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DAC upgrade

Looking to take my digital side of things to the next level. 
 

L-shaped new room. Sloped ceiling. Big space. 
 

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. Haven’t gone into the world of tubes. I’m an amateur for sure but read a lot of what you all say and am trying to elevate my game. Truly enjoy this hobby and the happiness that music brings. Just learning what the next step might be. 
 

Thank you for your input. 
 

wjcasey3rd
daytrader
195 posts
 

“Rolling them or managing them” is not a prerequisite to tube ownership. 💡💡

johannm
53 posts
 

Could this be a game changer for DAC's? New on the market - pro references are outstanding. Way within your budget.

https://imersiv.com/

yyzsantabarbara
5,560 posts
 

I have been interested in this Imersiv DAC for a while. I found out that the designer of the DAC will be at a headphone meetup in Colorado on Jan 10. I will be flying in to hear all the killer gear at the meet.

It also turned out that a local friend of mine has the Imersiv DAC at his place. If we can arrange a time, I will drive down to hear it before Jan 10th. I made a post on this thread about the 3 DACs I am interested in. It looks like I will be able to hear all 3 in the same room with the best headphone gear in the world.

The only wild card is me, since I am still waiting to get my Schitt Byggi (via an upgrade).

allears4u
192 posts
 

I think what you're searching for won't be provided for by a DAC upgrade. Synchronizing equipment is part of the magic. And the real problem is there's no way to guess or just throw money at the issue. Trial and a pair of attentive ears will pay rich audible dividends. Surprisingly, small changes can snap things around in big ways. Think small first. Change something.Listen. Experiment. For example, I tried some new interconnects which cost about the same as my old ones. Big improvement on CD clarity. I moved the now discarded interconnects to phono preamp connection to great improvement there. Your room will provide challenges on speaker placement (and sub too). I added isolation devises to great advantage. (Even under my Chord DAC) Consider rearranging aspects of your room. (Bookshelves, mirrors, curtains, oversized chairs, hire some large friends to sit in LOL)

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