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DAC shopping - Trying to sift through the Hype. Can I trust the reviews these days ??

Hi All,

Well I've been reading a ton of threads about DACs. This is a very complicated endeavor, trying to find a new DAC. My 1st question is: Can I trust all the Youtube reviews these days ?

Seems like everyone is promoting the same DACs. I'm looking into a R2R Dac. Tons of hype for Holo May,Cyan,Laiv Harmony,Denafrips. Are these truly great Dacs or are they just the flavour of the month ?. There is almost zero negativity towards these Dacs. It's kind of like when the Eversolo streamers came out. Seemed like every reviewer was pushing the Eversolo. So searching for a new DAC online almost seems like sponsored ADs everywhere, am I wrong in feeling this way ?

That all being said here is my criteria for a new DAC (Probably searching the used market to get best value)

I believe I want to go with a R2R Dac, but it's not a dealbreaker.

My budget: $1000-$3000

My system: Bryston 3B Cubed, VTL(tube pre),Bel Canto 3.7 Dac(with upgrades), Antipodes Ds-3(player/server).

I really enjoy my Bel Canto 3.7, but it doesn't have USB input and I'm curious how much better a DAC sounds in 2024, compared to an older Bel Canto,. My BC has an upgraded linear supply. Once again this DAC sounds beautiful, but when its not compared to anything......Maybe I'm depriving myself of a better DAC. This is the only DAC I've had with existing equipment.

I know plenty of you will say go audition as many DACs as you can, but that is difficult unless it's hooked up to my gear. Won't help going to a store with a DAC being hooked up to different gear.Plus I want to buy used. I can buy higher end with a bit of a discount.

 

From my research these are the DACs I'm thinking of pursuing:

Laiv Harmony

Denafrips Pontas ii

Holo Cyan

 

You can tell from my choices that I've been buying into the hype.

Please add to my list of DACs and please dispel any extra hype over the most talked about models.

Cheers.

128x128bunkertoy
jimmyblues1959
144 posts
 

@Bunkertoy, if you’re interested in R2R dacs and would like to sample the technology without spending a lot of money, you may want to consider the older Audio By Van Alstine dacs. A few years back I purchased a 2008 AVA Insight multibit dac for about $300. It’s really quite good and has me wondering what the logic is in spending thousands of dollars on a dac. However, that’s just my subjective opinion and as such should be taken with a grain of salt.

Best of luck in your search for a new dac and most of all enjoy the journey! 😊

 

donavabdear's avatar
donavabdear
502 posts
 

The Harmony DAC is a real surprise, fights way above its weight only negative is it's a little not tube sounding. Also the biggest change in audio quality to me hasn't been cables or components but the switch to the Is2 connection much better than USB and it's easy to tell. 

lanx0003
831 posts
 

Pontus II lacks true NOS mode, while the Cyan 2 operates exclusively in NOS. It seems the Laiv is a well-rounded DAC option for a 'purist' but also want to have an option of filtering for some genres of music.

rbstehno
1,437 posts
 

Yep, all dacs sound the same, all cables sound the same, all amps sound the same, all preamps sound the same, usb is the best interface, on and on with all the audio myths.

Huge difference in sq, huge difference in chips/non-chip dacs (I only get fpga based dacs), and usb is the worst interface to a dac. If it was so good, why the hundreds of reclockers, cable splitting the power/data runs, femto clocks, offramp devices, on and on. The better streamers/dacs don’t even have usb, my streamer doesn’t.

Remember the special interfaces between cd/sacd players and their preamps? Look at Esoteric products, they use i2s.

99% of audio people will never try/audition i2s or Ethernet interfaces because the cheaper dacs don’t include them. So before anybody has an opinion on i2s or Ethernet, verify that they has actually used this or disqualify it right away.

My dac includes all interfaces and I have tested usb vs Ethernet vs i2s. Last place is usb, second place is Ethernet and 1st place is i2s.

charles7
109 posts
 

For accuracy, I have an RME ADI FS 2. It has USB, Toslink, and coax inputs. Among the half dozen digital filters is NOS. And a five-band parametric equalizer if you are into that.
"I'm all about analog. low fatigue sounds. full sound with timbre, holographic,tubey,warm." To get that, I run the RME output through a tube preamp. It also helps to have appropriate speakers for that sound.

 

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