$11,100

A technological marvel at a ridiculously low price, the Cadenza C41 network player incorporates unique advancements that perfect digital volume control, improve the handling of jitter, eliminate pre-ringing, and eradicate clipping due to intersample peaks. Given this focus on removing distortions and preserving information that is lost or obscured on other network players, you have to think that chief engineer Jürgen Reis’ brilliant technical innovations are, indeed, the reasons for the C41’s lifelike color and solidity and its rare ability to conjure up near-visible presences rather than insistently drawing your ear to isolate transient details. In JV’s experience, only three other DACs can work this magic consistently—and, of course, they cost a lot more dough. If you’re an analog guy looking for a network player that will give you the sound you love (or a close semblance of same), this is the player for you. And if you’re a digital guy who wants the very best but can’t afford it, the C41 would be JV’s first (and only) recommendation. A shoo-in for 2025’s DAC of the Year Award. (355)

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One of the challenges today in audio is how to get Gen-Z and Millenials involved in the joys of high quality music. Those generations grew up with everything in the palm of their hand on their smartphones. Well, NAD may have met that challenge with its C 700 V2 BluOS streaming amplifier.

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Brittania may no longer rule the waves, but the UK-based company dCS has reasserted its dominance in the digital world with the superb Vivaldi Apex DAC. The principal improvement is a new all-analog output board that is said to lower the noise floor by no less than 12dB, immensely improving the overall musicality of the Vivaldi DAC by eliminating many of the pesky artifacts that have often plagued digital sound. The benefits of the analog board are immediately audible, particularly in the realm of instrumental imaging, where the grandeur of an orchestra is conveyed with true panache and verve. Not only do trumpets and drums explode out of a loudspeaker with greater verisimilitude, but orchestral instruments are also more robustly fixed in their respective spaces. The interaction between the various sections of an orchestra is much easier to decipher, ensuring that the music draws you in rather than posing a challenge to interpret.

Streaming is also a real pleasure with the Apex, which is compatible with a number of music management services, including Roon and Tidal. A staggering variety of music, retrieved with the utmost fidelity, is literally at your fingertips. Throughout, the linearity of the frequency spectrum and the timbral weight of vocals and instruments render the illusion of live music less elusive. The Apex, you could even say, stands at the apex of digital musical reproduction. (333)

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$20,950 ($22,950 with Class A headphone amp); Apex upgrade for existing owners, $9000

To begin, I couldn’t have been more satisfied with the performance of my Bartók DAC. So, it was with a tiny dose of disbelief that I took the plunge and upgraded to Apex level—a comprehensive package of software and hardware advancements. Was this going to be an “emperor’s new clothes” moment or a sonic home-run? Well, Apex did the unthinkable, and a Golden Ear nod became inevitable. It furthered what the first-generation Bartók began and then surpassed it—and not by a small margin. The DAC remains as tonally accurate as ever, but its voice is more open and exhibits superior bloom and wider micro/macro-dynamic swings. Music felt as if there was a weightier unmovable foundation supporting it and locking it down. Yet ambience was airier and “wetter” with reverberant fields of energy. Like an ultra-high-resolution photograph, the edge-to-edge expanse and focus within the soundstage was pristine. It’s like witnessing a recording from inside the microphone capsule—from opening transient to the last gasp of acoustic decay. In summary, the Apex “effect” was more than just a laundry list of subtle and not so subtle improvements. Apex is not inexpensive, but the sonic improvements floored me—a  triumph of naturalism and harmonic  detail. The end result was a stirring and more emotional experience of the music I treasure. A component that continues to endure. (300, 344)

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$4995

The HiFi Rose RS150B could be the “Swiss Army knife” of streaming DACs, with integral streaming support, MQA decoding, Roon Ready certification, a pair of analog input jacks with variable output level, and compatibility with DSD all the way up to DSD512. The build-quality is extraordinary with a chassis machined from a solid aluminum block. But the Rose’s most important quality is the sound it achieves from the latest ESS Sabre ES9038PRO. Never before has RB experienced this level of sonic quality from a streaming source. (322)

