Higher End DACs

whatever diminished relevance this thread was clinging to

@mikelavigne   hopefully this meets your definition of diminished relevance... Love It!  : )

OP:  unless you have budgetary constraints, my advice is to stick to the initial intent of your thread. In other words, push yourself.

It is well worth the spend irrespective of brand chosen.

In that vein, I recommend the Rossini over the Bartok. The differences and superiority were clear in my extended audition. The Rossini also offers more if you add additional dCS chassis/ boxes.

If you can get MSB to loan one of their solutions, go for it. Likewise for other brands.

Finally, I would not let MQA drive a choice. Doing so is sub - TREE. I'll go further and say it's GRASS...and not the kind that's fun to get lost in. [Note: this is coming from someone who appreciates MQA]

Get above the treeline. Evaluate wholistically. 

Thank you David Ten for re steering the conversation.

The OP should try to listen to whatever product or products that work for him. 

The one who creates the best sound will always be the best in audio. In the end, each individual person will choose for that product or system that reveals and creates the highest level of emotion and realism. This is how human emotion works.

You can sell as many brands and products as you want. When you forget most details in sound, you will always create a limited level in the end result.

Bo, Kenjit and Technodude could sure get alot accomplished if only they would team up...hey, maybe they are one in the same!

@david_ten 

thanks for giving me an oasis in the deluge of off-topic replies since I last checked in!

could you share a little more behind your thought process of not considering MQA limitations in your decisioning?  Is it the relative lack of content?  The uncertainty about its scalable future?  The inconsistency of its advancement over other high resolution formats?

thank you!