Advise on R2R DAC

[shabusf]

Hello friends,
I am reaching out for some advice after the unexpected failure of my beloved Metrum Jade DAC. I am now searching for a budget-friendly alternative that can offer a similar performance and sonic character. Below is my chain
RPI4(Moode Audio) -> Gustard U16 DDC -> <DAC> -> Kinki Studio EX M1 integrated amp -> Monitor Audio Gold 100 6G speakers

I tried replacing the DAC with Topping D70s and iFi iDSD Neo, but neither is working for me. They lack the addictive, emotionally connecting sound signature I’m used to with the Metrum.

If someone could guide me to a proper R2R budget friendly option to fill the missing gap, it would be a great help to me. Requesting your inputs.


Thanks
Shabu

 

[square_wave]

Budget options ( Less than 1200 $ range) - The LAiV Harmony µDAC is an R2R dac and is the younger brother of the LAiV Harmony (full size). The smaller one is reasonably priced and may work for you. Denafrips Ares is in the same ballpark pricewise.

 

[morerajendra5678]

Musician Pegasus is also a good alternative to Denafrips Aries. Even Gustard R26. Some users have recommended it over Denafrips Pontus.

 

[LBRS]

Did you write to Metrum support? They are pretty good with repairs and are professional. But dealing with shipping and paper work is a hassle, moreover the Indian customs will put a duty even for repairs when it shipped back. Regarding R2R have you checked MHDT Labs Orchid, I have not listened to it but have heard great reviews from people who are using them, it is a NOS very analog sounding DAC. They don’t have dealers in India, you have to get it from TAIWAN. It is priced around $1000 + ~ 30% customs

 

[surfatwork]

Check out http://www.soekris.dk/

 

[Kannan]

FiiO K11 R2R DAC is a real budget one. Though pricewise it may not appeal as compared to the rest of your equipment, you may check it out with customer reviews.

 

[square_wave]

Musician Pegasus is also a good alternative to Denafrips Aries. Even Gustard R26. Some users have recommended it over Denafrips Pontus.

Oh yes, the Gustard R26 is a really nice one. Well regarded by almost everyone.

 

[ajuvignesh]

FiiO K11 R2R DAC is a real budget one. Though pricewise it may not appeal as compared to the rest of your equipment, you may check it out with customer reviews.

K13 is released already and it is in par with enyo 15 in many areas apparently.

 

[shabusf]

Hello all,
Sorry for the delayed response, having a long weekend.
Thank you for your kind replies.
Regarding servicing of failed Metrum, i wrote to their support( got some inputs from FM), but yet to hear back.

I am shortlisting Fiio K13(budget), Laiv udac and Gustard R26. Would like to hear how Laiv sound compared to Gustard as both falls under the same price bracket, any experiences please?

I am considering preowned gears as well to get max value within budget, and found 1st gen Holo Spring Level 1. Not sure how it will sound in my system. Right now LOT of confusions


Thanks
Shabu

 

[morerajendra5678]

I am shortlisting Fiio K13(budget), Laiv udac and Gustard R26. Would like to hear how Laiv sound compared to Gustard as both falls under the same price bracket, any experiences please?

I am considering preowned gears as well to get max value within budget, and found 1st gen Holo Spring Level 1.

I own Laiv Harmony. Laiv Harmony has a sound which resembles "Live Sound". It also has a good midrange along with good high frequency extension which gives it the "Live Sound" character.
When I was considering pre-owned Denafrips Pontus, I was suggested Gustard R26 above Denafrips Pontus by FM. Gustard R26 doesn't have a seductive midrange and neither has thick tone. But it is very smooth and sound is very balanced. I didn't go either for Denafrips Pontus or Gustard R26 but opted to go with Audio Note AD1865 chip.
Laiv Harmony sounds closer to Holo Audio May and competes against it to a good extent.
Gustard R26 carries a 2 year warranty and when I spoke to Sound Foundation, they assured me of part availability even beyond warranty period.
I have compared Fiio k11 R2R against Denafrips Aries 12th Edition. Fiio k11 gives you 80% of what Denafrips Aries gives you sans the price tag and if you are willing to use Equalizer in your system (I use Parametric Equalizer in my system), you can surpass what Denafrips Aries gives you. You can cross check this fact of Fiio R2R Dac even tough it is up against Denafrips Aries which is almost at 10X price point.

 

[shabusf]

I own Laiv Harmony. Laiv Harmony has a sound which resembles "Live Sound". It also has a good midrange along with good high frequency extension which gives it the "Live Sound" character.
When I was considering pre-owned Denafrips Pontus, I was suggested Gustard R26 above Denafrips Pontus by FM. Gustard R26 doesn't have a seductive midrange and neither has thick tone. But it is very smooth and sound is very balanced. I didn't go either for Denafrips Pontus or Gustard R26 but opted to go with Audio Note AD1865 chip.
Laiv Harmony sounds closer to Holo Audio May and competes against it to a good extent.
Gustard R26 carries a 2 year warranty and when I spoke to Sound Foundation, they assured me of part availability even beyond warranty period.
I have compared Fiio k11 R2R against Denafrips Aries 12th Edition. Fiio k11 gives you 80% of what Denafrips Aries gives you sans the price tag and if you are willing to use Equalizer in your system (I use Parametric Equalizer in my system), you can surpass what Denafrips Aries gives you. You can cross check this fact of Fiio R2R Dac even tough it is up against Denafrips Aries which is almost at 10X price point.

Hello brother, thank you for the details.
Are you referring to Laiv Harmony uDAC or their top tier DAC?

I have found when I pair other DACs (topping d70s or ifi idsd neo) in place of Metrum , sound is very thin and lifeless. Also there is no emotional connection.

