Too many DAC decisions

I have had the entertaining chance to listen to the following DACs in my system (Manley Stingray II and Merlin TSM-MXr speakers) and with my friends system, Vandy 5a speakers with mostly all ARC power.

DACs we've listened to...

Rega, W4S 2 Minimax, Minimax Plus, Centrance Mini, ARC 8, Dacmagic

Here's the bad news....
They all did great jobs and nothing was seriously dominated. Even the Dacmagic held its own just fine and sounded great. Most of the time you would need to check to see which was playing. After some very crazy intense listening we liked the Rega and Centrance best. The owner of the Minimax plus says he may end up ranking the Plus 2nd. But the reality was how much alike they all sounded. Of course they did! They're all chasing the same goal!

Buy a nice DAC (I like the Rega overall and the Minimax Plus in SS mode) and don't worry too much about it. You'll have more tweakability almost anywhere else in your system. Be sure to add good software and memory to the Mac and configure it right. To be fair, I should say that we have not done a serious comparison to the expensive ARC Dac.

Good luck....just jump!

Rob

With the plethora of DACs on the market it's very difficult to choose one just as it is with other high end equipment. (without being able to connect it and hear in your system) You can't know what a DAC will do in your individual system. But with the majority of maunfacturers, you buy it, you own it. If you are willing to go with a less expensive DAC there are a few manufacturers who sell with a 30 day money back through online dealer/retailers, otherwise you buy and try and have to resell here if you dislike your results. You might be able to resell and take minimal loss in some cases. If you want to go lower price DACs, Wyred has a 15% restocking fee on return, Centrance can be had on a 30 day audition, Rega has a 30 day audition. Audio Advisor and Music Direct have various DACs that you can audition and if needed return within 30 days. But if you go for the premium higher end DACs, in the majority of cases you will not have return priveleges. It's my opinion that you can come close to high end performance with some less-than high end DACs. Let us know of your experiences.

You should audition the PS Audio Perfect Wave Dac. There is a Mark 2 version coming out. What's nice, other than it's tremendous flexiblity is the ability to not be forced to upsample redbook cd's. Redbook cd's sound best when they are not upsampled...more natural,imo. The native setting (avoiding the sample rate convertor) allows you to avoid the sample rate convertor completely. It of course will accept wav input up to 24/192. PS Audio retailers do allow returns if you don't like it so you can audition it.

Depending on the type of sound you are looking for, here is the list I've listened to

Rega - decent solid dac. Has the Rega house sound if you are familiar with Rega gear. I liked it at first, but was wanting more.

Northstar USB - silky smooth, transparent, tight solid bass, highs not as extended, 3D soundstage narrow, but deep. With the right digital cable you can get the sound you are looking for.

Bel Canto 2 - nice starter dac. warm, detailed, musical. soundstage imaging is not as solid/3D, but wide and shallow. On complicated recordings, it can get congested, but the music is still enjoyable. this dac was in my system for some type. took a lot more for me to "upgrade".

Lector DAC - with the right tubes, you can get the sound you are looking for. the overall characteristic of the dac is that it is very transparent, detailed, solid 3D imaging. depending on the tubes, your soundstage, smoothness and the type of warmth will vary.

If you had me rank the 4 I just listed it would

1) Lector
2) Northstar
3) Rega
4) Bel Canto

Based on the rankings, you can see the wide price range. Bel Canto being the cheapest currently in the GON market, but can hold it's own.

I don't use USB so with the Northstar and Lector, I could be missing out since I know some dacs the USB input is the best input. Forgot to mention, I didn't audition the Rega in my system, because I could tell at the dealer what it was going to sound like my system due to the Rega house sound so didn't pursue it furthur. Not knocking the Rega, but wasn't my cup of tea. I still recommend it for people to try out since it is a good dac and for the price.

I think you are right on about getting little help by auditioning a DAC or any other gear in the context of a totally different system at a dealer. If you were using a dealer they should just let you take it home anyway isn't that what a good dealer does anyway.

I like your system a lot. The Blue herons are awesome and love the hovland preamp. What is your current source components? I personally would buy one of these DACs that are being recommended here used and see what you think. I would personally recommend the MHDT paradisea or Havana as a great starting point.