Out of these Three HU's, which is the Best (SQ-wise)? You can't resist not looking!
 

Clarion DXZ945MP - 24 Bit DAC, No idea, 5hz-20khz, 4-Volts, ~$380 after shipping, best looking
-or-
Nakamichi CD-400 - 24 Bit DAC, .005 CD-Harmonic Distortion, 15hz-30khz, 4-Volts, ~$290 after shipping, stock looking
-or-
Eclipse CD5444 - 24 Bit DAC, .01 CD-Harmonic Distortion, 15hz-30khz, 5-Volts, ~$470 after shipping, nice looking


I have read that the human ear is only capable of hearing 20hz-20khz, so that shouldn't really matter, I don't think :/

Does that extra 1-volt on the Eclipse make it "that much better"?

How about the .005 harmonic distortion difference between the Nak and Eclipse, big deal, or inaudible?

Remember, I'm looking for best Sound Quality!

Thanks!

Edited for Spelling :)

The extra volts through the RCA outputs will make a certain amount of difference depending on how far you run your RCA cables. The further the line the more voltage drop you can experience. hence the need for quality cables (10% of system cost). I would go with Eclipse mainly for the quality I've experienced with them, but the Nakamichi is also a great choice from a sound quality perspective

Why isn't alpine on the list? Of the ones listed, I'd go with the Eclipse. A lot depends on what you plan to do with the system, (mobile video, adding amp(s), etc.)

I second leolufse's comment. The alpine head units are pretty decent for SQ. And yes, the extra volts are used to help prevent noise from entering the system through the RCA cables as mentioned above. The longer the cables, the more losses and noise induction that occurs.

I would go with the eclipse it costs more....Just kidding!!

Eclipse makes a cleaner HU then alpine, alpine's internal amps are much better thou..

the eclipse looks better then the Nakamichi

All the alpines are 1-bit, how on earth can they be better than a 24-bit DAC equipped HU?

The alpine hu have 6 individual 1bit DACs. Not sure how that compares to a single 6 bit DAC. They also have the Xpander.

All 3 are very good choices. For me, it came down to looks. I wouldn't be able to hear the difference, so i went with the Clarion.