Best DAC under 2k US ?

"Even with the MK2 upgrade, the DAC doesn't sound that great unless you also own the Transport."-Mcondon.

How exactly are the ones and zeros delivered from the PW Transport so special that other transports fail in making the PW Dac sound good? I'm not saying that the PW Transport is not good, in fact I'm sure it's very nice. But why does the dac sound so-so with other transports and so special with the PW? I'm just not buying it.

It's the i2s connection and digital lens or whatever it's called. Eliminates the Spdif connection and provides a buffer to eliminte clicking issues.

I know several people who have stopped using the i2s buss via HDMI because they liked the XLR digital connection better between the two. The
PWT is a very nice transport. I use one. Is it the best available? No. But it does have some nice features that other CD transports do not have. As always there are tradeoffs.

X2 on the Burson DA-160. It does have nice features and is often compared to 2k+ amps. It can be found for around 1k.

My comments about the Perfect Wave DAC were too negative. If you have the funds to buy the Perfect Wave Transport (now called the Memory Player) as well, and connect the two via the HDMI interface, sound quality is really excellent, even more so after the MK2 upgrade of the DAC. I have tried other digital interfaces to connect the DAC to the Transport, including the very highly regarded Shunyata Python Zitron XLR digital cable, and found it to fall short of the sound quality of the HDMI connection especially in terms of resolution and deep bass.

Other digital sources (PS Audio's Bridge and non-PS Audio CD players) do not sound as good to me as the Transport. The Bridge, in my opinion, has less soundstage depth and is less dynamic than the Transport.

PS Audio has a very useful, non-censored community forum. A number of DAC owners who use the Bridge are waiting for better sounding firmware for the Bridge. PS Audio will probably deliver on this.

I do own two sets of the Perfect Wave DAC & Transport. I would not have bought the second set if I didn't like the sound quality of the first set.

My only complaint about PS Audio is that some of its products sometimes seem like works in progress. The Bridge was supposed to equal the sound quality of the Transport. In my opinion and theirs, it is not at the same level as the Transport.

I have seen a lot of used Perfect Wave DACs for sale on Audiogon in the last year or so. It seems to show up more frequently than other DACs. I suspect some people have been underwhelmed by the sound quality of the DAC when used with the Bridge or non-Transport sources.