R2R DAC FIGHT! - Denafrips Ares12th VS Gustard R26 - Who's gonna win? 

A couple of additional points for you: 1. Humming...The R26 did hum to begin with, which was blooming annoying! (And no, I don't have a ground loop!) I reached out to Gustard to ask them if the unit was faulty and they said to update the firmware...which I did (awful update client btw and not at all intuitive in my opinion - you can tell they aren't a software company!) Anyway, post firmware update and the Hum is almost gone! Bonkers! It's noisier than the Denafrips, but not audible from 4 feet away, so now a non-issue for me. 2. Uneven feet. You may have seen me complain in my RU-vid short about the R26 having uneven feet, making the unit unstable. It doesn't have uneven feet, BUT having a heavy duty power chord in the back causes it to sit on three feet rather than four. Not a biggie to be honest, but worth mentioning.

Thank you so much for this review! I just love the way you keep your perspective when you review components, extremely valuable when spending $$$.

Thank you for the review. Both DAC’s I’ve been interested in. This helps my choice a lot.

Great work thanks, I bought the denafrips ares 12th about 3 months ago and I'm very happy with it 😀

Thanks for the review - excellent presentation and comprehensive breakdown, very useful.

Good review, liked your clear cut style. I'm not particularly interested in a Dac right now, I use a Auralic G1 and will step up to a G3 when the time comes, but your clear delivery and conclusions were welcome. Earned my sub, I look forward to more !

As usual, this is another excellent review! Not only very pleasant to listen to, but you use a very down to earth presentation. In reference to your comments about adding a DDC, from my experience, the Denafrips Iris is inexpensive enough not to ruin anyone and it delivers a huge impact on the Ares. I suspect it would help other DACs as well... The new Ares 12th may benefit even more from the I2S connection, however I have no I2S on Ares 2 so that will have to wait. As a reviewer though this could be a good acquisition. Cheers! 🍷

Hi Dave, thanks for the review! I own the Ares12, it has a wider soundstage, and a smidge better high as comparison with the built in DAC of my McIntosh c50.

Interesting review. I feel you missed the best parts of these two DACs. The I2S input of the Ares 12th and using the LAN input to stream Roon on the R26. I sold my Pontus 2 and didn’t buy the Venus 2 I was demoing when I tried the R26. The airiness and weight of the music that the R26 had was unbelievable. I will say that it was very very close to the Venus 2 SQ wise, but is $1500 cheaper and has a rock solid built in streamer/renderer. To upgrade from the R26 you are starting at $5000.

thanks David, you rock!

I was down to these two R2R’s before I read this review. A large soundstage is my first priority so I want with the 26. It does not disappoint in that department, it so enveloping. I personally don’t find a lack of low end dynamics or midrange clarity. I control it using Roon and imo they work very well together. In fairness, I haven’t heard the Aries. One example, On the Dunes by Donald Fagen, a track I’m extremely familiar with. It has to be heard through the 26 to be believed.

Great review!

Excellent review.

Awesome review showing the sub £2k dac battleground is now filling with serious contenders. Way different place than 5 years ago when the Qutest launched

Great review! I did a head on comparison with the R26 against the Pontus 2. I preferred the R26 for almost everything except vocal texture. The Denafrips did a better job with that. In terms of soundstage, imaging, clarity detail and dynamics I preferred the R26. It goes to show how system dependant these comparisons are. The one thing I do agree with you on is the bass on the R26, my old chip DAC had more impactful bass than the R26. I did find the bass in the R26 to get significantly better after 200 hours.

The R26 in my system beat my Terminator II - the Termi has been sold on. The only DAC I own currently that I prefer over the R26 is a Lampizator Baltic 4 that cost me $6K - and I only SLIGHTLY prefer it for timbral authenticity and resolution. FYI, my system is $60K, so differences between swapped components are instantly apparent. The R26 is the first component I've owned in this crazy $ hobby that truly deserves the "giant kilker" label. Pretty soon no one will need to spend big $ to get killer sonics, we truly are at the dawn of the golden age of hifi.

Thanks for the effort making this review. I am the owner of R26 and I found LAN input with Roon superior to any other input, adding optical media device in front (cheap) LAN for galvanic isolation elevates this to another level, impact is higher than external quality clock. Also you forgot two major points to r26: remote control with volume/input selector and very good quality preamp inbuilt! Output impedance is much lower on r26 making it easier to match to any amp and less sensitive to cable length/ quality. Those two DACs are not in the same league IMO. Very long burn in time is essential, my unit still evolves in sound after 350+hrs, crazy I know and completely unexpected by me. Sound matures with burn in from "attractive" as you noticed, to "fluid and full", vocals get better for sure. But that my experience FWIW.

