After trying a number of DACs - Chord Qutest (owned), Topping D90 (owned), Luxman DA-06 (owned), Audio Mirror Tubador III (owned), T+A DAC 200 (auditioned at home), Border Patrol (borrowed), Audio Research (GSi75 built-in DAC) and a few others -- I finally settled on Denafrips Terminator 2. IMO, it provides just the right balance between the so-called analog sound (think Border Patrol, AMT3) and the neutral/highly resolving sound signature (think Qutest, Topping D90, Benchmark, etc.). Plus the various filter options allow you to tailor the sound to your liking.
It does ’detail’ as well as any other DAC I’ve heard but without losing that ’organic’ touch that is usually provided by the analog-sounding DACs. I also feel that it provides the widest and deepest soundstage of all the other DACs that I have owned or auditioned.
May I ask how does the Luxman DA-06 compare to the Chord Qutest? The Denafrips Terminator costs close to twice the price of a used DA-06. I own the Chord QBD76 so perhaps I may relate to the differences between the Luxman and Chord. My main worry is the Luxman may sound too warm and rolled off in the treble in comparison to the detailed, wide, airy and 3-dimensional sound of a Chord.