Love my HD800 with Woo WA22 using Cardas balanced cables.  Just had to find the right tubes.

Breaking in HD800's and NAD M51.  Very promising....

The uncomplicated nature of a headphone system really appeals to me.  Less concern over synergy of the components, bass management, room characteristics, seating position, etc.  Also cost less.   On the other hand, if you spend the time and money to set up a good loudspeaker system, it will...

Quote: Amp

Quote: Yes, very happy with the current setup.   I am curious.  Did you find a combination that you thought was better?   I am always looking to improve.

LCD 3's with a Woo WA22.  Happy....for now....   Everything I throw at it sounds good.

Yep.  Same for me.  Removed by user.  Pity.

Both Amarra and Pure Music will interface with iTunes and can handle FLAC.  While they will cost you money, they will improve sound quality.

nick_charles, so then my question is this...   In a higher end system (say $30,000 and up) would you expect to get the exact same sound no matter what DAC you use, assuming you level match?  For example, would you expect the same sound with a $200 DAC from SHEK compared to a very expensive...

Bigshot, fully agree with your comment.  That is why I went with the Weiss 202.  It had the most neutral frequency response.     Again, I do not agree with the concept of house sound, but I think we have to accept that it is a reality.

Quote: I agree with the fist half of your comment.  I however do not think they intend to perform to the same specs.  That is why I said they performed to their specifications.    My experience is that each DAC certainly has a "house sound" (i.e. different specs). I am not saying that is...

Quote: I think they all performed to their specifications.  They just sounded different.  I liked the Weiss 202 best for my main system.  The Rega, on the other hand, sounded flat in that system but sounded great in my headphone system.  I ended up buying both and are using each in the...

Quote: Are you saying all DAC's sound the same?  That would mean that DAC's such as Berkeley and Weiss have no "house sound"?  They were two of the DAC's I auditioned and they were certainly different.   Maybe I am misunderstanding your post.

In my opinion, all DAC's have their own color, which they add to your music.  I recently upgraded the DAC in my main system, and auditioned four high end DAC's for about two weeks.  While initially the differences were subtle, after a week I could easily tell them apart.   The key here is to...