Best budget streamer on the market now?

If you simply want to give another Android controller app a shot, I found that Hi-fi Cast was a better solution with Chromecast than was BubbleUPnP.  It quickly finds both servers and players and has a reasonably attractive interface.  Just a few bucks to upgrade to premium version.

Thx Mike
I will check that out as yes the Chromecast units themselves are fine just Bubbleupnp giving me fits.

I second the recommendation for the nodke 2i. I have 2 of them and it is stupid GOOD! And, fwiw, it also does MQA.
My other equipment: Modwright LS-100 pre, Krell kav-2250 amp, Legacy Focus 20/20 speakers.
Good Listening! 

Mikerubin.
Hi-fi cast installed and now will be a case of seeing how it performs over time.

Instantly saw both Chromecast units, my Ayre EX8, my PC NAS and my iPad.
Awesome sauce on that score!

Uber - I’m using Volumio (29 Euro/year for one device) with Raspberry Pi (~$50 + <$30 for a case) and with Tinkerboard S (~$100 + <$30 for a case). I like the user interface and it supports Qobuz and Tidal, as well as local or network storage of ripped files in most formats. If you’re at all technically inclined, you can have all kinds of geeky fun with these for a few hundred bucks all in. And I’m pretty pleased with the results. (https://volumio.org). You can control it all via web browser, Android, or iPhone/iPad.

I’ve also found some cases on Amazon that look at home with the rest of my system. (Benchmark DAC3 HGC, Benchmark AHB2,Joseph Audio Pulsars). You can get a decent power supply from $25 to "sky-is-the-limit", but I’ve had reasonably good price/performance experience with a Chinese (MeanWell) desktop supply for about $28. With the system above, I’ve added a linear PS and a USB REGEN device from Uptone Audio (adds $610) that yields noticeable improvements with some equipment combinations, but my brother prefers to use the Pi-based streamer that I built for him without either device from Uptone when used in front of his Rega Saturn R CD/DAC + Rega Osiris, so some experimentation helps here too. (By the way, there's some pretty interesting information regarding power supplies in general on the Uptone site.)

The choice of board makes a difference when I try to work with different DACs (functionality- and user-experience-wise). For example, the Tinkerboard S and my Uptone Audio USB REGEN don’t get along when using Volumio, but I find that the Tinkerboard doesn’t benefit from the REGEN nearly as much as does the Pi board. And the Volumio software is glitchy with the Tinkerboard and the Benchmark DAC but seems to work fine everywhere else I’ve tried it. These issues seem to be corrected by the developers as time goes on - Tinkerboard being relatively new vs. the Pi - but this is representative of the last time I combined the two.

So if you don’t mind a little DIY, this could be an option. Yes, the costs can escalate, but until I’m ready to spend $2000 and up for a turn-key streamer, I’m pretty satisfied with even the low-end results (as is my brother).

I probably have an older Pi board and a case that I’m not using lying around here that you’re welcome to try (if I can find it) that I’ll rebuild with the free version of Volumio (no Qobuz but supports rips). This would give you a sense of the low end of the performance you could ultimately achieve, but could be useful for comparison. Just message me and I’ll be happy to lend it to you.