Mr T.
I tried the OPA2107 (dual) in the position that feeds the tubes and think that this might be up your ally. Much greater bass extension with a less in your face sound vs. stock chip and esp. vs. the 49720 which I also tried. They also come in DIP8 so you can pop them into the DAC in minutes, no soldering. Pricey at ~$16 a piece but cheap relative to some tubes and to the dramatic improvement in SQ you get.
But don't stop there, no no, get some upgraded chips (singles) for the SS output as well. I currently have OPA627 in mine and it does some things (the things that you say you like) very very well but lack air and sparkle relative to the 49710.
Doug - looking forward to your article.
-Mike
I tried the OPA2107 (dual) in the position that feeds the tubes and think that this might be up your ally. Much greater bass extension with a less in your face sound vs. stock chip and esp. vs. the 49720 which I also tried. They also come in DIP8 so you can pop them into the DAC in minutes, no soldering. Pricey at ~$16 a piece but cheap relative to some tubes and to the dramatic improvement in SQ you get.
But don't stop there, no no, get some upgraded chips (singles) for the SS output as well. I currently have OPA627 in mine and it does some things (the things that you say you like) very very well but lack air and sparkle relative to the 49710.
Doug - looking forward to your article.
-Mike