Perpetual Tech Dac vs DCS or Wadia Dacs

I have heard the Wadia (861 and 270 with 27ix) at a dealer in Berkeley CA and the dCS gear at a dealer in San Jose, CA. The dCS won and in my opinion not by a small margin. The dCS gear had more of everything I considered to be important. The highs we more extended. The bass had more weight and the separation between the instruments was more pronounced than the Wadia. Overall tonality sounded better than the Wadia. I purchased the Purcell and Delius and I don't regret it. For what it's worth the PT gear was not even on my "To be auditioned" list. At this level it is more of personal taste than anything else, but to my ears the dCS gear sounded better. But I strongly encourage you to audition both the Wadia and the dCS for yourself. – Dan

Hi Tom,

Yes you are of course you are correct and I apologize if I came off anti-Wadia. I don't remember the exact configuration when I listened to the Wadia gear. But the dCS was in a rig with almost the same equipment I was "planning" to have at home. I am guilty of not doing a home audition as I was making radical changes to my system and was looking for a piece that would serve as the heart of the system. Given that requirement the dCS gear left a more "favorable" impression on me in sound and function. Again it had more of what I considered important.

Both companies make really great stuff and you really can’t go wrong with either one.

Cheers,
Dan