Audio Research Reference DAC

Audio Research Reference DAC, med nettverkstilkobling. Preamp basert på REF 5. Dette er topp klasse DAC med toppklasse preamp i samme boks, for de som kjører digitale kilder.

Bilder sakset fra nett, da den står nedpakket. Kan selvsagt ta bilder av aktuell enhet for seriøst interesserte.

"Audio Research Reference DAC ($16,000). Without a doubt, this is the most technically advanced DAC on the market; yet, paradoxically, it employs a tubed output stage. That module is virtually the same as is found in the formidable Reference 5 linestage. Combined with its variable output, the Reference DAC holds the promise of also serving as a reference-caliber linestage. On the digital side, in addition to all the usual folderol, the Reference sports a digital iPod input and a thumb-drive slot right on the front panel.

But the big difference between the Reference and most DACs is its networkability. The ARC can be connected to networked music servers via either wired or wireless connectivity. That means you don’t have to bring your laptop to the DAC in order to play music files. This technique has been tried by Linn, among others, with dubious sonic results, but hopefully Audio Research has cracked the code. As if all this wasn’t enough, the Reference also boasts an Internet tuner, switchable filters, support for the DSD-over-PCM standard, and kernel-streaming. I predict this DAC will force many another maker to re-evaluate its feature set." -Alan Taffel, TAS