Ben, I hear you! Unfortunately I have come to the conclusion that NO there is no value system other that your own ears, your budget, what you have access to hear and finally your nerves if you don't have the opportunity to hear, but can afford based on the latest raves. To me digital upgrading is the hardest. I can find absolutely no concensus. I have heard nothing but raves concerning the Bel Canto and was hell bound and bent to get one until.....I called up a dealer who dealt in the MSB III unit to ask HIS impressions of the MSB compared to the Bel Canto if he had heard it. So what do you think happens next? Yes indeed he was quite familiar with the Bel Canto and noted it was better than the MSB III but not as good as PRODUCT X, he raved about Product X and told me it was the best DAC unit under 4K and it cost LESS than the Bel Canto! What to do. He gave me a 30 day trial period to boot. There was one caveat, the unit would take 100 hours to break in, "it is metallic sounding out of the box". Well indeed it was metallic sounding out of the box. I received the unit on the 8th of this month and until last night FINALLY the ringing in the high frequencies, especially piano that made it unlistenable to me, ceased. It is still under evaluation but does have certain unmistakable virtues. High resolution, low noise and incredible dynamics. If tonally it can prove itself, I will probably keep it and only wish I could have heard the Bel Canto to compare it to. If you wait a bit, like a week or so, I will reveal my final decision on this thread about Product X. If I don’t keep Product X, I am seriously thinking about going with an Assemblage Jitterbug on my Ultralink which I CAN live with quite happily and forget about this digital business for a while. Hope this helps! Will
What price hi-fi?
This may start some debate I am hesitating over my next hi-fi purchase-a Bel Canto Dac1-even with the 10 day back guarantee-I can't audition cause I stay in the UK and have to buy from France... Having recently auditioned the new Arcam CD23 I wasn't convinced it did for me in terms of value for money. Ok only I can decide butI'd be interested to see others experiences-nerves before a big purchase,mistakes which have led to begging for refunds,wives who filed for divorce when receipts were found. Is there a value system outwith the obvious financial constraints that people use in upgrading or buying new equipment? Ben