Check in: How quickly are streamers and servers evolving?

Does anyone have any experience with the Brennan B2?

Brains get calcified and what's actually paranoia or OCD is passed off as "loyalty" or "objective truth." There are a bunch of news organizations who base their whole strategy off this truth, but alas, their demographic is dying off by the day. 

It’s hard to believe some people have been playing the same music repeatedly for the last 50 years and haven’t the native curiosity to hear the universe of new music brought to music lovers from streaming.

Streamers are evolving at ludicrous speed. Wait, wrong genre. Whatever. 

https://youtu.be/k2B90xlDcp4?t=31

It's evolved to StarTrek levels because my streaming is voice-controlled  using Alexa, Amazon Music HD and DTS Play-Fi. No extra device needed unless I want to cast my own ripped library, little of which isn't on Amazon, which I also wirelessly cast from my laptop through MusicBee and DTS Play-Fi.

As far as DACs, just go to AudioScienceReview.com and pick the one with the best SINAD in your price range. Although almost none have audible distortion (caused by jitter or anything else). I went with the Monoprice Liquid Spark.

@tubes444  Thanks for the head's up about Spotify via Roon. Didn't know that. It's not all about the music, of course. If it was, that's all we'd be talking about and you would never have gotten such good gear! Peace!

Been poking around the streamer subject recently hand have been overwhelmed by all the erratic reviews and so forth. But once again, there is no straightforward answer that compels a switch from the current cd and steam Pandora from iPad via BT receiver.  Sound is already terrific IMO.  Maybe ill wait 5 years and may be deaf or RIPing

4 those that didn't know Spotify has been streaming CD quality with Roon
since last summer. It's quality is very much on par with CD playback.
I've A/B  Spotify HiFi  Ex: Diana Krall SACD tunes against my Marantz RUDY CD player same Stream song vs CD same song at least 6 or 7 times before "I noticed a little longer length of decay on some notes on the her piano."
 Very tiny although!!! But to some V tiny is completely is un-exceptable
at any level. I gave up YEARS AGO trying to build a audio system that was capable letting one hear the rosin fall off the Violin bow strings an hit the FLOOR. It's all about the Music isn't IT??

I see the Benchmark DAC3B mentioned above. I have come to the realization that this DAC is a phenomenal performer. It is neutral but amazingly fatigue free for me. My AMT3SE is also fatigue free but that uses a tube. 

The DAC3B is also useful that I can use RCA and XLR outputs at the same time. I cannot do this with the AMT3SE. Vlad the designer, told me it may not work and my test confirmed that there is a problem using both outputs. Likely not an issue for most, but it would have been very useful for me.

@audio2design I was also very surprised that the volume seemed louder. I did not get out my iPhone DB meter to measure but subjectively I thought it was a bit louder. The fact that it was much better was without a doubt.

I am using the ROON ONLY version of the opticalRendu. I have no need for any other protocol other than RAAT. 

I should have added that when I listened to my setup with my Thiel CS3.7 speakers I used DSP Convolution files running on my ROON Core. Those DSP'ed bits were changed before they hit the DACs. On my RAAL SR1a headphones I have now removed all digital adjustments. In the past, had  bit of a bass boost using the ROON ParametricEQ settings but I have now removed that for the opticalRendu.

It would be so convenient if DAC's had a fibre input like the Lumin X1. Then I would not need an OpticalRendu.

December of 2019 I added a Cambridge CXN (V2) streamer to the system from Music Direct, 60 day Satisfaction Guarantee.  It sounded horrid but I read somewhere someone else had the same result and it was much better with an upgraded power cord and interconnects so I went that route with a good Audioquest cord and Straightwire Expressivo interconnects..  it was better, not to be confused with good so I just left it on and after a few weeks it was much better....   not Sony XA 5400 ES better but close and that was an A+ Stereophile rated CD/SACD about 6 years ago.
The Cambridge has a remote and an app.  The app is VERY handy and has search functions by genre and sub genre and allows 20 presets all run off your phone.  I use Android but I'm sure they have an Apple version as well.  It also has input controls and has direct Tidal and Spotify access.  Seems there are > 20,000 stations on the net and it will take you awhile to identify those with the highest quality who play selections closest to your taste....  Metal, Hard Rock, Soft Rock... all the way down to acoustic string instruments and acoustic lounge music, singer songwriter and so forth..... literally anything and everything. 

