Aero DAC by Linear Tube Audio - experience

good to remind users here, especially new users, that the search bar above can and often will unearth a wealth of info from this site

It should be noted that mitch2 only tried the stock tubes in the Aero dac which were not anything special if I recall.  I recently heard this dac with Ray Reserve tubes and it sounds excellent. 

Regarding what @stuartk said about @mitch2 's DAC comparison above... lots of stuff to wade through. Also, IMHO nothing wrong with coming here to ask a question directly. To me, that's really the added value of having a forum like this.

At any rate, you can save yourself the hassle of wading through that thread and go to the relevant section that discusses the LTA Aero DAC on Page 3. FWIW, I plan on picking one up as funds allow. 

All the best, and Happy Listening!

@dcaudio, it’s a really good DAC. I can’t comment on the stock tubes as I only had them in for a few days. I replaced them with the Linlai Elite 6SN7 and it sounds fantastic.  Mine is paired with a Lumin P1, Jeff Rowland Continuum S2 and Egglestonworks Oso speakers. This combo works really well. 

I have an Aero in each of my principal systems. I love them. They are run with some very nice NOS tubes, however. (Details in my virtual systems page.)

I preferred the Aero to the Imersiv D-1 DAC (a $12k piece of equipment, FWIW) in both systems. I am getting a Mojo Mystique Z “Quantum” in May and we’ll see how the Aeros stack up against it. 

I think LTA still has a home trial period. So, if you are buying new, you can try it out in your own space with your own other components at relatively little risk/cost.