It would be informative if those that owned many DACs can provide a comparisons and rankings of all the DACs tried. It would be helpful for me as I'm looking for good sounding DAC at good value. It would be informative to know which ones arn't good value, and which are.
Thank you!
let me try and sum them up in one line...
JDS Labs OL-DAC - won't find better for the price in my opinion, plug and play, neutral, just sounds right.
JDS Labs EL-DAC - like the OL DAC but supports higher bit rate and also Coax input, again just sounds right, and never leaves you analyzing the equipment. It just gets out of the way to allow you to enjoy the music.
Topping D30 - great if you are on a budget and need optical/coax/USB inputs, analytical sound, I prefer the OL DAC ever so slightly though as it sounds a little more refined/natural.
Matrix Quattro II - detailed, analytical and excellent for critical listening or if you want something that is extremely revealing at the expense of a little musicality. A very technically capable DAC that is a little underappreciated around here.
Space Audio Plus - nice and detailed for the size and price, a little lacking in body but still a nice little DAC.
iFi Nano iOne - This thing is awesome, has plenty of features and sounds tonally correct with great soundstage, detail and depth. A real steal for the price.
iFi Micro iDAC2 - I am a big fan of this one too, like JDS Labs they focus on making the sound realistic, it doesn't try and extract every micro detail and shove it in your face, but it isn't buttery smooth and laid back either. Detailed, resolving but natural.
Now some of the above were on loan (iFi + Space units) and I ended up purchasing both JDS Labs units after auditioning them as they are the ones that sit in my system and just do what they are supposed to do without me thinking I need to upgrade them.
The Quattro II is a little too analytical for my tastes, but it does have a lot going for it and worked very well paired with the iFi iCan Pro headphone amp, along with other warmer tube amps.
Topping is just great on a budget, but I still prefer the OL DAC in my reference IEM system.