I think telling folks they can get $10,000 performance for $200 is an easy way to get clicks. Some have built big channels off of selling that idea and it would be nice if it were true. The good news is that there seems to be a lot of quality dacs/streamers that are not terribly expensive, but that's not to say they sound as good as the best.
DAC 'Scam' Vid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Sg1nYLmLCw
The TL:DW is that any well made Dac should not be more than $200 and anything above that doesn't sound any better since they all use similar cheap chips to do the D/A conversion. Anything above $200 for a DAC is basically snake oil and theres no improvement in sonics.
Appreciate your insights.
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I’ve tried 10 different DACs in my system. Once I got above about $200 US they all sounded good. Once I got up near 2K they sounded better. 2K was the top of my budget. Ended up choosing the Holo Audio Cyan 2. It was not the most expensive at 1300 but sounded the best to me in my system. Do DACs that cost thousands more sound better, possibly but I couldn’t afford them so I don’t worry about it. I’m not going to demo something that I can’t afford. Need to avoid FOMO with this hobby. Your experience may differ. |
Ok, since you asked,
BTW, IMO, “snake oil” is a dumb term that is loosely used around here in posts intended to be provocative. The price of something is a value proposition, if you can’t afford it or don’t believe it provides enough value for the price then don’t buy it. If the manufacturer misrepresents the performance, irrespective of price, then that is fraud. Unfortunately, in the audio world, there seems to be a grey area called wishful thinking that falls between fact and fraud. |
http://forum.audiogon.com/posts/2799450 @mitch2 which two dacs are currently in your system and have you heard the SW1X dac. I'm currently in the considering it, the new Rockna Signature, or MSB equivalent. |
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