Since I have a selection of about 750 CDs, I thought of getting a server and re-ripping my disks for better access when reading Blue Nodes server stuff in detail I found it takes about 20 minutes per disc..  .. if I commit an hour a day to building the stream library I can probably get through this in a year, and of course there is the issue of power cords, cables and I'm still stuck with Blue Nodes DAC. I decided to go another way and added a Benchmark DAC 3b to the system and then signed up with Tidal through Best Buy for $99 a year for the Hi-Fi level with some MQA's and renewals guaranteed at $119.  Tidal has about 70 million tunes, 250K MQA's and that represents about 6 million albums or so....  and about 50 million with Spotify.  In my experience Tidal has better quality and the way the app functions inside the Cambridge app is much better.
Functionally, I pick a radio station genre I'm in the mood for and play until I run across something I really like and then pull up the artist in Tidal and it will (seemingly always) have everything they have published.  Pick an album to play or que a bunch of songs from it and tap play.  Now, do they have everything in their library ...   I have not been able to find the Original Broadway Cast of Miss Saigon, only the London and International Casts so I'll keep my Broadway Cast CD..  Some of older (bought 30 years ago) Jazz CDs take some time to locate since re-issues and re-masters changed the cover art of many of them and my Mosaic compilations may exist differently there, but they are there along with dozens of albums released under the artists name and dam near everything they sat in on but didn't headline....  very impressive.

Oh yes, get your streamer off wi-fi and get in on Ethernet....  better everything.  Mine is 33 feet of Category 7 Ethernet Cable from our router.

I am thinking of getting a Bluesound Node 2i to replace my tuner which is my 6+ (hours) x 7 days music source when I am not listening to vinyl or AV source.  I have a great jazz + NPR (KNKX), classical (KING) and classic rock (KZOK), all of course local.  All have streaming apps also.  Does the Bluesound coordinate internet radio streaming apps well all through an iPad or phone OS?

@mahler123 

And though as Audiophiles we argue endlessly about small sonic differences, essentially streaming and CD replay, into the same DAC, sound similar.  Both are sending 1s and 0s into the DAC.

I will admit I have a hard time hearing a difference. But I won't comment on your statement, because I suspect it's like a match tossed into gunpowder in this forum! 

Your other statement about the fragility of technology -- the ability of these IT devices to wind up divorced and non-functional -- is well taken. I have longed for the personal computer to achieve the simplicity and reliability status of other home appliances, but to no avail. It's a shame, as most people use computers for very basic tasks.

@yyzsantabarbara 

Thank you so much for your careful and perspicuous listening report. I learned a lot from your efforts, and I'm glad you came to a discovery.

Several years ago, a friend showed me his home built setup — he built two very simple computers with kits running Linux, one to process and store (mainly FLAC) files and the other to send them to his DAC. The computers are connected with fibre and have an LPS. Eventually they are played through VTL gear (monoblocks) and giant Maggies. It sounds lovely.

The OP asks if streaming is evolving.  Boy, is it ever.  And not always in a good way.
There is a thread in the Digital section on the Roon Nucleus.  Apparently Roon did a software update that KO a lot of users who are now spending hours trying to figure out what went wrong.  I had the same experience with Bluesound—many times—and Bryston.  There have been threads from Innuous, Aurender, Auralic owners...Streamers are IT devices.  Have you ever had an IT problem at work or home?  A printer that suddenly got a divorce from what seemed to be a stable marriage with your laptop?  Imagine the same thing with your music.  When all other IT applications become hassle free then streamers will as well

  CD players are also specialized computers, but it’s hard to beat the reliability of popping a CD in a tray and hit “play”.  Transport-DAC combinations in my opinion are also as easy, the IT issues generally being of a much lesser magnitude than streaming.
And though as Audiophiles we argue endlessly about small sonic differences, essentially streaming and CD replay, into the same DAC, sound similar.  Both are sending 1s and 0s into the DAC.  An Uber priced streamer will sound better than a cheapo CD transport, but if both components are in the same price range, there isn’t much difference.

