Jeff Rowlands Amp and Dac vs. VAC amp and DAC

Seems like the dealer knows the Devaliet is in fact worth more than the wires.     It sounds like a bad deal.  

Sorry, that was very confusing. I see a pair of Wel on sale used elsewhere for a lot less money. They are older but does that matter? It was before the new connectors were implemented. I did not mean trade the Devialet for cables -- that would be a BAD deal. Very bad. But used AQ Wel might be good? No?

I also can buy CC Ultra from Croatia for a good price. 

Based on my experience I would limit how much I spent on cables and invest in a preamp. No absolutes, this is based on my system: JR 625 S2 amp, JR Aeris DAC, JR Corus preamp, Bryston BDP2, and Monitor Audio PL500's. Besides speakers, adding the Corus preamp was the most rewarding change that I've ever made. After speakers and the Corus adding the Torus power conditioner had the most positive impact on the sound. 

Re the AQ cables -- I am a very satisfied user and buyer/seller of lots of WEL. WEL will beat WBY any time. As to the connectors don't worry, the old ones are fine. You should expect to pay no more than $2K (give or take) for a used 1M WEL interconnect. In general avoid 0.5M cables as they are a) the most expensive per 1M length, b) least useful in most setups and as a result c) hard to sell. AQ price books can be obtained from the AQ web site and typically expect to pay 25-35% of new price for a good quality used cable

AQ also stand behind their cables very well and will re-terminate or change the length of your cable at a reasonable cost

Finally if you are buying new you should expect at least a 20% discount, any dealer that is not prepared to offer a discount on AQ cables is having you on

Needless to say the Devialet for WBY trade is a dog

Needless to say, the Devialet trade is terrible. I totally agree. And if I gave the impression otherwise, I am sorry for the confusion.

Folkfreak (I really like your user name), the choice is Blue Yonder 1 m for less $$ and newer cable, or Wel .5 m for more $$ but both are a good deal. Thing is, I don't really need more than .5 m. The DAC sits on top of the amp?

Ricred1, I agree but I am not in the market just yet for the preamp. It will come. Maybe in 6 months to a year. I will look to see if there are any good used preamps that will work with the 625. A Corus perhaps, but how often do they come up? A tube amp, perhaps? Maybe a demo. I would like to hear some with the amp but first want to spend sometime getting to know it as it is. So, a good cable makes sense, no?