Under $3K streaming dac suggestions, Roon Ready?
A product not mentioned in this thread so far is the Benchmark DAC3. I realize that it alone is not "Roon compatible". But read on for there is a method to my madness. I’m running a DAC3 in an all digital Atma-Sphere/Merlin system. The DAC3 was one of the components that replaced a Resolution Audio Opus 21 CD Player. The other piece was a Moon MiND2. The MiND2 is Roon compatible. FWIW, I think the Opus 21 is still a great piece of gear and I used its DAC with a Sonus BlueSound until earlier this year. The Opus’s DAC is nicely relaxed and very musical. The Sonus, unfortunately, had limitations. There were connectivity, software and support issues. Its internal DAC doesn’t bear acknowledging other than to say it doesn’t bear acknowledging. Upgrading to Moon MiND2 fixed the Sonus’s problems. Which is not a big surprise given the price differential between the two products. But, keep in mind, the MiND2 requires an external DAC. Back to the original story, I initially I used the Opus’s DAC with the MiND2 which resulted in a very pleasant improvement over what the BlueSound provided in all the things audiophiles want: clarity, tone, space, etc. Again, no surprise given the price differential between the two products. Allow me to insert that the MiND’s native software, at lease the Android version I was subjected to, is poorly written. After a few months I upgraded to Roon and now have no complaints. Roon filled in what was missing. So add $500 to what you pay for a MiND2. It’s still worth the money, but my suggestion to Moon is to negotiate a perpetual license with Roon for their systems. At least for the convenience of their users. I’m a software tech and Roon is very nicely written. It’s not perfect, but is well on its way. Kudos! Adding the DAC3 to the mix took things to a higher level. Again, more of the things audiophiles want. The most noticeable difference between the older Burr Brown DAC chips in the Opus and the DAC3 was the sense of "being in the same room." Sure, there was more clarity, et al, but the "aliveness" was the big set apart. Even with the system playing in the next room right now, Oscar Peterson playing "On Green Dolphin Street" is truly toe tapping and I want to go there to listen! But I digress (um, or not). I mostly listen to classic rock, blues and jazz. The latter two genres offer a lot of small venue recordings. On these the difference that the Benchmark makes over the Opus is very obvious. There is a greater sense of space; I am there. On recordings I’ve always thought were weak, there’s more body. I’m looking forward to listening to higher bit-rate recordings now that I have a DAC that supports them. I’m told it makes a difference. We’ll see. The Mytek the OP mentioned is on par with the Benchmark DAC3. Definitely worth a listen. I chose the DAC3 for aspects the Mytek doesn't support. More esoteric than substantial and not worthy noting. As I re-read the OP before posting my thoughts, it looks like they might be focused on a one box solution. The MiND2 supports Roon and since buying it I’ve upgraded to a perpetual Roon license. But the Roon doesn’t have a built in DAC. If you have a usable DAC to use in the interim, and can make a two step upgrade, the MiND2 and DAC3 mate very well together. It’s been a great bang for the buck upgrade for me. Good luck to you in your pursuit of audio nirvana. |
@fpeel A couple years ago I was using a Benchmark DAC2 HGC, as a DAC and preamp too for a bit. Very, very nice piece of gear. Extremely accurate sounding, no jitter, no coloration whatsoever. I'm sure it would mate well with my Yamaha/Spendor setup, but as mentioned previously, I'm still looking for a one box solution right now. The Simaudio Mind Streamers looks great, but my Auralic already works wonderfully with Roon and sounds great with the Mytek. |
A must read Class A - Bell canto Streamer $2495, definitive audio delivered for around 2 grand a No brainer !! https://www.audiostream.com/content/bel-canto-refstream-asynchronous-ethernet-renderer |
