Help: Need Great DAC for Luxman 509u with Revel F50 Speakers System
Really looking for some sage advice for new DAC. I have a great vintage tube VTL but it only has digital RCA input and only RCA outputs. Currently, this constitutes 3 problems:
1) long run RCA audio cable from PC to stereo system
2) only 1 input option (would like to use laptop or phone to feed the DAC, plus Luxman DAC has XLR outputs to Amp XLR and might even connect CD player to DAC)
3) finally my wife doesn't like the aesthetic mismatch VTL gray vs Luxman silver lol. She is the boss but allowing me to upgrade so I can't complain.
So something silver faced is in order to match my beautiful Luxman 509u. My Luxman amp has a great headphone amp so a DAC with or without a headphone port is not much of an issue. I love listening to vinyl and I would like my DAC to be neutral to slightly warm. I don't listen too loud, have Revel F50 speakers (2.0) in a 12x18 room and I listen to mostly alternative music (80s-new but mostly newer).
I think my allowance is going to be $2,000 and the perfectly matching Luxman DAC DA-250 fits all my foreseeable needs. My big question is the Luxman a great choice realizing there are not a lot of Luxman DAC owners or dealers to demo? Plus, living in NE Ohio, I probably can't audition the Luxman DAC before purchasing.
I stream some local network FLAC and OGG files (ripped cds at 500 kbps) and Spotify premium. I know I won't get the best quality from Spotify: however, I really disliked Tidal interface (quality great but playlist and suggested songs/artist is just horrible and allows you to add duplicated songs to playlist: just messy). Either Spotify will one day get hi-res and/or another service will step up with hi-res and great interface for around $20/month. So, with a newer DAC, I can use my chrome/laptop (USB) in near proximity to amp without a RCA cable traversing the room (wife hates this too).
Any other thoughts or suggestions please?
Brian