Voodoolounge I think you’ll be impressed!
I thoroughly enjoy my Node 2i, which was reportedly a substantial step above the Node 2, in sound quality. Now I’m reading that the current Node is yet another step above the 2i. I used the analog out (internal DAC) Node 2i for a couple months before getting curious about using an external DAC. I found the DAC in the economical Emotiva PT-100 was not an improvement, but the DAC in my Parasound NewClassic 200 Integrated did deliver a little finer detail and strings had a little more realistic warmth. The improved DAC in the Node may raise the bar for external DACs.