[Kmofflorida]

Been out of the 2 channel world for a bit.  I have a Custer made tube preamp that I used to run a bolder cables art di/o with that I actually loved.  Great bang for the buck.  Anything else new that had come along that falls in the bang for buck giant killer category for dacs.

[I.Greyhound Fan]

Been out of the 2 channel world for a bit.  I have a Custer made tube preamp that I used to run a bolder cables art di/o with that I actually loved.  Great bang for the buck.  Anything else new that had come along that falls in the bang for buck giant killer category for dacs.

What is your price range.  Bang for the buck can be $200 or $20,000.

[Kmofflorida]

Lol good point.  I'd say 500 to 1000 range used is ok to..

[I.Greyhound Fan]

I would look for a used Chord Qutest and upgrade the power supply to a linear power supply or the ifi powerX power supply.  My son owns this dac and it sounds great and is built like a tank.  There are 6 used units for sale on www.audiogon.com for about $1K and above.   It is well worth the money, responds to power supply upgrades and different usb cables.  My son runs his with a $50 LPS bought off Ali Express.  We own 3 of power supplies and they work great and made a nice improvement in sound quality with each piece of gear.  The ifi power X does too but it does not clean up the sound as much as the LPS's.

For new, consider the Schiit Bifrost Multibit.  Made in the USA, good customer service.  There are plenty of Chinese DAC's sub $1K but I always worry about reliability and repair for Chinese gear.

https://www.audiogon.com/listings/lisba28a-chord-electronics-qutest-dac-d-a-converter-64311-da-converters
The above Chord DAC is through The Music Room.  They are very reliable.  I have bought quite a bit of used gear through them.

https://www.schiit.com/products/bifrost

[Kmofflorida]

Thank you I will look into it

[newzooreview]

The Holo Cyan 2 is well regarded. I had a Holo May KTE and it was very detailed and natural sounding. I would still have it if I weren't downsizing the system. These are supported and repaired by Tim Connor at Holo Audio USA, but they are extremely well built.

https://www.kitsunehifi.com/product/holo-audio-cyan-2-dac/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbiUXDf854c

[nlitworld]

My small room setup pushed me to a tube buffered dac from MHDT Labs. R2R NOS dac with a plethora of tube choices (5670 or 6SN7 the favorites). For my setup, something that smoothed the digital hash and created more three dimensionality was the ticket. The Schiit Bifrost 2/64 I had prior was good and detailed, but too much for me. Plus I love to go hotrodding the internals so the MHDT being through hole mounted components will allow all sorts of shenanigans in modding. It may take a couple swaps to find something you really enjoy so enjoy the journey.

[snaimpally]

I have the Denafrips Ares II. Do a search and check the many favorable reviews. You can find these used for $600ish. They have renamed the latest version the Enyo 15th and its still under $1000. Its made in China but I have not had any issues in several years of ownership.

Another good DAC is the RME ADI-2 DAC FS. Made in Germany. The MSRP is $1299 but you can find it used for $1000 or less. Built-in 5-band parametric EQ and can be remotely controlled using their app.

[Audiosaurusrex]

I have the RME ADI-2 DAC FS with a Teddy Pardo LPS. I am so satisfied I will probably never part with it. It feeds my Octave V70 Class A and Spatial M3 Sapphires so well, clean robust and dynamic with plenty of transparency which I fine unique. It's just amazing to listen to for me 

[Tyson]

I run an iFi iDSD Pro which is a tubed DAC using 5670 output tubes. 

[Delta77]

Holo Audio
Spring 3 KTE

Not really a cheap and cheerfull item, Cost aroud $3,500.

[newzooreview]

Alpha Audio is running a live test of $1500 DACs in a few days:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxamTMgzCWI

I find their format and quality of setup do reveal differences between components, in conjunction with the comments from the listening panel as they go.

The say they are going to compare 1) the Atoll DAC200, 2) the Metrum Acoustics Amethyst DAC3, and 3) the SMSL VMV D2.

[rbbert]

IMHO anything in your price range is going to be a compromise and trusting to someone else's audio tastes and preferences may leave you disappointed.  Obviously the way around that is to listen to some in your own system, but dealers and manufacturers will be reluctant to give you an in-home demo if you plan to buy used.  JMO, as I say.

[serlvz]

I'm using a Denafrips Pontus II. It is awesome and everything I want in a DAC. I don't see myself changing to anything else unless this dies.

They run about $1800 or so new, so I imagine used ones are getting close to the $1,000 range, perhaps a bit over.

[sounddog]

I’d recommend the Ayre QB9 dac. I see used listings for under $1000.This was one of the best bang for the buck purchases I ever made. I sold it only after I moved up to the Ayre QX5 Twenty.

[rodge827]

Audio Note Kits 2.1 Signature with some upgrades is a great way to go.
True to life nos Dac that delivers across the board. Build it yourself or have it done by an ANK recommended builder.

[Denton J]

The Decware community has several positive Denafrip DAC reviews.

[SlushPuppy]

I'm using a Denafrips Pontus II. It is awesome and everything I want in a DAC. I don't see myself changing to anything else unless this dies.

They run about $1800 or so new, so I imagine used ones are getting close to the $1,000 range, perhaps a bit over.

I just sold mine for $1375, and I was on the low side of current listings. They hold their value well.

[serlvz]

I just sold mine for $1375, and I was on the low side of current listings. They hold their value well.

What did you move on to?

[SlushPuppy]

What did you move on to?

I'm moving to active speakers (Dutch&Dutch) with a built-in DAC.