Orchid vs TUBADOUR III - Help me choose

If you go for the Tubadour get ALL the upgrades. Will run you about $2200. My friend LOVES his and he has about $100,000 worth of equipment so money isnt an issue.

I don't know anything about the Tubadour, but I have the Orchid and have the following to compare it to - Wyred 4 Sound DAC 1, Auralic Vega, Mytek Liberty, the DAC in my Sony TA-ZH1ES headphone amp, and the DAC in the Oppo HA-1 headphone amp (which I no longer own). 

The Vega and the Sony are a little better, but not by much.  I would describe them as being just a tad "smoother".

I use the Orchid in my computer system, which is where I listen to digital music more than anywhere else.  The Orchid is a fantastic DAC.  I don't have the audiophile vocabulary to describe it, but it is very detailed, "musical", dynamic, and easy to listen to.  I'm listening to Shine on You Crazy Diamond from Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd on my Audeze LCD-4 headphones through it as I type this and it sounds wonderful.  It lets you "see into" the music, individual instruments are well defined, and it really "boogies".

+1 on the Tubadour with upgrades. I got one about a month ago and love it.

No experience with the Orchid, but my Tubadour isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

That’s saying something @waltersalas since you’ve had some top notch DACs Chris!  Glad you are liking yours! 

I agree with Chris; at a minimum get it with upgraded caps, and roll better tubes into It to get the best out of the Tubadour III. You won’t be disappointed! 

Hey martin-anderson,

I'm the one who wrote the review on the Orchid for Six Moons.  Since I wrote the review I have had another two DACS in-house to compare it to and it's still my favorite for the reasons stated in the review.

Waltersalas, has great taste and ears, so I'm sure the upgraded Tubadour III is a wonderful DAC.  However, its twice the price and I don't know if its a better performer.  Remember, if you purchase the Orchid from Linear Tube Audio you get a 30 day in-house trial and can return it if its not what you are looking for.