DAC upgrade

It's your speakers...they have a sterile sound. D’Agostino is also a bit of a sterile boy.

Some simple fixes to attempt....

Get a dac with peq capability like an RME and put a low Q...0.5-ish Q bump around 1500hz by 2 or 3 db...see what happens. That region being recessed w.r.t overall tonal balance can bring you  clinical sterility. Changing dacs and cables for ever and ever is not the fix.

Raise the crossover on subs a bit (drop level if needed). With dual subs you won't localize anything.

D’Agostino HD Preamp, M400 amps, Aurender W20 with their Master Clock. Wislson Benesch Resolutions with two REL 32 subs. Great interconnects.

Have a Chord DAVE DAC. It sounds good. Still a little clinical and sterile.

Check out

the lta aero with ray reserve tubes connected through wywires usb platinum cable 

The Aero DAC with Ray Reserve tubes is often reported to be sonically the polar opposite of the DAVE, which emphasizes detail, clarity, and an ultra-fast transient response but can sound analytical or digital in some high-resolution systems.

With the Aero/Ray/WyWires, the setup should render an analog-like flow, liquidity, and a musical, tactile presentation.

Good luck in your search.

SW1X.  They have a full gamut of models but all have some key things in common, even their most economical units.  They are very analogue sounding, great balance, top quality components.  You will *not* need a reclocker.  I have the DAC IV Special but the less-costly models have the same design philosophy. 

Thank you all so much.  I have been looking at options and reading through people's responses.  Two of the options have peaked my interest and after speaking to a representative at The Music Room they have both an MSB Reference DAC with their Reference Powerbase and Pro USB as well as a Lampizator Poseidon in great shape and either would be at a good price with a trade in of my DAVE.  I haven't dabbled in any tube gear before, but both of these seem like they could be a good fit in my system and seemed to have some favorable responses from people in this thread.

Given these two options, what would you do?

Again, I really appreciate everyone's input.

This would seem to fall into the “you probably can’t go wrong either way” category, but I’d read as many reviews of both as possible and go with the one that offers the sonic characteristics that most closely align with specifically what you’re looking for and choose that.  Short of someone here having heard both in the same system, which is highly unlikely, that’s probably the best you can do.  I know this advice probably falls into the “well duh” category, but that’s what I’d do FWIW.  I’m sure you’ll be thrilled either way, and best of luck.