I think that you could do either and I was definitely in the camp of just purchasing a new dac when I was ready to upgrade my music streaming. I talked to several people and salespeople when shopping and the hands down recommendation was that a streamer should have its own dac. I ultimately went this route and I’m now thankful that I did. I think I got superior performance in all areas and have a unit where I can also use its upgraded dac. Some streamers don’t allow you to use its dac so if that’s important to you look for one that does. Just a a side note my short list were Innuos, Lumin, and Esoteric, all fine components. I ultimately went with the Esoteric and I’m so glad that I did! Good luck.
Add External DAC or Upgrade to a New Streamer / DAC?
So upgrade-itis has struck again and I'm looking to improve my digital front end. Right now I am using the HiFi Rose RS250 (Quobuz - Roon - Ethernet - HiFiRose) which is fed into a PrimaLuna Evo 400 Integrated into GoldenEar Triton One.Rs Cardas and Wireworld interconnects and cables. My question is this. In order to achieve a marked improvement in digital sound quality (and being that I enjoy the look and interface of the Rose) is there an external DAC you would recommend running the Rose through (as cost effective as possible - pre-owned or demo preferred) or is there a Streamer / Dac combo product that would be the smarter upgrade move. I'd appreciate any input / advice. Thanks!