I have had my DAC3L for about two months and am very happy with it. I really wanted hardware volume control as I did not like doing that in the software and I wanted balanced outs to my D amp. As for the DAC itself, coming from a Qutest, I am very happy with this one. Definitely a no thrills chassis and controls, and I would say very old school with the indicator lights, but I think that is a good thing as simplicity is best. I am using the -20 dB pads at the XLR outputs and I still can only get to about 9 O’clock for my listening level. The base and details in my system are very good with this DAC. A good purchase and I will stay with this one for the foreseeable future.
Oh, and my speakers are dead quiet with no music playing. Previously with the Qutest, I did hear some "ocean" noise, louder in one speaker than the other. So not sure if this lack of noise is because the DAC3 turns off the output with no music or whether it is just this quiet but either way I like it.
