In December of 2021 I bought the Pontus II and the Gustard X26. After listening closely and switching back and forth repeatedly with precise level matching I felt there was relatively little difference between them but I preferred the greater transparency and larger soundstage of the X26 vs the slightly denser sound of the Pontus II and sold it. During the Black Friday sales last month I bought the new Gustard R26 and there was no need to spend weeks switching back and forth trying to hear small changes between it and the X26. The R26 connected to Roon over the built in LAN connection was immediately and obviously better than the X26. I haven’t tested any of the other inputs but with Roon and an ethernet connection the R26 is fantastic. Based on other owners comments I suspect it is just as good with all the other inputs. It is a great value at $1650.
DAC better than Denafrips Pontus II
As I try to finish out my system, looking at user recommendations for DACs better than the Pontus II. This is one area I have not spent a great deal of time on (the digital side) but I have not found anything negative against the Pontus II or the Ares II.My transport will likely be the Nuprime CDT-8 Pro. I like the AES to AES ability between these two devices. From what I've read, it's the best connection.All comments appreciated.