Wyred DAC that I heard at RMAF.
It has the Sabre(9008) DAC. Built like a tank for around $1200.
Discrete output, high quality parts, etc.

Wyred has a great reputation and that is ESS's 32-bit chip; I'll bet it's awesome. No specs on the Wyred site yet, though; do you know whether they are using any of the new minimum phase or "apodizing" filters (Meridian, Ayre, and Cambridge use different implementations of these ideas)? Some people think these new types of filters are a revelation, others can barely hear the difference. I haven't heard one yet. Cary doesn't say anything about their digital filter(s).
Moofoo, you need to hear some hi-res through the Cary DAC. I got the hybrid DVD of "Muddy Waters - Folk Singer" from Acoustic Sounds and played it from my Blu-Ray player through the Cary at 24/96, and the great performance, excellent 1963 recording, and hi-res reproduction will raise the hairs on your neck. Assuming that you like blues, of course!