Hi Alvin, my Pontus came in today, and I've been listening to it. The detail retrieval is really on another level compared to the Ares II.
Here is my system. I have Sonus Faber Lumina V as Speaker A and Opera Seconda Mk1 as Speaker B through a Rotel RA1572 integrated amp. Bluesound node feeds Pontus using coax. I have dual Starke Sound SW12 subs from pre-out of Rotel amp run through a DIY B1 Nature preamp to give the bass a little more texture. Might change it after the Pontus.
![](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/4b933e_a64e67881a4f4bcbaa5eed1b093d0a1a~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_147,h_110,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/4b933e_a64e67881a4f4bcbaa5eed1b093d0a1a~mv2.jpg)
![](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/4b933e_d68f85656bbc4ede88bb50f608fabbd7~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_147,h_110,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/4b933e_d68f85656bbc4ede88bb50f608fabbd7~mv2.jpg)
The soundstage is now so much bigger compared to Ares. Also, I find the vocals are much clearer, with a lot more sparkle in the rest of the presentation. It is not a dark sounding DAC by any means.
Credit: Chandra @ USA
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