Upgrade from Adcom 600?? Benchmark?

if you canget a gda-700 for < $200, jump on it. i got a smokin deal and bought 2 at the same time, 1 worked and 1 didn't, so now i have another gda-700 for parts in case something goes wrong. i used to have the audio research dac2, very nice. i still have the manley jr dac. when i used the manley a couple of years ago with my old sony dvp9000es cd/sacd player, everytime the sony would initially read the disk, i got some loud pops out of the manley and was turned off because of that. the sony took a while to determine if the disk was a cd/sacd/dvd and the dac didn't like it. i sold the AR dac2 and kept the manley.i also just purchased an audio alchemy dac for my rec room/outside system. not a bad little unit. i use my adcom for my den system with my dk design totem setup.

ouch!! my ass hurts!

I'll echo the previous thoughts on the GDA-700: I like it more than the Benchmark. They typically go for around $350, so yes, kicking yourself is entirely reasonable. Something to keep in mind is that a 16-bit recording on a 24-bit DAC is still a 16-bit recording.

Rbstehno: That's great input. I was thinking of
buying a 700, when I looked it up, one had just sold
for $125 here. from what i understand, it's a fantastic unit. Man, I kicked myself in the ass
for about a week on that one. what dacs did you have that
bettered the 700? if you don't mind my asking.....
I appreciate your comments.

try the gda-700. i used to own the 600 and the 700 is superior along with hdcd and balanced options. i actually like the gda-700 better than the benchmark. i also have/had more expensive dacs and they are better than the gda700 but you are also paying 2 to 3 times the cost. also, just because a dac/cd player claims 192/24 specs doesn't mean they sound better. when i evaluated dacs a couple of years ago, i ended up buying 2 nice 20bit dacs that i liked the best, both from manley and audio research.

thanks, peeps!
i'll have to try those then!

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I have the Benchmark and like it very much.

I've seen a few comments in various forums from people who found it to be analytical or sterile but that has not been my experience at all. I've used it with a number of amplifiers, all-tube AES separates, Simaudio I-5, Rawson gainclone and an Onkyo A9555 integrated. The Benchmark seems to add no character of its own, it lets me hear the differences in the amps and even in different tubes quite clearly.

I've read great things about the Lavry and the Bel Canto and assume either of them would be an excellent choice, as well, but I can recommend the Benchmark if you want to begin with a neutral source and tailor the sound to your liking further down the chain.

The Benchmark DAC1 is certainly a worthy component. So is the similarly priced Lavry Black DA10.

A number of listeners have preferred the latter to the former. I have both and could happily live with either. Some days or weeks I use the Lavry, others the Benchmark. Sometimes I like the ultra clarity and resolution of the Benchmark better; sometimes the slightly smoother presentation of the Lavry.

For affordable external DACs of high quality, I'd say these two are the top candidates. Practical fact: there's a lot more used Benchmarks available.

Hope this helps.

Joel.