A different method of streaming.

There are more and more of these coming onto the market.  I too didn't know anything about this so I figured out your should have Bluetooth 5.0 and apt X for the latest and greatest.  I bought a $95 Blue Dento from Amazon(you can go cheaper) and it actually sounds equal or slightly better than my Rotel CD player.  Granted that CD player is pretty old.  I am not that thrilled that the Blue Dento has a telephone charging cord for power!!  Since then, I have done some research and(I know should have done that first) the Bluesound Node 2i gets good reviews at $549.  People buy new power cords, separate DAC, run Cat 6 and stream with WiFi with those.  From there you of course can keep going up and up.  The Cambridge is $1300 for example.  But all you do is plug it into your preamp and connect wirelessly with phone or laptop or use it with WiFi.

Daledeee1 thanks for your input. I also got one of those cheap bluetooth devices. Tau Tronics TT-BT08 $40 and worth it since it will act as a receiver from my phone and a transmitter to my bluetooth headphones, but there's a significant difference in sound vs my CD/SACD player or even hooking up my laptop through my CD DAC. I guess I'm trying to get better SQ but with convenience. I've read a lot about the Node 2i and the Cambridge. Do I use the DAC in my CD player or bypass and use the DAC in the streamer? I'm also not sure they work with Amazon HD? I know Amazon HD is new and I want to make sure they're compatible. I don't have a problem spending $$$ I just want to get the right gear. Thanks for your info.

Not wishing to sound pedantic, but all CDP have a “built in DAC”.  The question is whether or not the DAC can be accessed by other digital sources

I am far from an authority on these matters, I do realize all CD players have a DAC. I believe I can access it directly by plugging in a USB and connecting to my laptop to stream? If I'm wrong, correct me. I'm fairly new at this hobby.

If your CDP has a USB slot it may be possible to plug your laptop in, but I used to own a player that only took usb drives, and not a PC, so I can’t answer for you