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$2699/2799 black/silver

After Schiit Audio unveiled the Yggdrasil+ in late 2022, I decided to send my Yggy to the factory for the upgrade to Yggy+ status, “to get remote control, NOS mode, and a new chassis that looks better, offers way more flexibility, and substantially simplifies upgrades.” I had listened to the Yggy off and on for a number of years, liked its sound, and expected more of the same out of the Yggy+ with the benefit of added flexibility. I was wrong! When I streamed Qobuz off my MacBook Pro, I found that sound quality had improved dramatically with basically the same front end. I’m not sure how to account for the sonic transformation, but after being left on to thermally stabilize overnight, harmonic textures had the delicacy of the real thing, without any perceptible grain. Soundstage transparency and immediacy were superb, making for a compelling musical presentation. Dynamic nuances were well fleshed out. Bass lines were a real treat, decisively delineated and capable of delivering a punch. The phase inversion and non-oversampling mode (NOS) functions are extremely handy and allow for quick A/B comparisons during playback. The Yggy+ is the only DAC I’ve auditioned where bypassing the digital filter (NOS mode) doesn’t typically sound better. In fact, there are only small sonic differences between the two modes, with the digital filter offering a smoother treble range. The Analog Devices AD5791 DAC chip is a highly linear and precise multibit design, but at 20-bit resolution it will truncate 24/192 files to 20-bit resolution. This is a minor issue, as bit depth is not easy to resolve in most setups. And of course, it will not handle DSD files, but then again 99% of my digital source material is 16/44. Within its limitations, the Yggy+ is a superb DAC, designed and built in the USA, that to my ears offers a closer approach to the absolute sound than a host of noise-shaping sigma-delta designs. (273; Yggy+ version forthcoming)

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2024 Recommended Products Between $1,000 and $10,000 • 2024 Recommended Products $1,000 to $…  

2024 Recommended Products Under $1,000   • 2024 Recommended Products Under $1,000  

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$46,500

Digital reproduction has long resembled the equivalent of a nuclear arms-race between rival powers seeking to build bigger and better weapons. DCS has now stepped onto the digital battlefield with a potent contender, the Vivaldi Apex DAC. It offers very spiffy performance indeed. When contrasted with the first-generation Vivaldi, it provides superior performance in a variety of sonic arenas, including image stability, timbral purity, and dynamic prowess. One of the most notable areas of improvement is in the bass, which sounds weightier and more textured. Overall, the Apex supplies a more supple and richer musical reproduction that its predecessor could not quite attain. At the heart of the dCS is its Ring DAC which has been heavily modified to offer a lower noise floor and improved linearity. Apex stands at the apex of digital reproduction. (333)

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$28,000/$10,995

Magazines naturally focus on presenting to their readers what’s new, but it’s also important that we don’t overlook those previously reviewed products that spectacular over-perform at their price point. The Berkeley Alpha DAC Reference Series 3 is such a product. I’ve reviewed all three generations of the DAC and used it as my reference for many years.

If you are in the market for a top-shelf DAC, you must consider the Reference DAC 3. Compare it head-to-head with any DAC extant, and you’ll be surprised by how it holds its own or beats highly regarded competitors with six-figure price tags. The Reference 3 is extremely musical and engaging, with a tremendous ability to reach down and present the finest of musical details with precision and clarity. This also applies to spatial micro-cues, opening up a gloriously wide and deep soundstage with precise image placement. “Refined” is a good description of the Berkeley’s overall sound. Despite its high resolution, the Berkeley has an uncharacteristic ease and lack of glare in the treble—a thrilling combination. The downside: The Reference 3 is a high-performance machine stripped down to the bare performance essentials, meaning it has no DSD, no Roon capability, no networking, and no USB input (you’ll need Berkeley USB converter for that). But if you can forego the bells and whistles and want by far the best sound for the money, there’s no greater bargain in DACs today than the Reference 3. If the price of entry is too high, the company’s Alpha DAC 3 brings you much of the performance for less than half the price. (298, 320)

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$47,000

The designers at Greece’s Ideon Audio have imbued their top-of-the-line Absolute Epsilon DAC with a host of proprietary technologies along with elaborate execution. Rather than use off-the-shelf parts, Ideon has created its own circuits or modified standard parts to achieve its unique performance. Couple this with an elaborate power supply and superb build-quality and you have a top-shelf DAC. When auditioned with Ideon’s Absolute Stream music server ($19,900) and the Absolute Time master clock ($9600), the system had stunningly lifelike reproduction of music’s dynamics. The sense of immediacy and presence—the impression of nothing between you and the music—was equally impressive. The Ideon trio’s vivid palpability brought to mind an analogy with a big horn speaker, with its verve and life. The Ideon’s sound conjures an analogy with a perfect crystal—a complete absence of haze, murkiness, or thickness. (327)

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