PS Audio vs NAD M12

I’d go with the PS Audio DirectStream DAC. The designer, Ted Smith, is a genius. Moreover, PS Audio provides exemplary customer service, and Paul McGowan, the sole proprietor AFAIK, is a true mensch, a real good guy!

On the other hand, NAD is an international corporation owned by the Lenbrook Group. So, I imagine it’s going to be quite impersonal, as is most often the case with corporations. Look at what happened to Infinity after it was acquired by Harman Kardon. It lost the personal touch, customer service was crap, and audiophile values were supplanted by bean-counter values. I wouldn’t buy a NAD product. But YMMV.

Another thing about the NAD M12 that's a huge red flag IMHO is that there's no information about which D/A chip is used. The NAD website doesn't mention it, and none of the reviews mention it. It's a pig in a poke AFAIK.

razorbraun, the NAD M12 looks nice, but the sound is prolly mid-fi at best. My advice is don't waste your money,