Chord DACs .. who has moved across to them from R-2R based DACs ?


It seems that Chord DACs are becoming very popular - I’m looking to try the Chord Qutest at some point but wonder if anyone here has moved across to Chord from so called "musical" R-2R DACs like the following:
  • SW1X
  • Schiit
  • Audio Note
  • Lampizator
  • Mojo Audio

Thanks
chopandchange

Showing 1 response by audiojedi

I moved from the:

Metrum Octave (NOS)->
Chord 2qute (FPGA)->
Schitt Yggdrasil (R2R)->
Teac NT-505(DAC/Streamer)(OS)

The R2R and NOS DACs that I had were definitely more organic sounding versus the Chord which was laser precise and detailed.  I missed the warmth and analogue sound of the Metrum after buying the Chord then when I moved to the Yggdrasil which was very good but I believe that not feeding it balanced in and out didn't allow me to get the best from it.

The Teac basically bridges the gap - it's natural and organic sounding but it also nails tone and has lots of detail.  The only DAC that I've owned that I miss is the Metrum - it wasn't perfect but man was it fantastic at doing what it did well.

I've flipped quite a few DACs now and although architecture is important I believe that there is a lot more to it than saying that one particular method is better than the rest.