Some DACs I am Considering-Any thoughts?

Wow!

Thanks to all who made comments!

I will add my system to the profile but here it is a nutshell:

Gear:
Pass Labs INT25
Innuos Zen Mk3
Audio Mirror Tubadour 3- (On Trial now)
Oppo BDP 93 for DVD & Video play only
Tannoy FSM Speakers. Rated 94 at 4ohm.
Transparent Audio Interconnects
Kimber 8 Speaker Cable Bi-Wired

Room:Two dedicated 20 amp lines
Absorption Treated walls
Walmart TV/Stereo Stand
Dimensions- 14 x 16 + open to 6 x 4 left side and 12 x 8 right side.
The configuration I use is not what easy to visualize. See photo when I get that done.
Lucky that I am the 1st Run off the Power pole transformer.

Listening Habits:
55-72db max
Vocals, Jazz, Opera, electronic
Ears sensitive to harshness and volume. Max at 8k hz.

More to follow.

dseltz,

I like the gear you own. (Speakers?) 
I will check out Excel.

Thanks,

arafig,

I too have bought the base Audio Mirror. Vlad said it was 70-80% as good as the next model up. I will send it for the upgrade if I keep it.
Thanks!

Soix,

Point taken. But I do not wish to muddy the waters.

I am looking for the elusive "Musicality". 

My definition of that term is another word "Magical"

My definition of that word is more complex. In terms of a feeling or emotion it is what you experience when your head snaps to attention
after hearing a particular musical passage that "Moves" you.

These goals may not help you narrow down any recommendations 
you might have for me in the $2,500 price area. But that was not my
question after all. 

I have narrowed down the list so what I would like is to hear is from
those who have either heard or owned the listed DACs.

Urbie,

Wyred for sound should be on my list too I think.

Will do some looking.

Thanks,

George,

Your argument on tubes is no doubt on point.
Accuracy is sacrificed when a tube is introduced.
But for my ears Musicality is enhanced with a tube
in the right place. All my other gear is S.S. so this is
my only spot to add one.

Mazian,

Pure Audio Lotus 5. 
I was not aware of this brand but your argument is persuasive.
I will look into it.

SpeakerMaster,

This is whole reason research is difficult in the DAC world.
From what I an learning, the best values are from the no-name
companies you (and I) might have concerns about.
The reason I am less concerned about that in the case of a DAC
is that I see it as the shortest life cycle piece I will own. 
Improvements are accelerating at a fast pace so value counts.

mlda,

You lucky dog!! $1,000 for that DAC was a Christmas present!

Thanks for the additional suggested DACs. In August 2019 Our club
held a DAC It Out event which included the Cutest and it came in #3
in the blind test. Ahead was the Schiit Yggy ,the Jolida DAC ($750)
and the new Line Magnetic. All tube models. See AZAVCLUB.com
Events for the complete writeup.

I have come to believe that the associated test gear was so harsh that the tube DACs had an advantage. 

4 people from Chord showed up and watched the process proclaiming they were satisfied with process. 

At of today I am 3 days away from the end of my trial period for the Audio Mirror Tubadour I recently acquired, 

As I compare it to the Denafrips Ares I had the sound seems more involving without any ear burn I experienced with the Ares. I am not saying the $750 Ares is a dog, far from it. I wish I had started with the Pontus at $1,750.

The Audio Mirror base model I have @ $1,500 is being discontinued in favor of the more upgraded SE model @ $2,500.
If I keep the base model I will have it upgraded. BTW Vlad, the owner,
is a pleasure to work with and quite generous as well. He is getting busy though and as a one man show with a full time job I can foresee some
wait possible wait times. Worth it in my mind.

Couple A/Bs from yesterday:


Yesterday we tried some a/b comparisons between your dac Audio Mirror Tubadour and 2005 vintage dCs CD player P8i model. $14k new.
Another friend brought the PS Audio Direct Stream DAC. $5k new.
As you may know they both are software based DACs.
Although volume matching was not perfect I found I preferred yours to the PS Audio model.The owner of the PS model felt his had some strengths over the AM. The openness and presenceof the AM was in my mind the big difference.
The dCs comparison was a bit harder to judge. The owner liked his dCs better. I found it a very closecomparison and could not make a definite judgement. With his we were able to volume match more closely.
Our Arizona Audio/Video Club has a Van Alstine Comparator unit which I may use next time if another DAC comparison is to be done.

JB505,

Your input is most helpful. Thanks. So your suggestion would
be that I buy the AudioNote 4.1 DAC for $3k?

This thread is 10 months old now so rereading later posts today was interesting.

Particularly the Cetla comparison of Pontus 2 to MDHT Orchid.

I bought the AM Tubadour and did a reclocking upgrade since.

I still love it for the $2k I have spent. Not sure if the friend with

the AN 4.1x kit will sell or not so waiting for his decision.

I heard a system last week with the Gustard DAC for the first time

and the system was great. How much of a role the DAC played

is hard to know. The owner is a value guy who never overspends

making me think it is likely pretty good as per previous comment.

I agree with many statements above about buying an established name

known for solid builds. I broke with that for Audio Mirror after hearing Vlad's

story. Had to support him and am happy I have done so. Nice to be able to

pick up the phone and talk to the owner/designer/builder too.

Okay. Ozzy, call when you are ready to sell!