Another DAC suggestion a step above Metrum Octave

Thanks everyone for the info.

Hi Bill,
What I meant is I wish Chord QuteHD comes with IEC socket that I can simply use with my aftermarket powercord. But instead, with QuteHD, I'll have to get a quality 12v linear power supply. :(
When you say "some people think Chord > AMR", you mean Chord + linear ps?
I've read many of your posts and let me say here that I appreciate the info you share on various forum. For some of us, these are very valuable.

Hi Loftarasa,
I have not tried many dacs. My previous d to a conversion devices include electrocompaniet ecd-1, oppo-95 and currently metrum octave. Each of these have certain characteristics that I very much like but none had made me completely satisfied and forget about the equipments while listening to music. I'm not very articulate in describing my musical taste, but in short, I like airy top, glorious midrange, controlled and powerful bass (so do other people lol) Detail is not as important as non-fatiguing sound that I can listen to for hours. My system consists of Focal Electra 1028Be, Pass XA30.5/XP-10 and an Empirical Audio reclocker. Cabling is all HiDiamond.

I'm also looking at Esoteric D05. Never heard of device with 32-bit AKM chips but it seems very interesting to me although D05 is 6-7 years old.

Best,

Kzhtoo, I had the Esoteric P3/D5 combo and it is typical of the Esoteric sound, very detailed and airy. Like you, I prefer a "glorious midrange, controlled and powerful bass...non-fatiguing sound". To this end, I found my Luxman D-06 cdp/dac to be exactly what I like. Of course this is not stand alone DAC but Luxman just released their DA-06 DAC. If I didnt also want a cdp and if I had any interest in playing hi-res I would have purchased the DA-06 instead but I got a very good deal on the D-06 cdp so I went this route. Unfortunately, the DA-06 DAC retails for $6K which I think is way overpriced. Perhaps wait a bit a look for something used or get a D-06 cdp and get a transport and DAC in one!

There is an Ear Acute DAC up for sale right now. It is definitely easy to listen to, non-fatiguing and, IMO, beautiful sounding. Those Focal speakers you own can get a bit spitty at times and I think the EAR would be a great match.

Again, thanks for the inputs guys. At the moment, it is coming down between Chord QDB76 HD and Esoteric D-05. Any comments?

Kzhtoo,

Not clear to me if you are using a usb converter before your Octave. Maybe it was in the posts and I missed it. People claim a huge difference between having one good such converter before the Octave. Like Bhobba mentioned above.