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Does a Tube Dac make sense?


I’m  in the market for a dac since I bought a Musical Paradise MP701MKII Tube Preamp few months back, does it make sense to buy a tube dac? The seller Garry is suggesting to get the Musical Paradise MP D2 MKIII which is a tube dac with a AK4490 but can be upgraded to AK4499 but I’m leaning towards the RME ADI2 which is almost the same price as the MP tube dac. I’m finding it hard to justify a $1k dac but I have read a lot of forums that suggests the RME or the SMSL M400 and Denafrips Ares II but I’m a sucker for vu meters and spectrum analyzers but if the MP tube dac is a good match for my MP tube preamp I’m willing to give it a go.
stibin

Showing 1 response by yakbob

yakbob
449 posts
 
I own the MP-D2 mk2 with the AKM 4497 chip, Mundorf caps, and NOS Amperex tubes. No regrets here.

The value in this DAC for someone in your position (unsure of tube components) is the ability to easily parts swap rather than whole component swap. Tubes, caps, even chip swaps are possible, and the changes do have a noticeable effect on sound.

There is a fairly active Musical Paradise thread on audiocircle that would be worth your time.

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