DAC recommendations

The sound you are looking for in a DAC sounds like a Schiit Gungnir ($1200).  Alternately the Bifrost 2/64 could be a less costly alternative. Worth a try.

I have the Pontus ll and am very happy with it. If I mmm had the coin, I’m sure I’d be happy with the Venus ll.

How is it that no one is mentioning PS Audio Directstream DAC? The MkII is out, which means you can find the first iteration online with the network card and the latest software update used for about $3000, and it’s superbly resolving but laidback. It’s retail price was $6800. 

I would buy the Uptone Audio Etherregen & make sure you have Cat 7+ thernet line direct from the router connection. Hopefully you have at least one dedicated circuit.

I use the Innuos Zen Mk3 Streamer. No DAC inside. Roon Ready, Streams, Rips

and stores. I am quite Tech challenged as well.

I tried the Ares 2, Audio Mirror, Pontus 2 and my current DAC the ANK 4.1x.

It can be assembled by Digital Pete-$3,500 all in. It provides good detail

and a deep soundstage. Keeping this one.

Keep us posted please.

I have the Ares II and feel it meets your requirements. It’s accurate (capable of 21 bit resolution) yet also slightly warm. On the bench it performs just as the well as the Terminator and actually has a lower noise floor. I haven’t compared it to $6000 DACs but in my system it won out against a Chord Qutest with linear PS. 
 

But since you own AN speakers maybe you’d get the best synergy with an AN DAC. 

My recommendation is to send your tube DAC to me for upgrading.  There are plenty of parts options that can be used to change the sound to what you are looking for.  Stop chasing gear.  Happy Listening.

I like my DACs to have excellent benchmark results as a starting point since they are likely to produce the best results.

The Musetec Audio (LKS Audio) MH-DA005 has a headless Pink Panther.

The Topping D90SE has a sweet spot Pink Panther.

Always provide the cleanest possible AC (a conditioner with a shielded cable) and cover the unused sockets with caps to block contamination entry points.

I've often wondered if Steve Jobs were still alive, would Apple have spent the money out of their loaded saddlebags and developed an "Apple Music Connect" app?  Steve always wanted to keep things easy and a "no brainer" for consumers, but the current state of all the hoops you have to go through to use Apple Music in a high-fidelity stereo system are ridiculous here in 2022, almost 2023. Watching Darko's video on it is almost painful. 

I have an old iPAD for streaming music from the ILMA via Airplay so it is gapless, but that's the only Apple product I ever plan on buying. 

Good luck to you in your search and sonic journey. 

Thanks Charles. I’m a renter and access to the router is limited. I will look into that though. Qobuz looks like a definite. Meant to do it the first time around and got lazy with Apple Music. 

@earthbound

Is going Wi-Fi wireless a viable option for you? Seems a good alternative if you for example get a good quality tri-band router. I believe that @ghdprentice is completely wireless with his Aurender server and said he has superb sound quality.

Good advice from those recommending a better streaming source in Qobuz. You have a very nice audio system and may as well get the best possible result from it.

Charles

I am seriously considering that option with the Venus 2. I’m surprised with sound comparisons just how different it sounds from the Terminator 2. Not necessarily a bad thing. Just different. I kind of like Thomas and Stereo and he uses one. It’s a bit of an endorsement. I also forgot to convert Singapore money to US, so Terminator 2 not too crazy expensive. Both good options if I choose to keep an external streamer. Would love to hear comparisons from people who have experience with both. 

@earthbound   I think you would find the Venus II a very worthy DAC, you can stream into it from your CXN until you retire it for a different streamer and get very good sound. The R2R DACs take a long time for break in.

You might keep the Topping and add an equalizer to your system. It’s amazing how changing the tonal balance can change the whole character of the sound. In terms of sound quality, the Schiit Loki Max is outstanding IME.

Thanks for the Qobuz push gentlemen. I hate being tech lazy but I am. There’s usually a hiccup and it’s usually me! Probably time to convert. 
As far as dacs go, I probably don’t need to go that crazy but always wonder what the weak link is so I don’t want to go too cheap. I would like to get the most from what I have. I’m sure whatever I choose will suffice. I should really stop reading reviews! They are always good yet point to the next level up. 

