Holo Audio Spring 3 DAC

For $5 k the May KTE is a very good dac 
that being said I compared the  Bricasti M3 as well as the Denafrips Terminstor + I thought it was  better balanced with  instrumental textures and differences in dynamic range from start to stop, digging deeper into the recording  more accurate with the Bricasti in absolute terms, and a bit warmer balance vs neutral. Plus it uses  dual  Analog-devises 1955 Multibit dacs ,
fully Differentially balanced, excellent I preamplifier section ,
and very good Roon ready streamer board option ,
and Made in U.S.A not China .and I even  had a great tour of Bricasti  in Shirley,Ma. All made in house CNC machined Aluminum cases .a bunch of trickle down technologies from the M21 , and M1 dac ,used in many mastering studios around the world .I now have the M3 in my system and 
after 350 hours it is better then  expected which is rare .

Kw6 -  last month I said the audio gd was a very good value 
and is, in the$2k  price class ,even its best model the R7 HE  model is very good But, has older technologies IMO  that excluded me from  considering it. I Never said it was a Reference class dac !!
The Bricasti  M3 ,and especially with the optional streamer board is in  a totally different class ,and is a true high end bargain in the $6k range , with Plenty of  Excellent Reviews   to back it up.

The new Holo springs 3- the new model has a lot of May trickle down technologies and a clear step up from the pontus mk2 
That being  said it is $1200 more it-is $3k plus shipping.

and to jackd  I still stand by saying the AudioGD R8 mk2 is a very good dac  
In  the $2k range I Never compared it to anything reference class dac,
even their top R7-he  mk2 at $ 5k I personally would not consider  outdated
technologies in display,filters , and  off the shelf  drivers,which can get corrupted 
if youhave a windows computer and don’t shut off auto updates .
I sold mine to buy the Bricasti M3 and never looked back , many excellent reviews on the M3 to back  it up .

Kw6. ,sorry   About that.  I have to spell it out , Audio Gd R8 mk2, is a very good dac in the$2k group  not reference by any means , FPGA types can be are ok but not a big fan in this case,
and their off the shelf drivers can be  affected by windows updates at times, 
and Waay outdated with display and filters in operation ,same with their top 7- ht 
that’s why i sold it after our audio dac shoot out .

They sold different the new Holo spring 3 ,and has several trickle down technologies 
from their kt May dac for $3100 I heard it only for a few hours and sounded very musical , the Metrum Onyx I think a bit more neutral and very detailed 
they are Both very respectable,it all depends on your speaker and amplifiers balance , and your cables can change flavor also, get a audition if possible .