I like to think I was ahead of the curve when, in mid-2009, I bought a Benchmark Media Systems DAC1 USB (discontinued) off a dude on Audiogon. That was in the infancy of high-end computer audio, and the well-regarded Benchmark was one of the first mainstream DACs with a USB input. My previous source had been a cheap Sony CD changer (don’t judge -- I was 23), and the Benchmark DAC offered a big step up in sound quality: that immaculate, analytical sound that digital sources of the aughts all seemed to possess. And at the DAC1 USB’s modest price of $1295 (all prices USD), that kind of sound made it a steal.
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