It's all relative. The soundstage width and depth from my Ares 12th-1 is amazing when compared to the two chip-based DACs that I was using. I'm enjoying it very much because music sounds more musical now with vocals and instruments actually sounding lifelike. I haven't heard the R26 but based on your review I would probably like it too, the only issue being finding enough space for it in my rack.

Great video. awesome dacs you have there. One thing I gotta note is many people have said the R26 is quite better when use as a streamer via the ethernet connection.

Thank you very much, you are a great reviewer!!!!

Great video, first time viewer of your channel, the Gustard r26 was the Dac I was very interested in until I started reading about the sound quality quirks some people were hearing, have also been very interested in the Schiit Yggdrasil less is more, have you reviewed it ? If not, do you plan too, I read from people that know how instruments sound live that it is very good with tone and insight into the music, would love to hear your opinion on it. Keep up the good work. Ps.. great speakers you have.

Video well done, agree with statements and sensibilities. Comparing these two DACs doesn't make sense, they're apples vs oranges. The Gustard has a streamer and volume control, while Ares2 is a dedicated DAC.

Is the gustard r26 in the same league compared to say a chord Hugo tt? I have the first version tt and sold my ares2 after goldensound said the nos mode was fake… but I kind of miss it because you could just leave it plugged in and the tt (version 1) you have to warm up for 45 mins because it runs off batteries… and then it sounds lush and detailed… but yeah… I want the ares 12th now for the convenience and relaxed and less detailed sound signature

Excellent Review :) Of the two, what would you recommend for Western classical music?

This review helped me in my decision to get the Ares 12-1 and have been loving it. Now, I'm also very clear it isn't the greatest of all DACs in the market. But watching the video again, I was quite surprised with the comment that the soundstage is so narrowly restricted to the close surroundings of the loudspeakers because in my setting, which includes the Wharfedale Denton 85th anniversary loudspeakers, the soundstage extends to both side past the distance between the speakers which is near 3 m. To the back there is about 1.5 m to the wall and to the front the wall is about 4.5 m from the tweeters and myself sitting at about 3.5 m from the tweeters. If a track is well recorded and has good holographic properties, then the Ares 12-1 fills the space with a wonderful image and super wide, deep and high soundstage. The broad holographic nature of this DAC, plus the rich fullness of its a organic and natural sound are the features that I value the most about it. So I don't know if it is because of the space, the loudspeakers or their placement (not that my setting is better than that in the review, I doubt it), but I just want to let others know that the Ares 12-1 is perfectly capable of breath taking, wide, holographic soundstage. 😊

Can you play FLAC files in folders on a USB stick directly into the USB port? I do this now with my Cambridge CXN and i like it that way. Its so convinient no computer nada.

I sent the gustard back , I can’t acknowledge the huge sound stage you were so exited about.

I had the R26 from November to January, and the Ares II since mid 2019. The R26 was impressive at first, but its inadequacy was too glaring. As you say. the frequency response seemed hollowed out. It will dig real deep, but would miss a lot in the mid bass. Lean but can make the ground tremble. It was weird. The imaging and holography were off the charts, but that isnt why I listen to music in the first place. Its nice to have but I want a full sound first. Got rid of the R26, and bought a Denafrips Venus II. Quite happy with it. The Gustard R26 is like a beauty queen date that is a hairdresser by day. A great novelty, and nice to show off. Has some quirks. The Venus is the pretty girl in college thats on the track team. Great bod, good convo, and chill to live with :) Blusound Node 2i, Denafrips Venus II, Allnic L3000 preamp, Kinki EX-M7 amp, Devore Fidelity Gibbon X speakers.

Great video! soekris dac2541 is also a great r2r dac, hope you can also review it and compare it to the ares and r26

I love both of these DACS, but the R26 connected to an OCK-2 10Mhz master clock blows me away in NOS mode

Hi! Thank you for the review! You mentioned great alternatives within 1k-1,5k range...and mentioned couple of chip dacs - smsl su10..which is relatively new in the market...How would you compare smsl SU-10 to these two, particularly to ares 12, since they are pretty much in the same price range? thank you in advance! regards..

I know they are very different beasts but in the UK the price is similar between Qutest and R26 - which would you go for if you could only own one Small Room Audio ?

Nice review. DAC to test is Audail S5... :)

Have only just stumbled across this review so may be a little late but... Have you sold the Ares yet?

Thanks for doing this video. Great choice in picking these two because of the hype. I personally ended up justing getting the Ares 12th because of the smaller footprint. I think most r2r DACS in this price range are very comparable, I found the Ares 12th pretty similar to the Musician Pegasus. My next big question when I am ready is which higher tier DAC to upgrade to. Heard that Gustard A26 is very good at a reasonable price, or should I jump straight to a Holo May and be done with it...