  Streaming is about convenience.  Get rid of those thousands of CDs.  Have portability, and access to unlimited music catalog, and control it all from your phone without getting your butt out of the recliner.  It’s all great, until it doesn’t work.  My advice is explore streaming, but don’t throw out those CDs just yet

I just finished doing some testing with 3 streaming solutions I have in my office system.

STREAMERS
- microRendu with linear power supply (LPS) 
- opticalRendu  with linear power supply (LPS) (I have 2 of these)
- RJ45 streaming with 1 DAC 

DACS
- Benchmark DAC3B
- AudioMirror Tubadour III SE DAC
- KRELL K-300i integrated amp with internal DAC

My RJ45 streaming was to the internal DAC of my KRELL K-300i integrated (latest model). My network switch is a brand new $199 Ubiquiti Networks switch that has both RJ45 and 2 Fibre slots. I am using regular CAT5 Ethernet cable into the RJ45. The USB cables I used were either free from Benchmark or $25 from Schiit Audio. I am buying a $200 USB from WyWires that has not been shipped yet. I plan on using that one with the winner of this test. A fibre wire goes from the network switch to my opticalRendu and then by USB to one of the 3 DACs. My source of the streaming is a ROON Core on a very cheap server in another room. The musical bits (1's and 0's)  need to travel by PowerLine copper to my office. I use ROON client on cheap computer or iPhone.

For some reason I settled on Fleetwood Mac's Dreams from Rumors as the song I would compare with all the streaming types. There is a lot of percussion hits on this song that are a bit hot sounding but it was interesting to compare this with the 3 streamers.

The RJ45 and the microRendu were about the same on the KRELL. The percussion hits were noticeable and the music sounded good. 

I then flipped the USB cable from the microRendu to an opticalRendu and compared with the RJ45. A massive difference in sound and also volume. I did not need to compare any minor details. There was more of everything with the opticalRendu. The percussion hits seemed like they were happening in my room, so realistic. I also compared the microRendu and the opticalRendu on the KRELL and the same results as the RJ45 and the opticalRendu.

I then compared microRendu vs opticalRendu with a Benchmark DAC3B and also a Audio Mirror Tubadour III SE DAC (tube). In both instances the optical had a massive improvement in sound. I am going to be selling this microRendu and LPS now.

This test for me was to prove to myself whether fibre is really today's holy grail for streaming. I think it is. I do not plan on testing with a dedicated music server (instead of a cheap computer as my ROON Core). I just think the fibre functions as an expensive music server in that it lowers the noise on the network.

...wear the mics on your hat, and hold your head still....*L*

..like I said....this showed up in my e/mail today....

https://shop.mashable.com/sales/audiowow-wireless-audio-studio-in-a-matchbox-size-for-mobile-phone?u...

How fast are things evolving?
Next time you listen to some 'fascinating' speakers, you can 'take notes', literally.... ;)

10% off if you're quick...

Just a small note here: None of the high-zoot hardware that folks are talking about will matter very much unless the source material has been created with the appropriate fidelity. "Garbage in, garbage out." It's analogous to television: What good is an 8K screen unless you have original source material recorded to take advantage of the end reproduction? Please note I'm not saying that today's recordings are crap. Far from it! But what good is having a "better than CD" DAC and/or streamer if CD is what you're going to feed it? So pay attention to what quality your source material is.
Happy listening.

