Is it possible to find a good DAC for under $50, 000?

Apparently, the good folks at The Absolute Sound have you covered.

(Audiophiles are never going to shed their out of touch reputation with journalism like this. I'm sorry, but it's just so tone deaf.)

hilde4504-11-2025 4:29pm

yyzsantabarbara Details Discussions Posts This discussion Message User 5,099 posts 04-12-2025 at 03:29am Copy Comment URL Report Comment Edit Delete Sometimes the gear has to be this price otherwise the wise folks with money won't buy it. A great example is the PlayBack Designs Dream DAC (at $24k) vs the Nagra DAC. The PBD Dream was built by a guy who knows digital technology since he was there at the start. The Nagra is outsourcing the the PDB boards. Try and guess if PBD is OEM-ing the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd best boards to Nagra. Then guess which DAC costs more.