$2000 Dac

You haven't mentioned anything about your system.  Are you streaming? Streamers can significantly impact the SQ.  I've had the opportunity to try a few and finally settled on an Innuos Pulsar which is incredible with my Accuphase DC-37 Processor/DAC. In fact the Pulsar is a huge step-up from my former Innuos Pulse.  People will argue that streaming is only about 0's and 1's and are relatively all the same, but anyone who has a great streamer knows better.  The same can be said about DACs

@tyray  If you order directly from the factory overseas, there may be tariffs or customs fees. The return window is 14 days, and the buyer is responsible for round-trip shipping. You can barely break in an R2R DAC within that short period unless you leave it powered on 24/7. An R2R DAC usually requires a minimum of 150–200 hours of break-in. Based on my experience with the Micro DAC, the spatial and ambient cues do not fully reveal themselves until near the end of the break-in period, which is essential for proper appreciation. I almost returned it because of this.

If you purchase from a U.S. distributor and the product ships from a domestic warehouse rather than overseas, you may avoid tariffs or import fees, and return shipping would also be less expensive. However, one distributor offers refunds in store credit only, while the other charges a 15% restocking fee.

I’m laying out all of these “negative” aspects to help streamline your purchasing decision. In my experience, the more potential downsides I put it out there upfront, the easier it becomes to decide to buy the Divinity. It’s a bit of reverse psychology—and I’ve found it tends to work especially well on smarter buyers, at least the buyers think they are smart.

Good luck again, and let us know how you like the Divinity. I’m genuinely excited for you—just as I am for myself every time I invest the time and money in a brand-new product. It always feels like an adventure discovering a new continent.

Fire-water, My system is made up of a Lamm 2.1 deluxe pre and a VTL st150 amp. Played through Vandersteen 2sig3 speakers. I have a Baetis streamer, server. Played through a Luxman dac. Over the years I have replaced speakers, amps, pres. I never replaced the dac or the Baetis. I just traded my dac in on an Antipodes DX3 streamer ripper server. So I have no dac. I have tried so many dacs over the years. It seems they all gave me the same results. That is why I am looking for an R2R or a dac with tubes. I do have a turntable also. I expect to get the Antipodes next week. So I'd like to have a dac ready when it arrives. I stream Tidal through Jriver. I may be changing to roon. May not have a choice.

lanx thanks for spelling it out for me. I have not made my choice. Why wouldn't I buy a used Pontus for 1500 bucks if it's the same as the divinity? Just wondering. I would like to try the lesser expensive Garlubidor but they have not been shipped yet. The market is flooded with dacs if you want a denafrips, Guster and other chinese varieties. My reason for the post in the first place was to come up with dacs I haven't heard of that aren't a boat load of money. thanks

Op, Responsible reviewers usually publish their reviews 2–3 months after a product’s release, due to the necessary break-in period. I believe a number of reviews will be coming soon, so you might want to wait—just hold on to your curiosity. Your McIntosh C2500 has a very capable internal DAC that compares favorably, in sound quality, with separate DACs in the $2,000–$3,000 range.