Higher End DACs

thanks for these thoughts.  I had started to come across streamer brands like Ayre and Innuos.

I guess some additional points/context of where I am coming from and sorting though from a cross forum posting:

In general, it looks like there are 3-4 potential price points that I am looking at (+/- 5k, 10k, 20k, 20-30k). I am fairly comfortable up to the 20k point, assuming meaningful benefit over the lower price points. I suppose if there really was a marked difference in getting a true game changer at 20k+ or so that could be done, as well. I was just going to do a D1100 to fit with the rest of my system...but I am just hesitant about it. Not sure digital is the brands forte, the specs look decidedly less than other brands (even at significantly lower price points), not thrilled with some of the functional implementation (e.g. muting, popping, etc).

I should also add, the higher the price point the more interested I may become in getting a streamer/dac combination - again, unless the SQ benefits just dictate worrying about the streamer separately...in which case, i might be inclined to take a longer acquisition path (ie more expensive standalone DAC, interim streamer solution, upgrade streamer at later point, etc.).

I am not positive at what price points diminishing returns truly kick in, what point the context of my system would dictate not being worth going higher, and/or just given the rapid evolution of the segment it doesn’t make sense to outlay more.

These are some of the current thoughts running through my head (ie system context, meaningful gains in SQ, at least a decent period of time to ward off obsolescence).

Nice kit so far...  You probably owe it to yourself to hear a Chord Dave and the Hugo M scaler...  And have a look at the Lumin U1 or U1 Mini as a streamer...

You should audition a few samples of DACs and streamers to get a handle of the type of sound you favor.  Pick something in the highly detailed, accurate camp, such as the Esoteric, and then something at the other end of the spectrum, like Audio Note DACs (more lush and harmonically dense, but, not as detailed and clear sounding).  Then, you will be better informed by the vastly different opinions that will be presented to you here.

For a single-unit network streaming DAC, I'd recommend looking at the Bryston BDA-3.14 and Lumin units. Which direction between the two would be a question of which sound character best matches your preference.

I also really like Devialet Expert Pro units but those are best used as all-in-one directly connected to your speakers, which doesn't exactly match what you're looking for.

thanks for the thoughts, so far, all.

many of these brands don't have local dealers to me - when you get into this class, are dealers willing to ship units to you for you to listen in the context of your own system?  Curious how else one goes about narrowing the field and/or making a significant purchase decision, given I often see system synergy being a deciding factor for making an informed choice.