Audio Research DAC 8, DCS Debussy

I have lived with my current DAC for the last 10 years & have yet to find the need to replace it. I have an Audio Note Kit 1.1 with some modifications :

1) shunt regulated B+ supply
2) Asychronous reclocking at the receiver
3) DAC 1.2 output board using 2 6922
4) misc parts swap

The AN sounded very lucid & did everything right. My system has been stagnant for the last 5 years. It consists of :

1) Fanless PC
2) Empirical Audio Offramp 3
3) AN DAC
4) Audio Research LS17
5) Bel Canto ICE thingy
6) BR Mitsubishi Diatone

Anyway, the Diatones do not really produce very deep bass & I was pefectly happy.

A couple of weeks ago, I heard a different setup at my dealer's house. He had a Audio Research CD8 as front end with an all AR amplification (ref 5, ref 110) driving a pair of ProAc D80. I also brought my AN as comparison as I was auditioning his AR & ProAcs.

Comparing the CD8 & the AN, I felt that the AN still shone in the higher frequencies. However, the lower frequencies were quite soft & muddy. The AR cd player was much better at the lower end but lost out in the higher end by not a very big margin.

So, this got me thinking. How about the AR DAC 8 or a DCS Debussy? Anyone heard them yet & how do you find them ?

Obviously I am biased in what I like. I also own brand name USB DAC & fire wire DAC that is well reviewed but could not audition before I made the purchase. Well, still the AN. I like the AN sound but would like more control at the bottom.

Any pointers ?

Regards,
Joe Ling

hi
since you are experienced diyer , you could try different types of power supply for the dac. Some of paul hynes regulators or yeo regulators are worth trying
sorry i know very little about electronic.
regards

Review at my-hiend
http://www.my-hiend.com/vbb/showthread.php?t=2251