The new CAD 1543 MKIII DAC has been reviewed by Ken Redmond of the Tracking Angle online magazine.
The DAC, which has evolved over almost fifteen years of R&D in digital audio playback, is the ultimate expression of the CAD sound. Although based on the original CAD 1543 DAC design, with many of the same qualities, the updated DAC includes multiple improvements, entirely new power supplies and now twenty R2R Phillips TDA1543 chips in parallel.
He said : “I have heard numerous DACs that were more expensive, more spectacular, more configurable, and more eager to demonstrate the progress digital audio has made. Very few have been as musically convincing. For me, that is what ultimately separated the CAD 1543 MKIII from DACs that may offer more on paper. Much like vinyl, it preserves many of the essential relationships that give music life. That’s why it now stands as one of my reference points for what digital playback can become.
For listeners whose systems and music libraries suit its focused design, the 1543 MKIII deserves consideration among the finest digital converters available anywhere near its price and, in terms of natural musical communication, among the finest I have heard. I will miss it.” Ken Redmond
Read the full review here: