Robert1976 - are you replacing the Essence electronics with Boulder? Only that’s where I’d say your issue lies. I’m going through same situation with Essence right now. Did you ever try Tambaqui direct to amp? Sound is considerably more relaxed but lacks the dynamics rendered by the pre. In my room, I’m considering doing what I did with an earlier Naim 252/250 combination which suffered the same issue - replacing the pre with a tube pre. This gave a beautiful result. Tambaqui is not a ’bright’ dac. It’s incredible resolution, though, accentuates the inherent nature of a system’s sound signature. Essence is uber neutral and high energy. Focal tweeters can be ’bright’, too. I had to replace Sopra 2’s in the old Naim system because they made my ears bleed.
Which DACs are known to be sweet/rich/relaxed?
Problem
System is nicely transparant and detailed, but tends to get bright and harsh with certain (rock) recordings and at higher volume levels.
Objective
Nudge the system towards a sweeter, richer, more relaxed presentation.
Proposed solution / first step
Upgrade to a (tube based) DAC, budget $25-40k.
Current chain
- ROON Nucleus
- Mola Mola Tambaqui
- Gryphon Essence pre amp
- Gryphon Essence monoblocks
- Focal Stella Utopia EVO
- Full loom of Triode Wire Labs cables
- Dedicated power line straight into Puritan PSM156 mains filter
- System resides in the living room with some diffusors but no absorption other than sofas, chairs, and some rugs.
On my radar
Lampizator Pacific (or Golden Gate 2 since I heard it's more "tube-like")
Aries Cerat Kassandra 2 Ref or Sig
— What other DACs should I consider?
— Do you think upgrading to another (tube based) DAC will achieve that sweeter, richer, more relaxed presentation?