Having the RME adi 2 fs dac, happy with it but due to playing SACD with an outboard dac, it doesn't. So my thoughts was trading it for the Pontus II because it has i2s connection ( this can be used to hook up to your player and play SACD ) So I would be interested in a comparison with the R26 vs Pontus II ( both have i2s ) Is this possible ? Can I also mention if anyone has heard and compared them ? Of course now the Ares 12th has i2s and the Pontus coming out as the 12th edition as well, just to make it complicated. Thanks....

I have a question about the Wiim Pro that maybe you can answer. I'm using my two channel system for music and TV and it needs to stay GF friendly. Can the Wiim Pro pass through optical automatically, switch to streaming when you tell it to stream and then switch back to pass through on its own, when you're not streaming? I currently have a Wiim Mini and anintegrated amp with two optical inputs, so it's not an issue yet. But if and when I go to a discreet DAC, it will almost certainly need to switch inputs manually to integrate the Wiim and the TV. Thanks in advance if you can find this out for me! PS, if you want a discreet DAC with similar strengths to Denafrips, but more transparent and energetic, try some Audio-gd stuff :)

My simple system is a Bluesound Node 2i, Rotel A12 class A/B integrated, Definitive Technology BP8 tower speakers. I’m thinking of getting the Denefrips Enyo 15. Do you think I will get a noticeable gain in sonic performance?

Have you tried Octo Dac 8 Stereo? I can only find a few reviews but all exceptional. Stereophile rated it Class A and comparable to $15k MBL. My curiosity is peeked.

Great insight on these two DACs. How good does your system need to be to make it worthwhile to invest in a DAC at around £1000? Do you need to spend the same again on speakers and amp (so 3k total) or are you better off spending more on the speakers and amp first and getting one of these DACs later. To give you some context I bought a Mojo 2, again based on hype, and for me it offers negligible benefit with my Cambridge CXA60 amp (against the internal DAC) and Dali Zensor 3 speakers, or with my Hifiman Edition XS headphones or Moondrop Kato, also both overhyped, even just against a £10 Apple dongle. I’m contemplating an ‘end game’ system to replace my Cambridge and Dali, and am looking at something like the Neat Petite Classic, with something like an Exposure 3510 amp or the Rega Elicit Mk5 with the Ares and Wiim. Thanks for any feedback. Ideally I’d like to buy in stages so would want speakers that would not be too compromised with my existing gear. I hope your new arrival isn’t giving you too many sleepless nights.

Appreciate the comparison! Especially with how much positive attention the R26 has been getting lately. Curious as to the approximate hours on each DAC when evaluating. I only ask since my Ares 12th (fed by a Denafrips Iris DDC via i2s) didn’t really thrill me until over a week and about 150 hours of constant playback when it started stealing my attention in all the best ways.

Good review. Pity we couldn't hear them.

Just got my Ares12th-1, and have had a hard time distinguishing between OS and NOS. In some songs, I detected the OS having a bit more refined in detail.

I have one for you to try, and it will not break the bank. Pick up a Cayin RU6 dongle DAC and a 4.4 TRRS to L/R XLR connectors. This little $250 R2R dongle DAC blew my mind when put up against the Ares II... I bet it would even best that Gustard.

does R26 require burn in? how many hours? does it improve a lot?

I have Schiit Modi Multibit 3+, it's my first ever Dac and I'm intrigued what a higher level one would bring to the table. Would you say that the upgrade from a 200-300€ dac to the Denafrips would be significant or it's more of a diminishing returns scenario?

I want a comparison between the Wiim and the chrome cast

I own Ares 12 th and in my opinion it is a steal. Next step, audio grade fuse

Can you please tell me the names of the two DACS That are head and shoulders above these you mentioned it at the beginning of the video something like tarmaki🤣...sorry tried hard to rewind and catch the name🤣

Oh - the Ares 12 lost one coax and one optical input vs the Ares II - bummer! The Ares 12 has a single toroidal transformer linear power supply; while the R26 has two toroidal transformers for the digital and analog sections. Thank you for mentioning the bass quality of these two DACs. My current reference (after having a Bifrost 2 and then an Ares II) - is the Geshelli Labs J2 AKM, with a good 12V 50W linear power supply. Bass and midrange dynamics are much better than either the Bifrost 2 and the Ares II - and much better detail and soundstage, as well. At a mere $250 ($50 more fore USB, and $50-100 more for a dovetailed wood case), plus about $100-300 for a good linear power supply - the Geshelli J2 AKM DAC *is* a giant killer, in my opinion.

Great review! Unfortunately like all other reviewers of the R26 you‘ve missed to cover two important features - the streamer and I2S input. However, I found quite a number of comments where users struggled to get both working!

What are the panels behind your speakers, please?

How about comparing these two to the Atoll MS 120?

you should all get yourself audio-gd r8he mk2 and compare it to Holo, Denafrips, and Gustard your milage may vary because you all have different equipment but in my system I prefer it

Denafrips or topping e70 velvet ?

