any DAC recommend for around $1000-1300?


Hello everyone, i have a question about choosing DAC, I have a buget for around US1000 to 1300, i am thinking to get a Classe' DAC-1 or Mark Levinson No.36 , or should i go for a recent model 24bit 196Hz DAC like Birdland, Benchmark and Perpetual? Between i am using a custom made VT52 power amp and Linn Mimik cdp
thank you for your time reading this.

regards

ryo
yama317

Showing 2 responses by photon46

You'll get so many opinions about this it will be hard to find any consensus. FWIW, I would advise buying a used dac in your stated budget. I don't think there have been any great improvements in digital reproduction in the last couple of years. More than a few of us would argue that well executed dac designs approaching ten years of age are still very musically gratifying. Audiophiles don't have as much interest in dacs as they used to, so consequently very good values are to be had. If you buy used at the right price, you can resell it for little or no loss if your expectations aren't met. Sonic Frontiers, Assemblage, Timbre, Musical Fidelity, Audiomat, and more all made excellent dacs that you can buy in your price range.
Yeah, I knew it wouldn't be long before the "buy a one box player, dacs are passe" chant started. I'll agree that one box players have improved. However, to my thinking, in a search for the best possible sound, the transport/dac scheme still has merit. The separation of power supplies for various sections is more easily engineered in a two box solution which is a major plus. I'll agree that the transport/dac vs. one box isn't a cut and dried comparison. It takes more rack space and an interconnect to implement a two box solution. Plus you have to pay for two caseworks. In retort to these objections, the quality digital interconnect question is easily resolved now with something like the Stereovox HDVX @ $150.00. You have to decide if the question of space is relevant. I still think the addition of a dac is potentially a huge bang for the buck improvement. I've got about $2k invested in my digital rig utilizing a dac and it competes with one box players priced much higher.