DAC-2v2SE 10th Anniversary Limited Edition

The 10th Anniversary DAC received stunning professional reviews when introduced around 2017. I believe the DAC does not get enough press now and that it is still competitive in this environment where the buzz is with R2R(s) and FGPA(s). I am a firm believer that the execution of the design intent is much more important than the conversion technology. My opinion is supported by the fact that many highest price DACs use chip or proprietary conversion technologies rather than R2R/FGPA technology. I recently have been updating my system for the last time to enjoy in retirement. Fixed income will not permit updates after this last round. I compared the 10th Anniversary head to head to two of the most highly respected DACs, one costing 3x the price and the other costing 5x the price of a 10th Anniversary. Both DACs were better in detail retrieval, staging, and imaging. While the improvements were noticeable, they were not game changing. I find the 10th Anniversary extremely detailed, with excellent imaging and staging to the point that the minor improvement from these other more expensive products was disproportionate to the spend. However, the 10th Anniversary was competitive in areas that I feel are more important including timbre, image density, dynamics (micro and macro) and palpability, and the organic presentation of recorded music that draws you forward from you seat into the performance. Continued on part 2...

The liquid, dense, dynamic images with dead-on timbre create a realist three dimensional reproduction of the record. Recording techniques are very evident. The 10th Anniversary DAC does have a more up front presentation but that is to my liking rather than the laid back presentation I hear with most R2R/FGPA DACs. I find the 10th Anniversary DAC compelling. I can listen for hours, never with digital fatigue. With each upstream or downstream improvement I recently made in the server, power conditioner, interconnects, and amplification, the DAC responded proving it was not a limiting factor. It is truly a bargain at its price point. For now, it will remain as my primary DAC in my retirement system. System: Vivid Giya G3, Burmester 032, Wyred4Sound 10th Anniversary with ISO and DC Recovery(s), Aurender N100H, Shunyata Denali V1, Audience Adept Response T2, WyWires Platinum full loom, AudioArt Statement Bi-Wire Speaker Cable, Symposium Roller Blocks and Platforms, Townsend Seismic Platfoms.