Now I couldn't even begin to tell you which is the "best" DAC under £1,000, and in truth given it's subjective nature, and the plethora available I doubt anyone could ..."one man's meat is another man's poison", etc, etc, all I can contribute to the thread is that from my experience (although limited) a DAC's viability is very much dependant on it's planned and or specific usage within.your system.
After reading quite a few reviews and articles about DAC's I thought I would go out and listen for myself what the overall "buzz" was about, and more specifically, could/would a DAC "lift", "improve" or indeed "alter" the sound of my ageing Marantz CD17 KI? I auditioned two DAC's - Audiolab M, and the Musical Fedelity M1, and while I could hear slight nuances (the Audiolab to my ears was superior) in the dealers demo room , the overall sound did not alter or vary in any significant way during my extended home trial using my equipment, and indeed using my CD player, irrespective of how much I truly wanted to hear differences.
My aim and principle priorities lay with CD replay because that is the format that I listen to, but occasionally I do listen to music via my computer, so whilst in possession of the DAC's I connected my laptop (pretty basic) to them and yes, in this instance both DAC's definitely improved and raised the level of sound, (once again I thought the Audiolab was slightly superior), however given that I predominantly listen to CD's I couldn't justify paying £500 on a piece of equipment that in essence wasn't going to "improve" on what I already had (computer music aside).
Upon returning both DAC's to the dealer we discussed at length my experiences and ultimate decision not to purchase either - were my expectations too high? was I naive to think that a £500 DAC (as good as both were in this price range) could improve on what is basically a £2,500 player in today's money? my point is not to make a case for or against any particular DAC but simply to say (and probably nothing new), before you buy any DAC be clear in your mind what are your reasons for wanting it, if possible try and home demo it within your existing system, and be honest in your assessment of the product ...your budget might be £1,000 but you might find you need, or needed to spend £2,000+ to achieve your ultimate aim and better what you already have.
Here are a few more to add to those already mentioned:
Tentlabs b-DAC mkIII
Matrix X-Sabre
Audio Asus Xonar Essence One Muses
Violectric V800
Anedio D2
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