Are higher end preamps worth the investment when you are only streaming Tidal & Spotify ?

With the goal of achieving higher fidelity, would a 10k -12k MSRP preamplifier be overkill when you only stream from Tidal or Spotify?

Yes, the C658 is fine for your current setup. If you want an upgrade measure your room's FR and post it in your profile and we can discuss. Acoustics are #1.

OK, to the crowd that is voting preamp I am scratching my head. I have a Marantz surround processor and a dedicated Sony Signature TAZH1 ES that functions as a DAC/preamp/headphone amp. It is a cost no object dac/pre from the best engineers at Sony and was 5 years in the making. It sounds transparent as anything, but not "better" than my Marantz unit on 2 channel, just different. What is this preamp that will unleash this magic?? How much do I need to drop?

My current 2 channel Sony preamp/dac/headphone amp:

https://www.sony-asia.com/electronics/audio-components/ta-zh1es

@vonhelmholtz and OP

I don’t know if I should ask you why you think that you need room equalization, or question myself as to why I think that I don’t need room equalization.

Post some measurements.

@puffbojie 

The Dirac gives you the option to take a picture of FR graph which I always do but have no idea where it goes.

Maybe a pictures folder? I use windows so that's my best guess. You will need to upload the pic to your virtual system (see mine as an example) and from their you can copy and paste it into a post like this.

Would love anyone’s insight on what that graph represents once I get it posted.  

I don't use Dirac but here is an example from my streamers ARC room correction. The software offers you a choice of target response curves and you choose one. Then you get a before and after comparison. On the left axis is the decibel level, the bottom axis are the frequencies. The software attempts to match your in room response as closely as possible to the response curve. DSP can cut frequencies that are too high above the curve, but can't lift the frequencies that are below it, the bass. For that you need to try room treatments, moving your speakers away from or toward the wall, etc.