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Upgrading DAC from DacMagic?

post #1 of 13
Thread Starter 

My current home rig consists of a Marantz 5003 CD player feeding a DacMagic, and then on into a Woo WA6SE.  I listen with D7000s and HD800s, and also have a pair of LCD-2s on order.

 

My upgrade plans this coming year will be to add some type of music server to link with my iTunes library (all Apple lossless, on a MacBook), and possibly to upgrade my DAC.  I listen to jazz, classic rock, contemporary vocal, and some classical piano; quite a wide range of stuff, really.

 

I'll want something that can handle the Marantz CD player, as well as either USB from the computer, or possibly an input from a Squeezebox, or similar wireless device if I decide to go that route.  I may even purchase a dedicated iMac or Mac Mini, and re-rip my library to AIFF files, and connect that machine directly to whatever DAC I end up with.

 

My question is, what DACs, and at what price point, will be a noticeable step up from the DAC Magic?  I'm happy with the DAC Magic now, and feel that it is totally transparent, but I'm wondering if audible improvements would be possible with a higher end unit.

 

I've looked at the Bryston BDA-1, the newer Bel Canto 2.5, the Benchmark, the PS Audio DLIII, etc.  I'm hoping to be in the $1500 price range, but would go higher if there are significant improvements to be had with my other existing gear.

 

Any suggestions on DAC upgrades, or would I be better off spending in another area, such as a better universal disc player with a quality DAC built in, or a dedicated hardware music server?  I love the Woo tube sound, though, so the amp is going to stay for awhile. 

 

Thanks in advance for any opinions from anyone.

post #2 of 13

I went from the Dacmagic to the Bryston.  It was a massive improvement for my LCD2s.  The Bryston is the best DAC out of all the DACs you've posted.  I compared it to the Benchmark and it was better.  The only DACs that can be claimed to be outright better than the Bryston are DACs that sit in the 5K plus price bracket, such as the Bekley Alpha DAC, or Esoteric D05.

post #3 of 13

I moved from the DacMagic to the Cary Xciter DAC and found it to be an improvement where others below the $1k level I didn't feel were a significant upgrade. It has SPDIF, optical, USB and BNC inputs. I find it a tinge warmer than the DacMagic but more refined without losing clarity or detail. It looks great to boot.

post #4 of 13

You may want to check the Anedio D1. It is relatively new, but project86 has posted a fairly comprehensive review:

 

http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/528473/review-anedio-d1-dac-my-new-reference-dac

post #5 of 13

 

Its way below your budget, but the Eastern Electric MiniMax DAC has called to me since it's release.  Srajan did a well written review over at 6moons.

post #6 of 13

I also own WA6SE and a pair of HD800.

 

I am looking at the following DACs...... I have not yet decided which one I'll buy...

 

http://www.wyred4sound.com/webapps/site/74030/117839/shopping/shopping-view.html?pid=457975&b_id=&find_groupid=18157

 

http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/dac/NFB7/NFB7EN.htm

 

Both are in the same price range, i.e. USD $ 1500

 

I might have a Wyred4Sound unit that I could listen to sometimes in January, but if I choose the Audio-GD, it will only be based on their reputation......it's a bit of a guess....

 

Denys

post #7 of 13
Thread Starter 

Thanks for all the replies and suggestions; I'm not familiar with the Cary or the Anedio, so I'll check those out; I have done some reading on the Wyred For Sound and the Bryston, and was kind of leaning toward the Bryston, but there are a lot of choices, and I've got plenty of time to shop.

 

I've been reading reviews on the Weiss DAC 2 as well, but it's quite a bit more than what I would want to spend right now.

 

Other suggestions are welcome.

post #8 of 13

You might want to look at the audio gd reference 7 as another option to consider. 

post #9 of 13
Quote:
Originally Posted by tisb0b View Post

You might want to look at the audio gd reference 7 as another option to consider. 


x2.

Dacs by Audio-gd are very highly spoken of especially the ones with the PCM1704 chips.

post #10 of 13
Thread Starter 

Yes, the Audio GD Ref7 and other models are well spoken of on these forums.  I have looked at those as an option.

 

Other choices I've checked out are the Audio Note DAC kits; the 2.1 is single ended only, while the 3.1 can be ordered with a balanced output option; I don't run a balanced setup now,  but I may want to go that way in the future, possibly with a WA22.

 

I'm wondering if anyone here is using one of the Audio Note DACs with similar gear to mine.  I've done some DIY before, so I wouldn't mind the kit building.  

 

So far, though, if I was purchasing today, I think I'd get the Bryston.  Has anyone found the Bryston anywhere for less than the current $2150 retail?  

post #11 of 13

The Bryston didn´t exactly get a favourable comparison to the REF7 here :) Ask SP Wild...

post #12 of 13

After reading reviews and comparisons about Audio-gd dacs not many other brands seem to match its performance no matter what price range.

post #13 of 13
Thread Starter 

Has anyone had any experience with the SimAudio Moon 300D?  This unit seems to get great reviews, and is in the $1500-$1600 price range.   It has a smaller assortment of inputs, which I wouldn't need anyway.  I've ruled out the Cary Exciter, since it does not have balanced outputs, which I might want for future use.

 

I would need either a coax or toslink input from whatever disc player I will end up with, and a 2nd input from a computer, which will probably end up being a Mac Mini, so either way I wouldn't need to bother with USB.  

 

I've seen posts here from a couple of users that use a headless Mac Mini running iTunes, and being remotely controlled from an iPad.  Eventually (after the release of the iPad 2, hopefully in another couple of months) this is the way I would like to go, but I want to keep a disc player in the chain also.

 

My goal would be to have a disc player and a Mac Mini both feeding the DAC, which would then send the audio to my WA6SE, and on to my headphones.

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