@earthbound - I had to do a little research to understand your setup.  If I'm understanding it correctly, you have a Cambridge Audio CXN V2 Streamer with a with the ModWright upgrade ($2,500) and a Topping D90 DAC ($1,000).  I only list the prices because you mentioned that seems to be a significant upgrade given the relative price points.

When you're wanting something between the two you have, what's the draw for a Terminator over the Pontius or Venus options?

OP,

If you want quality sound you want to have nothing to do with Airplay… or Apple for that matter. I am a huge fan of Apple… but not for high quality audio. Qobuz is the best streaming service for high quality audio… but Tidal is a second best… from there the quality drops.

There are lots of quality DACs in the $5K range and up. Not a category I am familiar enough to recommend… other than if you could find a used Audio Research DAC that is not too old. Natural, detailed, lots of mid-range bloom. 

@earthbound Bricasti M3. Switch to Qobuz. 

You’re probably right. I should upgrade the stock tubes supplied with the ModWright before I jump into the next thing. I just wanted the amp to have it’s own voice so to speak without the preamp tubes adding more. Perhaps in the meantime, I will get some higher end tubes. Thanks for your input. 

op

seems to me you have great gear, and the dan wright modded cambridge streamer/dac is excellent (i have one sitting here, i enjoy it as much as megabuck units from msb, weiss, chord)

do you have wired ethernet into your listening room? if so just get an etherregen or na eno/muon filter to clean up the feed, then run ethernet into the cambridge - then get a tidal or qobuz sub, and listen using the cambridge app

ditch the topping, its not in the same league as the modwright cxn2 - the fact you can't currently hear the huge sonic difference between the two shows how poor your front end digital feed is...

It’s been a long time since I’ve replaced a system, 25 years actually. I’ve forgotten how annoying it is to have to choose which “revolutionary “ options to opt for. Less wires means a dac with a built in streamer. What happens when tech changes? Or do I go Denafrips Terminator 2 with a separate streamer. More boxes but only have to change streamer as tech evolves. What if internal streamer shits the bed? Arg! I need a personal assistant to take care of all this. As well as a job that pays more! My head is spinning. 

Was curious about using a dongle. I do now. For Air Play with the Cambridge it limits resolution to 16/44. Not sure if that will be the same. Still sounds good but would be nice to not lose resolution. Thank you for the response. 

earthbound

How is Air Play deficient? They have recently gone Lossless and stream high def files. Am I missing something?

Airplay is limited to 16/44.1.  That's not exactly hi-res today.

If I chose to go with the Bricasti m3 and Qobuz, would it require a land line from the router to the Bricasti? It’s a long run, 50 feet, and would require additional work.

You could use a USB WiFi dongle.

Scratch last question. Yes according to website. 

If I chose to go with the Bricasti m3 and Qobuz, would it require a land line from the router to the Bricasti? It’s a long run, 50 feet, and would require additional work. I’m trying to find the simplest quality sound solution. Less boxes, less wires etc…

Thanks for the link. Yeah that’s not happening!

i agree -- air play is the problem here, it is likely the bottleneck for sound quality, no need to change equipment before employing a better streaming method

https://darko.audio/2021/06/the-best-way-to-stream-hi-res-audio-from-apple-music/

How is Air Play deficient? They have recently gone Lossless and stream high def files. Am I missing something? If I am, I will certainly look into changing. Thanks

Seems to me that if you want better sound Air Play is not the way to go about it.

Make at least a trial jump to Qobuz.

My issue with the Bricasti is the streaming. I have Apple Music and it does not support it. I would have to jump over to Qobuz. Not the end of the world but not optimal. Just spoke to a dealer today regarding the m3. It does seem to check most of the boxes. I’m going to call Bricasti and see if an Air Play upgrade will be possible in the future. 

Bricasti M3 hits most of your points but maybe not "a bit more bass...." actually it's a very neutral, musical dac IMO

I forgot to add and I don’t think it’s a measurable quality, soundstage. It’s okay with the Topping but I’d prefer a wider, deeper soundstage with a bit more instrument separation. 👍

M3, Less Loss Echo's End. 

Cool. Thank you. Not familiar with that company. Will look into. 

I'm glad you put "accurate" in quotations.

If you want a piano to sound like a piano, you might consider the Musetec 005.  There's been so much about it discussed here that I needn't elaborate.