I got the Laiv Harmony Dac. Last year it was 'the thing.' Most audio youtubers gave it raves. Then Laiv came out with its DDC which these same youtubers raved about saying it brought the DAC up a notch. So I got it and I heard a clear improve in its already very good sound. It cost total $3,500. Only a DAC obsessive can tell you if you can get the same sound for $2,000. A youtuber compared the combo favorably to the Denafrips Venus 15 which last I saw was $4,000.
There are then other youtubers who claim a $150 DAC sounds as good as one for 30K. I'm not sure how they know this. Did they have unbiased acquaintances do a blindfold test? I bought a cheap Schitt to use when my previous expensive DAC had to be repaired. The Schitt sounded pretty good. I had to keep it a while as the repair took a long time. When I finally got my old DAC back in the chain its superiority was striking. A placebo effect? Does it matter? It's what you hear that matters. I don't have the capabilities to do a blindfold test. I'm the only audiophile among the people I know who are as heavily into music as I am. So there is nobody I know who can set up a blindfold test for me of 7 DACS at wildly varying price points as one of the anti expensive DAC youtubers claimed he did. That is the loud angry one who claims everyone is being scammed.