2. digital
  3. 1244564532

SB duet dig to theta casanova vs transporter dac

i currently use a squeezebox duet digital out to dac in my theta casanova. i am considering a change to the transporter but from what i have read, the digital out will be little upgrade if any. i am wondering if the dac in the transporter will be better than the dac in my theta. things have changed quite a bit since the casanova was developed and i would guess the dacs in less expensive pieces outperform dacs from earlier 2000's by a large margin. the other option would be getting a different dac and keeping my duet. thoughts on how to improve my digital source in the most efficient way would be greatly appreciated.
richard_stacy

Showing 4 responses by richard_stacy

richard_stacy OP
686 posts
 
audiogalore...thanks for the input...that was my initial thought as the squeezebox sounds remarkably good. it really opened up after about 200 hours. i suppose it just brought attention to this as being my primary source and the need to bring it to the next level. the dac in my theta is around eight years old i would guess and i know things have come a long way since. just that burning desire to improve!
richard_stacy OP
686 posts
 
i guess my question was too specific! anyone...?
richard_stacy OP
686 posts
 
thanks guys!

i do not have hi rez files so that is not an issue for now. i have read about the ps audio pieces and they do seem impressive. i think they are quite pricey. i still struggle with the same issue, would it just be better to invest in a better dac (then of course...which!)? i am not convinced that there is much difference in how the information is moved, more so how it is converted to analog and what happens after that point. these are challenging thoughts to me and key to moving forward with digital. i do feel some what stuck, like any change would just be a guess now anyway...but i am also convinced this is the only area that really needs honed in my system...i am very frustrated!!
richard_stacy OP
686 posts
 
thanks much folks. always helps me sort things out to bounce it around here. i will keep reading and poking around the forums but i think ultimately i am going to have to experiment with some different dacs. i am listening to radio paradise as i type this and it just amazes me how good it sounds. i do have the benefit of a pretty fine system (krell/wilson/mit) but that theta is unreal for it's age (and price). in response to the trade in comment, not an option now as i also use it for my pre/pro. this is another subject but i have a love hate relationship with theta. i think they made some of the finest digital equipment and pretty much created the stand alone dac but they also screwed everyone who was sold pieces based on open architecture. they have all but told folks with anything but a casablanca 3 to screw off. really bad business. i still lust for a gen viii though...
More to discover