Based on your comments, it seems the Gustard R26 wouldn't be the right fit to correct the sound signature of my chain, as it leans toward neutral.

Regards
Shabu

 

[morerajendra5678]

Hello brother, thank you for the details.
Are you referring to Laiv Harmony uDAC or their top tier DAC?

I have found when I pair other DACs (topping d70s or ifi idsd neo) in place of Metrum , sound is very thin and lifeless. Also there is no emotional connection.

Based on your comments, it seems the Gustard R26 wouldn't be the right fit to correct the sound signature of my chain, as it leans toward neutral.

Regards
Shabu

I am referring to Laiv Harmony Dac and not the Laiv Harmony uDac.

 

[morerajendra5678]

I have found when I pair other DACs (topping d70s or ifi idsd neo) in place of Metrum , sound is very thin and lifeless. Also there is no emotional connection.

You need R2R Dac in your chain to have emotional connect with music

 

[morerajendra5678]

Based on your comments, it seems the Gustard R26 wouldn't be the right fit to correct the sound signature of my chain, as it leans toward neutral.

Gustard R2R is very smooth Dac. But it is not overly warm. If you are looking for warm Dac you can have Denafrips Aries 15th or Fiio K13 R2R .But tube Pre-amplifier will be must if you want Fiio K13 to be at the level of Denafrips Aries 15th Edition or beyond. A simple tube Pre-amplifier with 12AU7 tube will add lot of warmth and provide enough smoothness to your chain.
With Gustard R26 also you can use a tube Pre-amplifier to add warmth and desired tonality to your system. In all these cases a simple 12AU7 tube based Pre-amplifier will be sufficient.
Audio Note AD1865 with tubes also gives desired warmth and smoothness to the system but I won't recommend it given its price point. Lot better results can be obtained with use of tube Pre-amplifier and tube amplifiers along with Fiio R2R Dacs.
There is also a Fiio R2R warm Dac with 4 tubes. I believe it retails at 34k INR. You can check that Dac also.

 

[shabusf]

I am referring to Laiv Harmony Dac and not the Laiv Harmony uDac.

Thank you for confirming.

You need R2R Dac in your chain to have emotional connect with music

R2R DAC + Tube Preamp -> Will This Combination Roll Off High Frequencies? Yet to try such a combo. Just googled, wondering about the topping/ifi dac + tube pre combo as well, looks like it may solve some of my issues, if not all. Thanks for the tube pre tip.

 

[Mayasandra_l]

Anyone heard to Fiio Warmer DAC- R2R with Tube buffer? YT Reviewers have high praise for it.

 

[morerajendra5678]

Just googled, wondering about the topping/ifi dac + tube pre combo as well, looks like it may solve some of my issues, if not all.

I don't have feedback for you specifically for topping/ifi + tube Pre-amplifier but I have experimented with DS chips + tube Pre-amplifier.
In ESS Chip based Dacs, tendency of high frequencies hurting your ears is not there when tube Pre-amplifier is used. Also tube Pre-amplifier gives you lot of warmth specifically with 12AU7. You also tend to get thick tonality with 12AU7 tube Pre-amplifier. So end result here is biggest improvement within all DS chips.
In AKM chips with tube Pre-amplifier added makes it smooth to hear but you tend to miss lots of details and makes the system a bit dull. Incase you have Equalizer or Parametric Equalizer, you can boost 1KHz to 2KHz band to make it a beautiful system. I had to do this frequency adjustment as my amplifier is also Single Ended tube based. But if amplifier is solid state, this may not be required.
I have PCM1749 based tube dac which to me sounds wonderful. But I don't have much exposure to other Burr-Brown Chip based Dacs.

 

[morerajendra5678]

Anyone heard to Fiio Warmer DAC- R2R with Tube buffer? YT Reviewers have high praise for it.

I have not heard it directly but my friend who has it says that it brings more warmth to the system but the tightness of bass is missing a bit as with all tube based systems. This Dac plays much above its price point. It won't be wrong to say that it surpasses even Denafrips Aries with the tube buffer or tube Pre-amplifier.

 

[square_wave]

Hello brother, thank you for the details.
Are you referring to Laiv Harmony uDAC or their top tier DAC?

I have found when I pair other DACs (topping d70s or ifi idsd neo) in place of Metrum , sound is very thin and lifeless. Also there is no emotional connection.

Based on your comments, it seems the Gustard R26 wouldn't be the right fit to correct the sound signature of my chain, as it leans toward neutral.

Regards
Shabu

I think a lot of the “warm vs bright DAC” talk actually starts from a bad reference point. Many people first hear a thin or edgy-sounding DAC and assume that’s what “neutral” sounds like, so they go hunting for a “warm” DAC to fix it. But that thinness usually isn’t neutrality — it’s a design issue showing up as treble glare, weak midrange body, or poor tone density. A genuinely well-designed neutral DAC doesn’t sound cold or clinical at all. The highs are extended but relaxed, the mids have weight, and the bass feels grounded without being boosted. Once you hear that kind of neutrality, the urge to chase “warmth” mostly disappears, because you’re no longer trying to compensate for a flaw — you’re just listening to a balanced system.

The Gustard may just be a well designed dac. I have not heard it so cant tell. Also system balance is key.

 

[Mayasandra_l]

My system comprises a delta sigma dac and the description of a "thin sound"/ "treble glare" does not arise. My CD player has a delta sigma DAC and it sounds very relaxing but dynamic. Bottom line - Implementation matters and not the DAC chip. There would be neutral sounding R2R DAC and a warm sounding DS DAC. To me the entire system synergy matters and that includes cables (that dreaded word ) as well. The OP should thus be looking at DAC(s) that would suit his taste rather than get bind sided to a topology.