Owners of "Giant Killers"?

I'm not sure if the APL Denon 3910 at $5000+ qualifies as a giant killer, but it equals some digital giants I've heard at more than twice the price, and it's tremendous in it's latest iteration with 4 DACS, Upsampler, and other optional goodies.

I have not owned a lot of different equipment, but I certainly feel that my current amp could fall into the giant killer category: Yamamoto A-08 45 SET, 2 Wpc of glorious music making amplification. Retails for $2,250. Anyway, in my system, in my room, yadda, yadda, yadda...

Oh, and the speakers that are hooked up to the Yammy may also qualify: Zu Cable Druids.

Gunbei, which DAC won the silver medal?

Mghcanuck and Marko455,

I need to make an apology for insinuating that the Ack! wasn't a good DAC. After rereading my post I'm afraid my humor didn't come through the way I intended and it seemed like I was gloating. Not a very constructive post by me. I'm sorry.

I'd been changing other components at the same time and found a combination that I liked a lot. And I was even more surprised to find that I preferred the cheapest DAC of them all. The Audio Mirror D1. The preamp and amp in my listed virtual system are now the eXemplar Exception II and Bel Canto SET40, and the balance of the Audio Mirror seems to work best for me with these new components.

So in the end, my long time Kora Hermes took the silver. But now all this swapping, listening and testing has me thinking of getting a player like Tvad's. This is madness!

Gunbei,

No need to apologise. I didn't detect any gloating, which I wouldn't really have any great objection to anyway, I mean if we can't share our happiness about equipment that reproduces music in a satisfying way... Well, it just seems these forums are the place to do it, as well as discuss the downsides. You obviously took the time to evaluate different DAC's, and other equipment, in order find one that you find to your liking. Well done!

It might be madness, given your apparent satisfaction with the Audio Mirror DAC (and your current set-up), to spend 10 times the money on a new player. Although, I believe I suffer from the same affliction. ;-)

Are you still using the Theta Pearl as a transport?

Mghcanuck,

Yeah the Theta is still there. But, Tvad and Boa2 got me thinking of the APL Denon.