Aurender A20 or Lumin X1


I considering one of these as my next DAC/streamer. From a purely technical perspective, which one should I buy?

re-lar-kvothe

Showing 1 response by tk21

Roon would be a major factor for me, too.  Another would be the separates v. integrated issue. If you want to integrate streamer + DAC + preamp, and are ok with the price, then either of these products appears to be a good way to go. 

I suspect you'd get even better sound and more flexibility with a good separate preamp for volume control between the DAC and power amp. Possibilities: the  Matrix Element X2 Pure (streaming DAC) +  Benchmark LA4 (or HPA4) line amp, with the sonicTransporter i9 music server/streamer.  That gets you Roon Ready, HQ Player, dual ES9039 PRO DAC chips, a top of the line analog preamp, more versatile I/O (including HDMI ARC, i2S,  WiFi) and a fanless Intel i9 server, all for much less than $15K.  

But then, I have not heard the Aurender or Lumin products. Unfortunately it'd be hard (impossible, even) to audition them all side by side. A single high-end integrated component does result in a lot less clutter, as well as more streamlined operation from a single app or hand-held remote. The SQ ought to be great from any of these alternatives.