Replacement for Esoteric D70?


I have had a number of DACs over the years and this is by far the best DAC I have ever had. I am not even really convinced I want to upgrade, but more so trying to understand if anyone who is familiar with this DAC has found anything better than it?

Any of these newer DACs with supposedly better DAC chips? I know the BB1704 is one of the best, but some may say it has certain drawbacks, which I have never heard.

I am doubtful I can find anything with the musicality, bass weight and slam that the D70 has, but I am curious if someone has. Thanks
acurus
I had P-70 and D-70 connected to Krell FPB 600c.
All is pending on what you want more or less of.
Seems as you ask for someone having knowledge of D-70 and has done an A/B? This is probably hard to find.
For musicality there are options, but the detail is still among the best i've heard. I changed to Krell KPS 25sc and it was no way near the P-70 & D-70 talking extreme detail and air. Bass impact and weight totally blew the Teacs away though. For the rest, no no no... Teac was better.
I use a Wadia today, and i like them. It does nothing wrong in my ears. It has better PRAT then the Teac units i have heard.
If you could afford an S7i, you might lend it an ear.
I guess, you might look for a unit which can run power amps on it's own? If you do so with Wadia, you must know it is crucial to use correct dipswitch setting inside the unit. Best is to have it work between 75-100, not below that.
So, if you are offered a demo and it is at factory setting (2.13V) you should now values are from 0.25/0.5/1.0/2.13/4.25Vrms. You simply set the switches so that you play between 75-100. The difference between settings is 6db (+/-). Algo A sound best if running staright without a preamp. It is richer/ fuller in bass/upperbass. For example, i use 0.25Vrms running my Barefoot MM27's.
I have a modded D70, which I bought from a reviewer at a substantial discount from the MSRP.

I did an A/B comparison with the Weiss DAC202. The Weiss was very good, but the D70 was noticeably better. Note: To maximize the D70 it must be configured as the master clock using dual AES/EBU and word clock. Since I have a computer based system, I use a Weiss AFI1 interface as the slave instead of the P70 transport.

If I were to try a different DAC, and had the cash, I'd audition another multi-bit DAC, such as the MSB IV or the Pacific Microsonics II.
PS, I don't know what the rest of your system consists of ... but you might try replacing some component other than the D70, because your DAC is THAT GOOD. Alternatively, you might consider having your D70 modded by the Upgraded Company, which is where mine was upgraded (I have not interest in that company BTW). It improves the sound substantially.