I would say servers are not evolving at all the tech for a good server has been around since before the internet, the hardware and interface is better. Streamers have somewhat in the last 10 years but I think more in the user interface and querying the server. DACs are a solved problem if you’re looking for transparent they can be had for as little as a couple hundred dollars if you want certain types of distorion those can be bought as well usually for a lot more. Cables are not a problem either and good quality ones can be bought for modest prices. USB and ethernet is less of a problem than S/PDIF in dealing with clock problems and interference. If you do have a ground or some electrical problem with USB or Ethernet it can usually be corrected for a sane cost as well. Excellent Digital audio is easier to get than excellent vinyl. It’s very easy to get lost running down a rabbit hole with all the silly things I’ve seen on the net. Be sceptical and think rationally when dealing with the hardware in digital try blind listening and read at least a little about what’s happening in digital transfer of data outside of audiophilia.

I stream using my MacBook Pro into Schiit bifrost multibite. I have roon to play quobuz and it always sounded great. Open detailed and wide sound stage. Then I installed a giga bite  port switch so my system is streaming by hardwire into my Mac and not WiFi. This difference is one of the biggest upgrades my ears have ever noticed. It has added the depth to the recording I thought was there but now know it was missing. It also brought out more bass and tighter low end than I could have dreamed of. It is not a case that I had bad WiFi as I have great WiFi but when I went to wired connection the beast inside quobuz was awoken. My next tweek will be moving to fiber from Little Green Computer Co. but not sure if I can get any better sound. Once you find the rabbit hole it is hard to resist diving in!

Good ideas here. When I was considering updating my audio world (as I am home way more), I came across a Bluesound Node 2i demo for <$300. It does what I would normally do with streaming - mainly background music, and occasional seeking out samples of old stuff that is not in my CD or vinyl collection. 
It’s a marginal DAC and decent streamer. 
Thus my new preamp has a better DAC, so I will utilize that with optical or coaxial interconnected. 
Spotify is moving toward higher quality streaming because Tidal and Qobuz are taking revenue away from them. 
And I’m with you - I’ll not argue the superiority of vinyl  😜

I think it’s will be implemented in streaming services and equipment software soon.

Roon, HQPlayer, upsampling, also not new. 

Pro Tools, AutoTune, etc. That ship has sailed. 

Of course, so as other DJ and audio engineer’s tools, but it kind a limited yet. I think it’s will be implemented in streaming services and equipment software soon. 

In theory, lots of things could look one or another way. Sometimes both ways. I can only share my personal experience comparing 3 different streamers in the range 8-12K, all three of them hooked on my home system. I talk about a Pink Faun, an Evo essence and Evo master. I was highly skeptical that I will hear a substantial, if any difference. Big mistake. Going from Evo essence to Pink Faun was a shock - so much more information and clarity. From the latter one to the Evo master it was a more subtle improvement, but still immediately noticeable. I have played swithching between the three for couple of days and it was always the same immediate difference. Story short - streamers do sound very differntly. Whether it is worth the money, it’s a personal decision. But to claim that whatever streamer you choose or even just using an ipad, makes no difference - sorry, I don’t buy this anymore.

In the last 3 months I purchased an Innuos Zen 3 and a Audio Mirror DAC. My final decision became simplified when I realized I wanted 
a one box solution-Stream/Burn/Store. Not that many choices.
I managed to get a new one from James at Choice Audio MN 
without waiting for it to be built. And at a good price. 
So if box management plays a role in your decision making
here is an option.

Right now, I don't know why anyone would get off their chair to load a CD in the player?  Especially when Tidal streams hi-res up to 24/196.  I find it very convenient to sit down and select artists and albums with the touch of a finger.  When I purchased my BlueSound Node 2i, it would have been nice to have been able to hear more expensive streamers to find out if they are worth the extra money.  A dealer suggest buying a BelCanto.  Can you hear a noticeable difference by spending extra money?  Are these more expensive streamers also capable of unfolding MQA on Tidal completely?  I for some reason do like the quality of their MQA master recordings.  However, this depends upon the quality of the original recording to begin with.  Are special edition recordings better or worse than the original recording.  Go easy on me because not all of us have the experience and knowledge of this incredible group.

