upgrade DAC/Amp for Peachtree Decco65?

You're questions are valid, but difficult to answer. They're too general. Most of what you're asking, you really can only get from experience. If you said something like this: "I have DAC A and I'm looking to improve on (whatever quality). Its a much easier question to answer because there's a clear focus on what you're after.

I do see one thing that I may be able to help with. You talk about different DAC chips. Nothing wrong with that; the chip has an effect on SQ. But the digital portion of a DAC is only half of the equation. I see way too many people ignore the analog portion of the DAC. Even if 2 dacs are very similar on the digital half, they can sound very different depending on how different the analog stage is designed. For example, I like Ayre very much. Ayre digital products have the "Ayre" sound just like their amps and preamps. And that's because the same person designed all the components. Its just something to consider. You should be able to use your Peachtree gear as a reference to whatever new products you audition.

Completely understandable. I've been reading a lot of articles along the lines of what you're saying. A lot of people are saying that a chip is barley half of it, and its implementation is a lot more important. I could see where my questions are rather vague.

I guess I'm looking for something a bit more detailed. I want something that can help provoke depth/transparency. I'm not sure DAC's even have as much of an effect on these things in comparison to other components (speakers, amps, etc).

I'm pretty happy with the DAC I've been using, and I guess I just don't want to end up with something worse in terms of detail/transparency.

Do you have any suggestions as to where I can find used DAC's? The classifieds here are a bit high end for what I can afford (college student), Craigslist seems to be filled with junk, and Ebay is a tad bit overpriced.

I've been looking heavily at the Cambridge MagicDAC XS, but I'm really not sure how I feel about it being powered through USB, and having to use a Y cable (RCA to aux) to listen to it. I've also been looking at the Musical Fidelity V90-DAC, which seems to fit my needs but is a tad bit pricey for what I'm willing to spend right now.

I sometimes feel like a bother demoing equipment at stores because I rarely buy new, so I try to make a good educated guess from reviews online. Its unfair to them for me to take up a bunch of space/time at a shop when I'm more than likely not going to buy from them.

Thanks for the well thought out response. I sometimes feel like I'm going to start up a bunch of flaming due to my lack of experience, its good to see that there are some coherent/helpful people on these forums.

What speakers are you using, and what's the room like?

I'm a Peachtree user - I have both the Grand Integrated X-1 in one system, and a Dac-itX in another (with the same 923 DAC chip that you have) - so I know what they sound like. If you're looking for more detail, or transparency, etc. I'm inclined to look at your speakers & room before trying to upgrade the amp & dac in the same price range.

Very good questions, also something I should have added in the first post. I'm using some Epos ELS3 speakers, I also use a pair of Sennheiser HD650's for listening. These speakers are in a pretty small room. The majority of the room is covered by my desk/system (imagine dorm room sized).

They are about 3 feet from the wall, with the left side being in the corner and the other speaker being near the door.

How do you like the Grand Integrated X-1? It looks amazing from what I've read/heard.