Just about to pull the trigger on Pontus 15th ...

Like @2psyop i enjoy my Pontus II 12th immensely.  I would buy it again.  Not having heard the Laiv I would still purchase the Pontus 15th over it given my experience.

Vinshine prices seem to be quite a bit higher

That was in Singapore dollars.  Singapore dollars S$1349 / US$994.  In terms of duty, if the U.S. tariff takes effect, Denafrips will likely be the first to react. I recall Denafrips started collecting a 20% tariff but soon removed it. It is still not being collected, but could be reinstated any time.

That make sense. I thought it was odd that he was charging $3700 for the Laiv Harmony. 

I ordered the Pontus 15th from Denafrips HQ in February with beliefs that the unit would ship at end of February. I also asked them for a 5% discount for basically paying for a pre-order. Savings of $100 so I ordered the Remote. Unit still hasn't shipped. 

I emailed the other day complaining of the extended delay of shipping & increasing tariff prices/tax. They of course apologized & mentioned that they would not be asking me for any additional funds for shipping to the US. I'm not sure if the shipping company will be sending me an extra "tariffs bill". 

I pondered between the Pontus & original Laiv dac for quite awhile. I came to the conclusion that without the ability to hear either of them up front I should just go with the cheaper of the two. The reviews & demand of the 15th are good enough that I felt I could resell the Pontus without much loss if it doesn't work out for me. In the end though both dacs & including the smaller Laiv are probably all very good for the money. Probably all an easy resell as well. 

@lanx0003 

I have the Pontus ll and I love it.  The full sized Liav DAC is somewhere between the Aries ll and the Pontus ll.  The uLiav is much closer in sound to the Aries ll in both sound and price.  If you have the budget,  I’d go for the Pontus 15. It’s using most of the parts from the Venus 12th and it’s a very nice improvement over the Pontus ll.

All the best.