2. speakers
  3. 1361216127

System upgrade, need advice, source or speakers?

Hi,

I've had my system for a few years and have been thinking about tweaking it. Right now it consists of:

Speakers: Zu Definition MKII
Amp: Tom Evans Linear A
DAC/Pre: PS Audio Perfectwave DAC

All of my music is digital (flac) and the only input I use is USB hooked up to a mac mini.

For the longest time I've been thinking about swapping out my PS Audio DAC for something else. 1) I only need the USB input so I don't need the bridge etc that the Perfectwave offers. 2) I've always had the sneaking suspicion (for no particular reason) that the DAC was the limiting factor in my system.

I started looking into higher end DACs like the Lampizator Level 5 and the Calyx Femto.

But now I'm wondering, would I be better off keeping the Perfectwave (or swapping it for something like the NAD M51 or Berkeley Audio DAC) and upgrading my Def MKIIs to MKIIIs.). The price for either option is roughly the same.

Any advice would be appreciated.
danyal711

Showing 1 response by roscoeiii

roscoeiii's avatar
roscoeiii
1,155 posts
 
I too would say speakers. There are a number of impressions here about the MkII to the MkIII upgrade on those Zus. They might help that decision.

And I would also look at what other speakers are around at the price point you are thinking about. I'd audition things if you can to see what you can get for your speaker dollar. You may come back to the decision to upgrade the Zus, or you may find something you like better. Many excellent flavors of speakers out there.

If you only need USB for your DAC, you could also trade down to a USB only DAC or a cheaper DAC to free up more funds for speakers. DSPeaker Dual Core would be one cheaper option that also gets you DSP room correction abilities (some sellers have audition options so you could see for yourself).
More to discover