Ayre DAC vs Auralic vs Metrum vs Bel Canto

Haven't heard the Auralic or Bel Canto but can rightly say the Metrum Octave outperformed the Ayre QB-9 in my system (Shindo based).

That was the issue with the Ayre for me...too clean/clinical for my ears and just missing the heart of the music. In context it was being used in an all Ayre system (V5xe, K5xeMP, QB9, SF Cremona). I also tried both Pure Music, Amarra and Decibel...Amarra seemed to sound the best but can't recall the version number.

The Metrum in contrast is much more musical without losing the details. I may be more tuned to a warmer sound in general though. In context the Metrum is being used as part of a Shindo Cortese, Masseto, DeVore 9's system.

Not really an apples to apples comparison but just sharing my experience.

horses for courses...this was my opinion in my system at that time...comparing to my setup now yes it was clinical. YMMV

Wilsynet, I'm sorry my experience bothers you so much that you needed to
publicly ridicule my comments and share your own experience without
providing the system context for which the pieces were incorporated. I guess
if we all had exactly the same ears then these threads would be superfluous
but this is not the case and constructive forum contributors offer their own
experiences which will likely never be 100% equal in setup to the
OP...and...we're not even talking about room, power quality, and other
environmental differences...but I guess you already knew that. This is not to
take anything away from the PS Audio PWD Mk2 which I've also heard in my
current setup but again did not find as engaging or musical as the Metrum
Octave. Anyway, since you feel you're the only one who's opinion matters, it
appears that the OP can stop looking since the definitive expert on all things
DAC related (none other than yourself of course) has spoken.

Wilsynet, I appreciate the reply.

Audiofreak32, aren't you a Linn dealer? If not my apologies.

Audiofreak32, fair enough...sorry for the mistaken identity. Have you compared the Linn to any of these DAC's mentioned? I was actually interested in the DS series but never had a chance to audition.