"Old" vs. "new" digital equipment


Some recent posts about how far digital has come have got me thinking. I have a Theta DS Pro Gen III dac fed by a CEC TL5100Z as a transport. (The rest of the system is ARC LS2B Mk II into ARC VT-100 Mk II into Vandy 3a Sigs and 2WQ sub.)

I wonder what improvements I might hear if I were to go to a newer dac or newer cdp. In my current system, I hear grain when I listen to massed strings, some congestion on orchestral peaks, but otherwise most generally like what I hear.

Would newer digital stuff mitigate or eliminate these issues?

If I were to upgrade, where might I head next?

More generally, can anyone characterize the differences between my "old" Theta and newer digital equipment?

TIA.

David
bikecommuter

Showing 2 responses by rotarius

Bikecommuter, unfortunately the problem with massed strings lies with the speakers as well. While the vandy 3a sigs are great in so many ways there are speakers that handle strings quite a bit better.
I agree that the electronics or even cables can easily cause the grainy massed strings. I base my earlier opinion on the fact that I have heard the 3a sigs at the dealers place driven by top notch ARC tube or Rogue gear and state of the art digital. I heard superb sound with jazz and vocals. When I played classical that I am familiar with, this problem was quite evident. I also heard some Triangles at the same place with the same electronics. They were not in the same league as the vandys obviously but the strings were smoother!