Boulder 3060 smooth and a maybe even a bit warm?

[BillK]

Wadia? do you mean 'Wadax'?

No, Wadia Digital. Purchased by Fine Sounds then summarily reduced to a brand of "lifestyle" products as they discarded the Digimaster filter algorithm that made them one of the best in the business. (Wadia also had an upgrade for the S7i to allow it to play 24/192 tested and ready to ship, and when Fine Sounds bought them they summarily killed that, too.)

Best DACs I had ever heard until I heard the dCS Rossini with Rossini Clock at roughly double the price of what I paid for my last Wadia, the S7i (pictured below); The Wadia 2000 was the first DAC I had ever heard that made CD sound like… music.

Entertainingly enough, Robert Harley's review of the Wadia X-32 in Stereophile was the first time I found out I could not trust RH's ears as he thought it sonically inferior to the Theta DSPro Basic, which I found to be a listening fatigue box bar none; I demoed about fifteen (!) DACs before purchasing the X-32, my first Wadia, and the Theta either put me to sleep or made me have to shut it off after about ten minutes, every time. The Theta DACs had incredible depth and sound staging, but every one I heard was the very antithesis of musical.

 

[Hyperion]

No, Wadia Digital. Purchased by Fine Sounds then summarily reduced to a brand of "lifestyle" products as they discarded the Digimaster filter algorithm that made them one of the best in the business. (Wadia also had an upgrade for the S7i to allow it to play 24/192 tested and ready to ship, and when Fine Sounds bought them they summarily killed that, too.)

Best DACs I had ever heard until I heard the dCS Rossini with Rossini Clock at roughly double the price of what I paid for my last Wadia, the S7i (pictured below); The Wadia 2000 was the first DAC I had ever heard that made CD sound like… music.

Entertainingly enough, Robert Harley's review of the Wadia X-32 in Stereophile was the first time I found out I could not trust RH's ears as he thought it sonically inferior to the Theta DSPro Basic, which I found to be a listening fatigue box bar none; I demoed about fifteen (!) DACs before purchasing the X-32, my first Wadia, and the Theta either put me to sleep or made me have to shut it off after about ten minutes, every time. The Theta DACs had incredible depth and sound staging, but every one I heard was the very antithesis of musical.

View attachment 115049

You should really try and give your local brand Playback Designs a chance. CH Precision C1.2 and Ypsilon DAC1000 - both being R-2R - are also valid alternatives.

dCS has always been and still is more on the analytical and "lit up" side to my ears.

/ Marcus, www.perfect-sense.se

 

[BillK]

You should really try and give your local brand Playback Designs a chance. CH Precision C1.2 and Ypsilon DAC1000 - both being R-2R - are also valid alternatives.

dCS has always been and still is more on the analytical and "lit up" side to my ears.

/ Marcus, www.perfect-sense.se

Perhaps someday but the nearest dealer is over 1,000 miles away from me.

 

[GSOphile]

No, Wadia Digital. Purchased by Fine Sounds then summarily reduced to a brand of "lifestyle" products as they discarded the Digimaster filter algorithm that made them one of the best in the business. (Wadia also had an upgrade for the S7i to allow it to play 24/192 tested and ready to ship, and when Fine Sounds bought them they summarily killed that, too.)

Best DACs I had ever heard until I heard the dCS Rossini with Rossini Clock at roughly double the price of what I paid for my last Wadia, the S7i (pictured below); The Wadia 2000 was the first DAC I had ever heard that made CD sound like… music.

Entertainingly enough, Robert Harley's review of the Wadia X-32 in Stereophile was the first time I found out I could not trust RH's ears as he thought it sonically inferior to the Theta DSPro Basic, which I found to be a listening fatigue box bar none; I demoed about fifteen (!) DACs before purchasing the X-32, my first Wadia, and the Theta either put me to sleep or made me have to shut it off after about ten minutes, every time. The Theta DACs had incredible depth and sound staging, but every one I heard was the very antithesis of musical.

View attachment 115049

In my limited experience at the time (mid-90s?), Wadia made industry leading players. Expensive, built like tanks, beautiful sound, some software teething problems. I was about to buy their low-end player when they were acquired. Scared me off. Bought a Proceed instead.

 

[BillK]

I’m not sure what software issues you are thinking of, but their software gave me far less trouble than that of other companies’, and all without the ability to upgrade from a downloaded file.

Never had a single software glitch with the X-32, 830 or S7i.

 

[GSOphile]

I’m not sure what software issues you are thinking of, but their software gave me far less trouble than that of other companies’, and all without the ability to upgrade from a downloaded file.

Never had a single software glitch with the X-32, 830 or S7i.

This was a comment from my Wadia dealer. I did not experience them as I was never an owner.

 

[BillK]

This was a comment from my Wadia dealer. I did not experience them as I was never an owner.

Interesting as, as stated, the Wadia software was pretty much rock solid, I never heard of a single issue.

 

[Imperial]

Where did Yoav Geva go after leaving YG?

/ Marcus, www.perfect-sense.se

Yoav Vince Geva:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/yoav-vince-geva

He is now at Amazon actually.