How much should I spend on a new DAC


Hello Gents. What would be reasonable sum to spend on a new DAC relative to my current audio rig.

Speakers: Sonus Faber Olympica II

Integrated Amp: Pass Labs INT-25

DAC: Pro-Ject Dac Box S2+

Speaker Cables: Kimber 8VS Bi-Wire

Power cable: Kimber PK10 Base

Interconnects: Audioquest Tower

I must say I'm very happy with the music coming out of my speakers but It's obvious that the DAC is not the same league as the rest of the equipment.

celestial__sound

Showing 1 response by decooney

The amp and speakers are fine for moderate listening levels, unless you crank it up a lot and expect maximum dynamics. Ignore the naysayers who don’t understand lower power Pass amps, or never owned one. Ditch the noisy computer front end, and the 9038 equipped project dac that makes it even more grainy. No, its not just zeroes and ones. Having less noise and a darker background on your front end matters, musically. Yes, as stated many times already - a good streamer and dac are in order and will help if you truly want your handle to be true @celestial__sound

Try to 45-day buy-demo at least two different streamers/dacs, paired with a really good power supply (quieter) and you’ll hear and realize the difference first hand. Lots of good suggestions here, above. See R2R Ladder NOS dacs, or Auralic, Gustard, Innuous, others. >>Read up on the numerous prior R2R Ladder DAC threads here on Agon too<<. Your Pass Labs amp and Sonus Faber speakers deserve a lot better upstream. Best of Luck.