Thank You so much...As a Reviewer, it's a different and perhaps more enjoyable place to know your role is about distilling information, whereas a Consumer's stomach might churn over when something has come along better just after money was invested in a comparative component. This was quite informative in that regard, but hopefully those whom are in such a place can just enjoy the knowledge and regret the purchases they made🎶

Another fine, comprehensive review. Reportedly, the XLR outs are superior to the RCA outs. And the bass has been reported to improve over time. Coupling the Pegasus with MusiCian Audio's MDP-2 Digital Player (SD Cards) through their i2s connections and out through the Pegasus' XLR outputs is the optimum of which the DAC is capable. FWIW, 6Moons Sarajan Ebaen strongly advocates for SD Card playback declaring it much superior in his opinion to streaming files over a network, thus the suggestion of the MDP-2. Given that both the Pegasus and MDP-2 are from the same company, the i2s connections are compatible.

Interesting comments on balanced vs single ended signal transmission. Not everyone believes balanced is better in terms of a domestic audio system. Some folk feel balanced output has a less natural sound. In studio's with long cable runs and lots of electronics with less than great power supplies balanced signal transmission is a must at home this may not be the case.

I think the sound is subjective to personal taste but overall this sounds an impressive DAC for the price, nice video.

If you stream through your computer, you need to try jplay. It costs 100eur. What it does is it removes processes that aren't necessary for audio and thanks to that reducing jitter. I run a Sotm USB pcie filter card..and with jplay switched on, you hear layering, background, realism and a better bass. Less bloated. Jplay classic is fine. If you haven't tried it, you should give it a go😉

Great review, I especially like the comparison to the Qutest. Being that I am a big Qutest fan…

I have $1200 rca cables and $125 balanced interconnects. I much prefer the balanced cables with my musician Pegasus. Very sad you didn’t use them in your review.

i got one 2 weeks ago burn 25-7, it is so organic NOS on, i learn to appreciate R2R, bryston DAC is now back up in the case something go wrong with Pegasus and back from service.I hope it will not, just in the case. Pegasus delivers to magneplan 1.7 w upgrade crossovers so natural notes, even youtube music sound fantastic.

I had similar results comparing the Pegasus to the Chord Mojo. Mojo has better punchier bass, Pegasus better imaging and soundstage. I really don't know which is better DAC... I like both but I think the Mojo is a better deal.

I've owned this incredible r2r DAC for 2 months now in my high resolution system worth over $70,000 and am completely blown away with the sound quality as well as build quality. Once broken in which is roughly 300 hours, even an $8,000 Bricasti DAC had no advantages over the Pegasus. It beat the Schitt Yggdrasil in overall sound quality with better detail retrieval and a wider soundstage. It also beats the Denifrips Pontus II as well in NOS mode. Count me thrilled, in this case you clearly get much more than you pay for! Amazing.

Great industrial-tech design!

I would like your impressions on the Denafrips Ares 2.

Nice !!! Good Luck !!!! 💖💖💖

Thanks for the interesting and informative (as usual) review. Out of interest, did MA give you instructions not to compare it to Denafrips, like the 'strange' encounter I remember they had with Next Best Thing Studio?

The Musician Pegasus is clearly a better DAC in my system when compaired to my Chord Cutest. After a few hours of listening there's no fatigue with the Pegasus and I can't say the same about the Cutest. Use i2s and compare them again. It's not even close!

Wish you'd opened it up... Let's see the internal build and design choices...

Good review but I also recall you really loving the Directstream DAC. How does it compare to that?

Hi Terry, Would you say the Pegasus is smoother and warmer sound than the bigger brother Aquarius. Also which of the two is more liquid sounding with airier highs?

Very nice analytic , i have 10 years old dac + preamplifier antelope zodiak gold it's worth upgrading my system with this or something else, thanks

ps audio dac! your the reason i bought one..

I don’t know why hardly anyone has gone for the Jay’s Audio DAC2 Signature, especially as their CD transports are killer. There are some reviews online but not one on YT. I do suspect their transports are their best product but for vfm they are both superb.

It looks like his a rebranded or copied Denafrips DAC

I am a pegasus owner. And a long term viewer of this channel. I can’t help but feel this review is half-baked. And I hope a better job can be done when reviews are made. To test a product in suboptimal situation (no balance cables on hand) and could not show the inside (does not know which screws to open. Actually just two small screws at the back). I can’t help but feel a lack of interest. It is probably a joint responsibility w the equipment provider. More communication between the reviewer and the equipment provider will help. For if he had known you don’t even have a pair of balance cables w you, why not send you one? Or is he not giving you enough time to do a better review where you can so more comparisons and generate more thoughts rather than what seems like some some passing comments? The ending clap. Feels like a weak pat on the back and some consolation for Musician. I am also a long term user of the Chord Hugo TT. I own both. I actually find the pegasus, at that price, pretty astounding. But R2R is something that needs some getting used to, and 200-300 hrs of breaking in. It is not as bassy as the Chord as some has pointed out. But the Pegasus’ other qualities, can be quite a revelation at that price point.

From reading the below comments I understand you have since tried other R2R Dacs. Can you confirm your findings and how does the Pegusus compare?

In the end, what is better for you? The Qutest or Pegasus? I look that we have the same amplifier ATC SIA 2, I have JBL 4319 Speakers, I looking for analogically and war sound, but with a deep bass and good dinamic. Thanks in advance

Thank you for such a nice review, Could i ask how will i stream wirelessly from phone or a PC

I think I'll stick with Ares II or Pontus when time comes to upgrade. There's something not quite right with this brand. Is it a sub brand of Denafrips? Is it a knock off? Plus being essentially a new brand I'm not taking any chances regarding warranty or any issues that may arise.

So you tested the dac in sub optimal conditions (non 4 pin xlr) and it was close to the qutest? Have you tested it with a balanced cable yet?

USB was hard to connect to my MacBookPro, I return my Pegasus and they reimburse me without problem. But when I succeed the sound was very good.

Does anyone know whether this dac allows the dolby encoding to survive? For example from dolby access software on my pc?

Maybe the chord sounded louder because of the high output impedance of the pegasus

They didn't just send it to you, you got to keep it right?

Hmm...it's a nice looking unit, but if this thing were capable of changing the sound so much, doesn't that mean it's not transparent? Which combination of settings is the most accurate?

I'm considering to buy the Pegasus but my amp has only RCA inputs, can someone inform me what I will be missing by not using the XLR outputs? Thanks

Is the metrum onyx worth the extra cost?

Thanks for nice comparison with Chord one. But, even though Pegasus is a nice dac, can’t compare to PS audio direct stream dac, right? Or just difference characters, styles or preferences?

Did you have any performance issues? Two other reviewers report various reliability issues

I hate how technology is making everyone think they are a "musician" because the can click a mouse