Bel Canto Dac-1 v. any Wadia Dac Any one

Stay away from the older wadia's. I tried the wadia 12 and it was hidiously bright and just sounded terrible. I think it came out in the early 90's. I liked my audio alchemy better and my theta pro basic absolutely destroyed it.

I have heard the older Wadia Dac's and I agree with the above. I have heard the newer Wadia cd players (I think it was an 860) and I think a properly driven Bel Canto is a little better for a lot less money. The only Dac I have heard that I think is better than the Bel Canto is the Theta Gen V and that is only because the Theta has more bass slam. I have owned both the Theta Pro Basic I and II and they are not even close to the Bel Canto.

how does the P3A compare to the Bel Canto?

The Perpetual P-1A/P-3A and power supply were more dynamic, and painted a blacker background than the Bel Canto (both using a Pioneer 525 as a transport) in my system. I could live with both easily, but I preferred the P-tech gear. Neither of them could give me exactly what I was looking for, and as a result I had to spend much more $$$. I ended up with a Muse model 9 signature, and I could not be happier.