DAC upgrade

I am pretty familiar with the gear in your system and your criticism of the Chord is just how Chord DACs sound.  It's not bad, just fits in certain systems and not others.  

There are a million choices on the market and in your price range with that gear I would look at Playback Designs MPD8 which is a lovely DAC for the money and rivals units that are quite a bit more expensive, especially for DSD.  

Linn, a Dual Mono Organik Selekt DSM in the Edition Hub format (this is a very customizable DAC with 120 combinations that can be made) but it is a stellar DAC/streamer that I find is an unusually good value and sonically will be an excellent match for your system.  

For a more obscure option, Orpheus makes a stunningly good SACD Player/DAC that would sound great in that system.  Model is the A Zero PS.  I believe this uses four FPGA chips per channel and is very good sounding.  

Weiss and dCS will not be materially warmer than your Chord.  MSB would be an excellent choice and one I would definitely consider.  Lampizator DACs are wonderful sounding but tube rolling can be costly.  The new Rockna Wavedream Reference Signature would likely work but it is not likely you will get one used as it just launched an it is a hair above your budget.

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

I couldn't agree more.

A DSD DAC like the Directstream posted above is the closest sounding DAC to analog as I have heard.  Unfortunately in stock form it is just not good enough to keep up with the big boys.  With the upgrade modifications it's a whole different story.   Also you might consider the newer Directstream MK2 with upgraded audio transformers and AC input upgrade as you already have a good streamer.

I currently have both the modified MK1 and newer MK2 and love them both so much I find I do not get the urge to even break out the vinyl. 

Sometimes I think we forget it’s a "system". No one can predict how a DAC or any component will sound in a particular system. I’ve owned and/or listened to the following DACs in my system... Jeff Rowland Aeris, PS Audio Directstream, Rockna Signature, DCS Bartok APEX, DCS Rossini APEX, Mola Mola Tambaqui, and several more. I currently use a Chord Dave DAC and would love to replace it for under $20K. I’ve tried the M-scaler and I don’t like it in my system. To my ears the M-scaler makes the music sound unnatural. With the exception of the DCS Rossini, the Dave portrays the best soundstage and details(without brightness in my system).

@ricred1 

I agree... But if you are familiar with the components, one can usualy have a good idea of the effect and if it is likely to be a good match. So, if you’ve got a very precise sounding system and add... say a very analytical DAC... it’s likely to push the system too far. Or if you have a very warm organic system that very analytical DAC it is likely to sound good... adding needed detail.

I’ve seen some folks here with a complete mixture of components... and though, great combination of warm and cold... and they loved them. Also, some folks with a string of highly detailed (far more often) analytical sounding components that they complain about... fatiguing, or causing sibilance, or they just get tired of listening. 

So, I definitely agree... but one can often predict the likely outcome if you know the components. 

ghdprentice,

I agree to a certain extent, because the room impacts the sound as well. My point is a system with the same components can sound different due to the room’s influence. 

Based on my recent experience going from GIK Acoustics to Artnovion Acoustics, I'm a big advocate of treating the room before changing any component.