Advice regarding a possible upgrade DAC (and does the DIP help SQ)


Hello and Seasons Greetings, 

I am seeking advice here regarding a possibility of upgrading to a newer DAC ( under 2K, new or used). I currently have the following setup:

A Cat6 cable from my cable router to a Blusound Node2i to a MONARCHY AUDIO 24/92 DIP to BelCanto DAC2 to MFA MAGUS A2 Tube Preamplifier to Meitner MTR Monoblocks to a pair of BOZAK Urban Speakers. 
I enjoy an eclectic variety of music and thus far think I have very good SQ but I wonder if a more modern DAC would be a welcome addition and a plus to SQ?

Also do I need the Monarchy DIP with a modern DAC? 

My source at the minute is Amazon Music HD (I have a nice vinyl collection and want to add a TT at some point when my budget allows and that’s for another post  

Thank you 

Bill

 

agentwja

First, ditch Amazon HD and switch to Qobuz. Read Steve Stone’s review in TAS where he compared several streaming services and AMZN HD did not fare well. They just don’t seem to be there yet, and a Qobuz trial is free so why not?

I’ll say I had a BC DAC3 in my system, but when I switched to DAC3 VB with VBS power supply it was a huge upgrade in performance and sounded very, very good. All that said, I just bought a Musician Pegasus DAC and not sure how it compares to the DAC3 VB, but at $1100 I’m betting it’s pretty competitive. If you like the BC sound you’re getting and just want more, if you upgrade to a DAC3 or higher with the VBS I think you’ll be very happy. Or explore the more recent R2R, etc. DACs if you’re up for something new. Hope this helps, and best of luck

 

Don't know if the Monarchy Audio DIP is still of any value in a modern digital setup. Isn't it simple enough to remove it from the chain and listen to determine your preference?

Many network players now upsample natively probably better than the dip. Many DACs DO upsample better. That DIP looks like a dial phone.