I don't think the chip is that important. A lot of things around the chip affects the sound and if those part are not done correctly you won't get good sound anyway.
At some price point the brands tend to start using special chips or technologies but that is when they have fixed everything else. Like dCS and Chord or PS Audio that uses FPGA (a programmable chip).
I heard a Kalista Dreamplay and Dreamplay Stream last weekend and they sounded great. Did not ask what chip it was but it might have been some common chip surrounded by other great parts.
At some price point the brands tend to start using special chips or technologies but that is when they have fixed everything else. Like dCS and Chord or PS Audio that uses FPGA (a programmable chip).
I heard a Kalista Dreamplay and Dreamplay Stream last weekend and they sounded great. Did not ask what chip it was but it might have been some common chip surrounded by other great parts.