I went from the DAC in my laptop to a $168 DAC/AMP to a $99 standalone DAC to a $360 DAC to a $3500 DAC to my current $11,000 DAC. And yes, there was a significant and easy-to-hear improvement with each step upward in cost, so all is right with the world in that I got what I paid for. That being said, the cost differences in sonic improvement escalated exponentially. Or as Stereophile once put it, it was a phenomenon of the ever increasing cost of the ever decreasing difference.
The sound quality from DACs - is it all the same?
I've been talking to my cousin brother about sound quality. He is a self-proclaimed expert audiophile. He says that Audio Science Review has all of the answers I will need regarding audio products.
In particular, he says an inexpensive DAC from any Chinese company will do better than the expensive stuff. He says fancy audio gear is a waste of money because the data is already bit-perfect. All DAC chips sound the same. Am I being mislead?
He also said that any DAC over $400 is a waste of money. Convincing marketing is at play here, he says.
He currently owns a Topping L30 headphone amplifier and D30 Pro DAC. He uses Sennheiser HD 569 headphones to listen to music. I'm not sure what to think of them. I will report my findings after listening one day! (likely soon, once I get some free time)
- Jack