Best Minimalist DAC?

Strangely enough, I've not heard from Steve at Empirical.;)

That said, I'm looking for a good price (probably used) on the following :

Ayre QB-9 DSD
Auralic Vega
Lampi Amber
Nad M51
Wyred 2 DSD

Partly this (negotiable) focus is arbitrary -- there's just a ton of good DACs out there like the many mentioned above, and one has to narrow the search somehow. I'm tentatively of the opinion that there is less to chose among competently realized DACs than between some other components.

I realize that not all of these are "minimalist"; not ideal for me, but if I hit the desired pricepoint, I can live with "excess" features.

Anyway, opinions on the above five very welcome.

John

And this one?

http://www.henryaudio.com/

Anyone heard it?

A decision has been made -- for the moment! :)

Embarrassingly, none of the DACs on my short list made it.

A friend recommended I look at the Simple Designs Sonore exD just as one came up used for a good price here, and I went for it.

Defintely minimalist: USB only, the only control an on/off switch. I'd characterize the sound as leaning toward the warm and laid back, which is what I'm usually after in my gear. In a direct comparison, it readily bested the HRT Music Streamer II which I was using as a stop gap -- as it ought, given the price difference. By memory, three of us thought it compared quite favorably to the much more expensive PSA PWDII it replaced -- arguably, a bit more musical.

A link to a bit of press below; I'd rate the Sonore as definitely worth a look if you are shopping along the lines of this thread.

Thanks to everybody for their advice!

John

http://www.audiostream.com/content/sonore-simple-design-exd-dac

Good luck with the Sonore John,

I was just going to attest to the merits of the Bel Canto e.One 2.5 DAC. It does meet the "minimalist" criteria, but more compared to a larger/beefier DAC/Pre combo (such as SS or tubes).

I've been running this Bel Canto for over a year now- very impressive as a DAC, let alone a DAC/Pre with very clean, musical and slightly warm Class D sound, AND built-in 1/4" headphone amp in a small and low-heat unit.... Has many ins/outs despite the small footprint. I'm currently running mine directly into my Pass Labs x150 with Exc results.

These

Oh, and the Bel Canto used is a ridiculous $900-$1200