Is there any such thing as a bad sounding DAC these days?

Today, it is expected that any dac over a $100 sound pretty decent with either improvements or a sound emphasis that perhaps provides a noticeable improvement or works better with one's amp, speakers, etc., that supports the increases in price.

A higher voltage output, better separation, a bit better tonality, more note weight, stage sizing on all axis, less distorted sounds, etc., etc., however minor differences to some are highly noticeable by others.

Functionality and capability also come into play. Build quality, Reliability. 

Seems dacs these days have a lot to offer at nearly any price point.

But I remember the old TDA chips that Philips produced that could be so natural sounding,  It was a budget chip that when properly implemented...it was nice. It may not have had the larger stage size or punch as some others, but it could give a more natural rendition.  

I use a modified and expanded Yamaha A3000 sampler I bought in 1997 as a DAC because it is simply the best sounding piece digital conversion kit I have ever heard... A sampler is after all; a DAC on steroids. 

There are some great resources that map subjective sound claims and terminology to specific frequency response characteristics:

It's worth considering that a low noise and distortion DAC with a flat response can always be DSPed to achieve the kind of distortions that are appealing to the listener. Badly measuring DACs are only appealing to a select few.

@markwd 

Interesting chart. Thank you.

Charts like that are invaluable to help understand what we hear in music better and use tools like DSP to adjust the sound to personal preference.

Agree starting with a high quality neutral sounding DAC then tweak to one’s heart content from there is a very practical way to go.