Advice on a budget R2R DAC

Last year I had to change my computer and since my new Imac did not have a firewire output, I had to change my DAC as well. After reading quite a bit on the topic, I decided on a Benchmark DAC 1, thinking that it made sense to replace a studio converter with another device designed for this same application. The Benchmark plays better than my old one (Motus 828), but when I listen to my turntable (which is rare), I immediately see the difference, even with an inexpensive cartridge (Ortofon OM20). My Altec 620A are quite revealing in the midrange and, contrary to what I’ve read on several occasions, the Benchmark is NOT transparent, at least not in my system. It’s also NOT musical. It sounds like a laboratory instrument. The sound is so amorphous that it doesn’t elicit any emotion. It is reminiscent of the sound of some Japanese amps from the 1970s which made excessive use of feedback to lower distorsion level. The sound isn’t bad, it’s just boring. So I decided to change my converter once again. After reading a lot on Audiogon and updating myself on what’s new, I’m keen to give R2R a try.

Here are my criteria:

- 1,5k (used)
- No tube (my equipment is always on)
- R2R
- no need for DSD (I listen to wav, aiff, mp3, etc.)
- no need for balanced inputs
- no need for volume (or headphone amp)

Converters that I consider :

- Holo Audio Cyan
- Metrum Amethyst
- Mojo Audio Mystique V2

Equipment used:

Speakers: Altec 620A
Amp: Sugden A25B
Cables: Audioquest
Computer: Imac 2017
Media player: JRiver 22
thx...