A warm DAC?

In djones do we have a rival for kenjit? Otherwise as far as DACs go all the usual suspects have been mentioned, except perhaps Lampizator.

What DAC do you have now?  I have the same speakers and a Raven integrated tube amp. Had a topping DAC (delta sigma) that was good but found the top end a bit bright, and sound slightly dry/clinical. Initially thought about upgrading to a DAC w/ akm chip but went another route by looking at R2R and tube DACs. From what I read that was best way to take the edge off the highs and get more analog warmth plus bigger soundstage. Ended up with a used  Lampizator Amber 3 tube DAC for price around your budget. Soundstage exploded, sound more tubey and analog, don't have issue with top end being bright anymore. I think the DAC upgrade has made the biggest change to my system's sound other than the Focal speakers.  The other DACs I was considering were the Denafrips Ares II or Pontus R2R DACs, the Holo Audio Spring  R2R DAC, or the Musical Paradise tube DAC, but never got to listen to them. My second choice probably would have been the Holo Audio DAC, lots of good reviews including being a Stereophile class A recommended component if that means anything but again never heard it.

Will also mention that before I upgraded the DAC I got a Schitt Loki and turned down the top end just a hair and that definitely helped with brightness.  But now with the Lampizator DAC don't need the Loki. 

Look at these DACS

MHDT Orchid DAC

Audio Mirror Tubadour SE III

Chord Qutest 

People forget that this is a hobby, not a freakin’ science project. I don’t have a problem with someone basing their buying decisions solely on measurements - to each his own. But to unilaterally declare it as some sort of a universal truth is rather juvenile. It’s perfectly fine to say that one would never buy a product that does not measure well on paper, we can certainly respect that point of view.  Nowadays, most manufacturers have access to equipment to measure their products, it’s not rocket science anymore. This is exactly why a company like Topping can produce equipment that measures extremely well and sounds excellent by all accounts. But why is it so hard to understand that sometimes designers want to express themselves in a way that might not satisfy the measurement nazis but appeal to a specific segment.

Secondly, I’m always amazed when someone proclaims that the equipment should be true to the recording/source. Exactly how do you know how a recording is supposed to sound like? Were you there when it was being recorded? And why can’t we use a DAC to "color" the sound? Where does it say that coloration is only allowed downstream?

The OP said his budget is $ 2500 !  

I am suggesting he pair his PSA PWT with a slightly used PSA  Direct Stream DAC without a Bridge.  The 2 work excellent together when using the I2S connection. 

Happy Listening !