The Chord DAVE is a flagship reference-grade digital-to-analog converter meticulously crafted around Chord’s proprietary FPGA-based architecture, utilizing an exceptionally long tap-length filtering system that sets it apart from conventional DAC designs. Engineered for absolute transparency and accuracy, the DAVE delivers an extraordinary dynamic range, vanishingly low distortion, and a remarkably lifelike presentation that captures micro-details and spatial cues with unmatched precision. Its ultra-high-performance digital processing framework allows for finely tuned reconstruction of audio signals, ensuring that every note, transient, and harmonic structure is reproduced with clarity and coherence that appeal to both audiophiles and professional listeners. The DAVE offers robust digital input flexibility, supporting a wide range of interfaces—from USB and dual-coax to optical and AES—allowing seamless integration into modern digital playback chains and high-resolution streaming setups. Complementing its exceptional conversion capabilities, the unit features a precision-engineered headphone stage with extremely low output impedance, enabling it to drive a broad spectrum of high-end headphones with authority, control, and neutrality. When used as a preamp or as the centerpiece of a stereo system, its low-impedance line outputs ensure optimal signal transfer, preserving transparency and dynamics through downstream amplification. Housed in Chord’s signature aerospace-grade aluminum chassis, the DAVE combines striking industrial design with thermal efficiency and long-term durability. Altogether, the Chord DAVE stands as one of the cleanest, most detailed, and most technologically advanced DACs available, offering a level of fidelity and refinement that firmly establishes it as a benchmark in high-end digital audio reproduction.