Denafrips Terminator 2 + Hermes DDC vs T+A DAC 200

I am currently running the Venus II-12th with the Hermes 12th. DDC and I am happy to stay put there after auditioning the Terminator II Plus 12th.  Not enough difference for the cost.  What seems to sound very marginally better depends more on the total system than just a DAC upgrade.  The DDC will help but even more marginally.  I have an Anthem STR preamp with a Peachtree GAN400 power amp and a Hifi Rose RS130 streamer running with the above Denafrips items.  I cannot justify spending more.  My Speakers are Magnepan 2.7i's. My only problem is I do not get enough sleep enjoying the sound.  I would go Venus II and Hermes.

Here’s a link to a thread here about the Terminator Plus and the T+A 200. Not exactly the same Terminator but close.

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/denafrips-terminator-plus-vs-t-a-dac-200

i run a Pontus II with a Hermes via the I2S connection. After adding the Hermes the difference is notable in all aspects, much improved soundstage, imaging, transients, clarity while remaining musical.  It might be worth it to just add the Hermes to your Pontus and see if that gets you where you want to be.

Didn’t you own a Pontus if memory serves?  Both excellent DACs so hard to see going wrong either way.  I added an Iris to my Musician Pegasus NOS R2R DAC (that shares some DNA with the Pontus) and the improvement was substantial in terms of imaging, soundstage, quietness, and clarity.  It didn’t change the sonic character of the DAC, but it just improved things further to the point of sounding like a significant DAC upgrade.  I’d recommend reading all the reviews you can of the DAC200 and Terminator (without DDC) and decide which one best exhibits the sound characteristics you’re looking for and choose that.  If it’s a dead heat then adding a Hermes to the Terminator would be the way I’d go assuming the DDC has a similar impact as it did in my case.  Just my $0.02 and experience FWIW, and best of luck.

I guess you dont even know what Braun HiFi is or what the components sound like. I forgot to mention that I already have a Pontus 2 and before that I had an Ares. What I can say is that the Pontus 2 was a massive improvement you can hear. Seems like you underestimate Braun/ADS, they were great back then and still are. Many high class modern speaker cant even compete with them.

Cheers

Looking at your system, the DACs you are considering seem like overkill to me. I am not sure it would be worth such a large investment. Something like the Denafrips Ares would be a good fit for a lot less.