Cary XCiter DAC vs Rega DAC

Cary and Rega dealer here------

Both are really quite nice, especially at their price points. And, as you stated, reviews for both a great.

The Cary Exciter DAC does work/match up very well with the Exciter Integrated. But, I bet you would be very happy with either.

What are you currently using for a CD player?

Taylor
www.goldprintaudio.com

My CDP is an Arcam DV79. It sounds very good, but I used to keep both this and a Rega Saturn, so I know the difference in sound. I was thinking about getting another Saturn, but suddenly thought that the DAC might be a better alternative. Because I'm thinking down the road to when I might just consolidate and upload all my CDs in lossless to my Mac. Which, Dtc, has an optical out, so I can connect via toslink.

Basically I love Rega because their digital stuff achieves that analogue sound and sounds musical for a decent price. Taylor, how would you compare the Rega DAC and the Saturn? Most reviewers seem to say that they're about equal in terms of quality, though they each have a distinctive sound.

IMHO, I think the Rega Apollo + Rega DAC comes very close to the performance of the Saturn. The DAC may be a tad warmer and the Saturn a bit more detailed/analytical. As you most likely know, both use Wolfson Dacs that are very similar to each other.

I believe you are thinking correctly here by going with a DAC, if you are thinking about using your MAC to run music files later on down the road.

It would be a tough choice for me b/c both the Cary and Rega each have a ton of positives.

Taylor
www.goldprintaudio.com

Yah, it is a tough choice. But I seem to be hearing that there is no significant quality difference. At least not $500 worth of difference.