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which bang for the buck DAC?

Hi,

I would love suggestion for a DAC with performance per dollar in mind. It will be used with a Sony S350 (bluray player) as a transport and also with a computer as the other transport. This way I can downsize my standalone cd player. The DAC will feed into a Krell 400xi via XLR. This way I will have a music server and the ability to play cds as well.

I would love to stay under 1000. I am looking at the DACMagic and the PS Audio Dlink iii, and I am a bit skeptical of both. Are they good or just hype? Are there better choices? Would love to hear other suggestions. I am looking for that DAC which delivers performance per dollar. Hopefully it exist.

Thanks in advance
jeanluc07
shadorne's avatar
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shadorne
7,333 posts
 
Benchmark "precise" which is fair enough, although "lean" might be more usefully descriptive

I agree. Good point.
2chnlben
595 posts
 
Something to keep in mind about the PSA DL III is that it uses no op-amps in the output stage. Instead, PSA uses a 100% class A discrete FET output stage (most DACs in this same price range utilize an op-amp based output stage). Whether or not, this is why the DL III sounds so good, I don't know. It does sound good though, and the Cullen Stage IV modified version sounds even better.
buconero117
2,311 posts
 
California Labs Tube units.
mozartrules
42 posts
 
I have the Benchmark and it works really well in my system (as a pre-amp with a Pass amp and Quad 2805), but I am not sure it will work well with the Krell if that sounds like the KAV300i that I had some years ago. The Benchmark is precise/lean and combining it with a Krell may be too much.
tobias
1,534 posts
 
I've compared the Benchmark to the Apogee Mini-DAC head-to-head. The Benchmark was extraordinary, so detailed it was the musical equivalent of watching bodybuilders ripped for competition. Every muscle stood out. I thought, if anyone wanted to know what "analytical" sound meant, this would teach them. I was glad of a pause after a while, but I honestly wouldn't have missed the experience. You might love it.

The Mini-DAC didn't seem to leave out any detail but the focus was on the music as a whole, the relationship of parts within it, and with more sense of a performance event. I liked it better for a longer session. Furthermore, using the same transport and cable, the Mini-DAC's highs were less hashy.

So this is to recommend the Apogee Mini-DAC, at about $800 for a USB version on eBay.
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