New DAC! Meitner MA3, Denafrips Terminator Plus, Holo May KTE, Mola Mola Tambaqui


Currently have an original Schiit yggdrasil.  Thinking about taking another step up or maybe two steps!  Is the Holo May still good?  I know I hear a lot about Denafrips.  Then someone was mentioning Mola Mola. 

I like the idea of the i2s HDMI connection, I believe this is so I could have my DAC decode SACD versus a player. 

Also considering name brands dCS Lina, Meitner MA3, MSB?

Wilson Alexia V

Dan D'Agostino S250

Mac mini running Roon

Is anyone really winning in this space.  Tough for me to demo at home as I'm 2 hours from HiFi Shops and they are kind of limited in the direct to consumer DACs.

Thank you!

chauncey

DCS Bartok is pretty amazing. I have one available, sick price. i’ve had most of the ones on your list and then some. If you want some ideas on what they sound like send me a message. Ray

The Yggdrasil is a budget DAC. Upgrading will make a huge improvement in sound. The real question is in which direction do you want to upgrade? Do you want incredible detail? Or detail and musicality. Look at Berkeley and dCS for detail. ARC is detailed and incredibly musical. There are a lot of great DACs on the market today. In general, the greater the investment the greater the performance (of main stream DACs). I would recommend US and European before less expensive DACs. Typically these are great sounding on several dimensions, but miss on a couple. 

Do not consider new interconnect types in your decision. The big deal is the component. AES is likely what you will use… but it is the component that is the determinant of the sound… the best connection is secondary or tertiary.