Berkeley Alpha Reference 3P DAC, Silver - PRE-OWNED

Description

This unit is an Alpha Reference 3 that has been upgraded to a 3P. We've been using it as our demo - An incredible DAC!

The Perfected Technology Alpha DAC Reference Series 3P achieves a level of time domain coherence never available before in an audio D to A converter. The result is profound musical realism. Time domain incoherence erases subtle spatial and timbral audio information essential to the experience of live music. Perfected Technology goes beyond sounding excellent to simply sounding real.

"a stone bargain in today’s world of mega-priced DACs. In my view, they deliver the highest price-to-performance ratio of any digital front end I’ve heard."

"The Alpha DAC Reference Series 3P and Alpha USB Reference Series combination is competitive with the world’s best digital conversion but without the six-figure price tag."

"The Alpha DAC Reference Series 3P’s ultra-high resolution of each instrument’s transient structure, spatial separation, complete lack of blurring, and lifelike portrayal of the mechanism by which the instrument created the sound was nothing short of thrilling."

"Berkeley has upgraded its Reference DAC platform over the years, with each new version improving the product’s sound quality (I’ve reviewed all three models)…This new version, called the Alpha DAC Reference Series 3P, delivers an increase in musical performance that exceeds all the previous upgrades combined. Indeed, it sounds almost like a new DAC that competes in the top tier of digital converters regardless of price."

The above is from Robert Harley’s review of the Alpha DAC Reference Series 3P and the Alpha USB Reference Series in the July/August 2025 issue of The Absolute Sound.