I thought they originally had two SPDIF inputs on the ARES. Now missing?

Great review! Would you say that the Denafrips Ares 12th would be a big upgrade for the sound quality of my Bluesound Node?

Now from chip DACs there is Gustard A26 which I hear is even airier than R26 and more attaching

I tested both with an I2S connection to the Denafrips from a PI 4 streamer and LAN connection to the R26. The Denafrips sounded much clearer and more dynamic. This review is not a fair comparison using an entry level Wiim streamer with coax or optical to the Denafrips when the R26 effectively has an I2S connection to its streamer (via internal main board architecture).

A better review would have been the R26 vs the Pontus II. I have had the Ares II for a year now, I keep looking at other options, but simply cannot justify removing the Ares II from my system. Granted, there are better DACs out there, we all know that. What I did to kill that upgrade bug was to break out my Schiit Lokius EQ... A marked difference, livened things up quite a bit. Tone controls BABY! Just wish it had a loudness button. ;-)

I love EDM music and I would buy the Quetest but there’s just not enough inputs. Looking like the Gustard for me I think.

I've SMSL VMV D1se DAC and Pi4+Pi2AES (DDC) streamer. I'd like to buy a better DAC: Gustard R26 or the A26. Until now I wanted to buy the Gustard R26. I think I'll take my streamer and listen to both in the store. If one of them is better than the D1se I will buy it. + the Gustard fuse and Gustard I2S cable.

👍‍‍⭐👍‍‍

Bel Canto 2.7 is a good option too.

I was hoping to compare the voices of these devices, because I heard the excellent work of Denafrips Ares. I'm not interested in empty talk.

We need another 10 years. Seems none do everything well

i dunno iv heard both now i would go r26 maybe against the holo dacs as an entry unit the denafrips all come up wanting , if your demoing on those speakers maybe that's why you feel a lack of foundation, however better then both of these and including the terminator is the sonnet line of dacs even the Morpheus has better tone and scale top to bottom also has a near perfect voltage based pre out which surpasses anything talked about here(i only really like the chord dave better) , the fact that pre amps are dead to me is the greatest joy in life , if you dont have impedance issues amp direct (especially on very high signal to noise ratio amps is the only way to go everything else is now a sad joke, unless you like wasting money on 6 k and up pre amps and twice the cabling there is not much comparison to be had,

The verdict is in... the Gustard R26 RULES! It will wipe the floor with most DACS under $5,000.00. Truly an unreal DAC for the price and a true giant killer. I am so impressed with the R26 in my $75,000 system. Truly extraordinary in the retrieval of details played with an expensive server.

I auditioned the R26 at home for 5 weeks, and for some tunes it sounded phenomenal, but also quite irritating with many other tunes. I didn’t find it very natural and almost every track has drums far too forward, which seems to unbalance the sound. It’s a great DAC, but I sent it back and now I’m very happy with the Pontus II…. I just couldn’t cope with the intensity of a lot of the music, and my system isn’t bright. If you love it, good luck to you, but it wasn’t for me. It’s really easy to admire this DAC with some music, but in my opinion it’s hard to love it across the board So I’d certainly say that this review is accurate in terms of the R26 and I’m sure the Aries too ….

Vinshine is rolling out an FPGA firmware update for the Ares 2 now. May have to re-review.

yeah shame about that set-top box design

Price point cloud your judgement

I find the NOS in my R26 unlistenable, its grainy and has low resolution. The three modes you are taking about is NOT oversampling, its the filters on the DAC. Gustard recommends the middle rolloff filter that you like, but personally I like the fast filter - it has better imaging.

To be fair, R2R dacs can be chip based.

Audio Music DAC/1 is the true giant killer imo.

And the winner is???? The Gustard A26!! 😮

the sorec of my dac are the CD-player, so no streamer, and quality stremers cost atleast 1000$.

How much vloggers with nothing in background.

Musician Aquarius beat Denafrips Pontus in a direct sound demo comparison by Pursuit Perfect Sound, and likely has enough in the tank to see off the Venus as well IMO. The Aquarius has OCXO clocks which neither the Pontus or Venus have. Then add a Puritan PSM156 to clean up the electricity and an LHY network switch before it and performance leaps up again.

just base on price point? how sad...

It is a pity that none of these plays local files

Get r26 and don't look elsewhere end game dac I came down from denafrips terminator plus

You are bonkers the R26 is much better

Gustard X12 eats them both for breakfast.. And yes, I've had all three

R26 + U18 + Clock destroy almost any DAC. You can spend more but it's a nonsense to me...

10 minutes talking about how they look 🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♂️

I think comparing these two is unfair the r26 is a much more high level audio device and I have experienced both these dacs in a very expensive very revealing system unlike the one behind you I totally don’t agree with your preference

Way too much waffling on, took 9 min to get to the sound impressions