Move on from my Bryston BDA-1?


Given the advancement in DAC technology would I achieve a noticeable (started to say significant) improvement in audible performance by upgrading from my current (but early generation) Bryston BDA-1? I am hesitate on the assumption that the internals of the Bryston (e.g., power supplies, output stage) are still hi-grade but understand the CS-4398 chips have been surpassed. I should mention in the system I stream from a Bluesound Node 2i (and in another use an identical streamer with a Topping D90 DAC). 
dsands

Showing 1 response by ddafoe

I had the BDA-1 and then BDA-2 about 6 years ago; I ended up selling the BDA-2 for the  Alpha DAC Series 2 then SimAudio 380DSD which I kept for 5 years or so.   I really liked the BDA-2 though for the money and thought it was a nice step up from the BDA-1.   

If your happy with the Bryston you could snag a used BDA-2 (AKM DACs I believe). The 380DSD (which can also be found pretty cheap used sometimes) is a DAC I really liked and thought was a good step up for me at least over the BDA-2.   

Recently I've tried the RME ADI2FS (also AKM) and Topping D90 and liked the RME the best.  It is too long ago for me to compare the RME vs the BDA-2 but I could have lived with the RME after selling the 380DSD, although what I liked better about the 380DSD over the BDA-2 (a fuller more musical presentation) was also true in this case for my tastes as well which is why I ultimately sold the RME.   I personally found the D90 to be too forward and analytical for my tastes; if your happy or looking for that type of sound though I found the D90 offers a lot of detail for little money...

If your looking for a different presentation from the D90, an R2R NOS with or without tubes would be worth a try.   I ended up with an R2R NOS DAC and I find it so much more engaging and enjoyable than my previous DACs.

Cheers