Thanks for sharing.

Possibly Philips' last multi-bit DAC effort (TDA1387 and TDA1545, both same except the former is I2S and the latter is EIAJ) is a source of "hope" for multi-bit resurrection (at modest cost).

Not a bad DAC from my experience (Monica DAC from DIYParadise.com) ... but you need a very good output section!

That DAC is only 8-pin and SOIC sized, so no wonder its popular in DIY.

Philips made LOTS of them in the late 90s for use in certain SoundBlaster cards. Judging from eBay and Alibaba, the Chinese seem to have acquired a huge stash (you can buy a single chip for $2-3). (Chinese have huge DE-SOLDERING/DISASSEMBLY factories!)

Seems certain Chinese opportunists have already put out some ready-to-go D/As (USB, etc.) based on this now-ancient Philips chip.
 
Google "Eight parallel 8X TDA1387 Hifi DAC Hifi Decoder USB digital input " for some insight.
Note the use of MULTIPLE MULTI-BIT architecture


$100-130 for most of these TDA1387-based D/As.

I don't understand the CONTEXT of this thread...

Is it about stand-alone D/A processors, or the DAC chip (IC) itself?

Context makes a difference because (e.g.) SPDIF is a pretty big hit (in the negative direction) in terms of sound quality.

Is there another thread of related topic(s) ... such as multibit/R2R vs. single-bit vs. Delta-Sigma?

It's not just a matter of multibit/R2R (DAC architecture) when it comes to that classic (vintage) device's digital-sound characteristic. Many of the heavy-hitters from those days (Meridian, Theta, Wadia, Krell, etc.) used their own DSP-based digital filters --that was a MAJOR selling point. In addition, of course, there was output section and PS/regulation. Etc.

Coming back to modern times -- roughly late 1990s, henceforth -- when D-S (off-the-shelf DAC chips) were SELECTIVELY being used by folks like Meridian (they used Cirrus D-S 439x series), one can't really nail down multibit/R2R wholesomeness/goodness on DAC architecture. Many of the modern "high-end" units from Meridian, Boulder, Linn use $3.00 D-S dacs (chips) -- "encapsulating" them with optimized topologies (digital filter/upsampling; I/V and output stage; PS and regulation; RF/EMI shielding). And YES: these modern high-enders -- as $$ as they are -- not only sound (subjectively) as good/better than best multibit Thetas and Mark-Levinsons and Sonic Frontiers from the '90, their MEASURED (objective) performance blows away the antiques.

Bottom line:
High-end audio is supported by folks that have "high-end" incomes--the gear in Stereophile and TAS. And its not like those folks don't know (or don't want) the best sound.
If multibit/R2R was as good as some tout it is (and/ or D-S was "so bad"), major high-enders -- like Meridian, who do have $$ and political power --  would have pressured the semiconductor industry at AD, TI/BB, Philips, Wolfson, et al. to either produce/stock (incl. new-old-stock) multibit/R2R or improve D-S. (see **) They seem to have done the latter as they all abandoned multibit/R2R. ESS -- by their own claims -- seem to have licked some of D-S' inherent "problems". The latest DAC (ICs), like the new ones from AKM, with very good implementation (that's important) should allow one to attic those heavy, hot-running R2R antiques ... of course, bored "audiophiles" with plenty o'$$ and time-to-kill on eBay or Audiogon will always find 'scuses to justify their "superior" (classic n' good)  devices ***


** This is what happened in the early days of digital audio. The high-end community didn't like the sound of early CD players, so Philips, Sony, etc. improved their designs. Not just that but modders of OEM (Meridain, Mission, etc) further improved on the overall strategy. I.e., oversampling, better I/V + output filters, etc.
Similar thing kinda/sorta happened when MASH/Bitstream (i.e., early/mid 1990s single-bit) DACs were being used by the majors. (Not so good sounding, so DAC manufs. intro'd D-S).

*** Pressure from classic-obsessed fanboyz are what make those old absurd, polluting clunkers comin' back, time and again, into modern cinema ...



P.S. What about that Stax CD player or the M-L no. 30?

  Maybe you should read the first post. http://www.changstar.com/index.php/topic,2278.msg62421.html#msg62421 

That was the FIRST post I read, toots
it seems to suggest the stand-alone units (no source or xport). In this, the correct nomenclature to use is D/A processor
The acronym "DAC" can refer to ... a chip or D/A section of a device or D/A processor.
This is gettin' anal, I know, but after going thru several pages in this thread, the thread-starter post loses its context ... not that that was anything 'pecial to start with ... and, then, you get to my whacky post above: and, henceforth, any sane person feels like they're in 'Nam ')

IMPLEMENTATION is most important.
Use of D-S or R2R dac chips may be the lowest common denominator.
Just look under the hood of Gen.V, Wadia, Mark Levinson, Sonic Frontiers, Meridian, Krell, etc. There's a lotta tight PS regulation, bypassing, careful PCB layout, low-noise techniques. Probably much more so than any Schiit, or M-F or Cambridge or  NAD made today. (Yeah: A manuf . can use a good chunk of what the customer pays for (the end product) to tweak and polish. You simply can't do that at LHLab's or Schiit's or NADs price level. So if on eBay you pay little for vintage high-end R2R D/A processor, and it's working fine, you got yourself a nice device that may very well be better than much modern gear at the same $$. The problem is: how many folks get to hear MODERN high-$ Sigma-Delta, like that $15K Meridian, or $25k Boulder? )

My comment about modern DACs (DAC ICs) measuring better is a red herring -- it was meant to be. Recently looking at a classic Stereophile review from 1993 -- several CD players compared -- the best measuring (but worst sounding) was a Marantz Bitstream unit; the best sounding (MSB) was a souped up Philips OEM, using classic 80s-era multi/R2R SAA7220+TDA1541A.
I do have several multibit/R2R goodies in my possession. Most are OEM Philips CD player mods. And these do have super sound (better than any CDP, sound card, DAP or D/A processor in my collection that incorporate D-S, which are mostly mid-grade jobs like Asus Xonar sound cards or Oppo disc player).
That said, and as noted in the beginning, the multi/R2R jobs are quite tricked out: CD players with discrete-component I/V+output section, no less than 20 indiv. power regulators., outboard PSU, etc. Not unlike the situation w/the Gen.V (and similar vintage D/A processors that are generating interest again).

Hmm... I have a theory about that ... other than the boredom hypothesis noted earlier.

Say you're an audio geek, always searching for "great" sound. You spot a deal on eBay -- a classic multi/R2R -- and win the bid for several hundred $$. It ain't a very good processor by its original reputation, but because you've ALREADY spent your hard-earned $$ on it (not to mention the time/effort of bidding, unpacking, setting up for listening), you're prone to the Sunk Cost Fallacy:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunk_costs
Hey, it's not your fault -- it's evolution, meant for survival...man vs wild ... Bear Grylls.
IAC, I'm not sure classic multi/R2Rs were the only game in town BACK THEN...
Recall the Optimus CD3400 portable CDP from Radio Shack, made 1993-94. It STILL sounds and measures great, but it's DAC (chip) is 1-bit. It's not that it sound better/worse than my best R2R or best D-S ... it's a very different (euphonic) sound that some suites certain moods or music genres. Makes no sense, huh???