Speaking of keeping up with latest updates with streaming services and user interface, it is exactly the reason I chose Aurender as my prime source of streaming...5 plus years of single device (N10) trouble free ownership and here’s to five more years on my recent purchase of N20. How’s that for longevity, reliability and priceless enjoyment :-) 

Another interesting digital thing to be developed is something similar to Photoshop but in Audio aspect.

Pro Tools, AutoTune, etc. That ship has sailed. 

Another interesting digital thing to be developed is something similar to Photoshop but in Audio aspect. 

I have no freakin' idea how to address this post.
I just have my latest story. While going through LPs to find candidates for today's ultrasonic cleaning gig, I found a Stackridge disc. In the same amount of time to drop the needle on it I made a playlist of 9 releases. Listen while I work.   
There's that.

When it comes to streamers I care more about the user interface, and compatibility with streaming services.

It is exactly for the issue of keeping up that I decided to subscribe to Roon.  They do keep up. They have yet to embrace Amazon Music, but otherwise have a pretty advanced iPhone/Android/PC control ecosystem.

They are evolving at the speed of sound! 

Seriously though, I've thought about this, to the point where I sometinmes think about just giving up analog altogether.  

My digital front end sounds every bit as good as my analog front end already.

The cost ratio of analog to digital is ridiculous if you stop and think about it, not to mention the convenience factor of digital.

I've spent at least an order of magnitude more on the analog side.  I don't feel any need to upgrade my digital gear at this point, but I just bought a new (to me) turntable yesterday because I want to see if I can take things a little further.  

When I talk about what I've spent, that's before media, cartridges, etc.  I have thousands of dollars in cartridges and often spend more on a single vinyl record than I do on a month's subscription to four streaming services.  

Unless there's some dramatic change in the source material itself, I'm not sure how much more digital can improve. 

As a photographer, I saw a similar evolution...  Digital isn't as good as film.  Well, now it's getting pretty close.  Now it's as good.  Now it's better.  Now it's getting incrementally better. 

With a visual media, we can zoom in to the pixel level and see the tiny differences between a 16 megapixel image and a 24 megapixel image, but that's now how people normally view photos.  From four or five feet away, it's virtually impossible to tell the difference.  At some point things like dynamic range and sensitivity (how well you're able to capture what's there) matter more than how many pixels / bits are there.

At some point, it comes down to how much you can actually hear and how well the rest of your system is able to convey the level of detail captured by your source components and how well the recording was made. 

At the end of the day for me, it's the emotion of the music, not how pretty something looks or sounds.  Certainly, being able to hear the nuances of a singer's voice, or the talent of a musician wringing everything they can out of their instrument adds to that experience.  There are those goosebump moments where you hear something you never did before and I can get that with both digital and analog.

I love how vinyl sounds, I love being able to touch and look at physical media and the artwork, and I love the ritual of cleaning and playing records, so for now, vinyl stays.  

Maybe you were looking more for thoughts on how far digital technology can go.  I think we're very close to the point of diminishing returns as far as digital goes.

We often talk about "as good as we will ever need". 24/192 really is as good as we will never need. Arguments can always be made that properly implemented 16/44.1 is already as good we will need (given that people can't reliably tell the difference), but 24/192 is so far beyond that, and so far beyond our hearing range, that yes, 24/192 as a data format, for stereo at least, is really as good as you will ever need.

Pick a lowish cost PC or MAC, somewhat modern, and it is going to run whatever version of server software you are ever likely to need for many years.

Pick a good DAC with a USB input, and you are now immune to data transmitted jitter, and contrary to popular opinion of those who have never designed electronics of any sophistication, creating a local clock for audio D/A conversion, of low enough jitter to be well below other noise sources, is not terribly difficult, and you certainly don't need an uber expensive 10MHz external clock, that is not an even multiple of the data conversion process and introduces jitter from cable transmission and edge detection.  If you want to read an article that shows total ignorance of digital audio, clocks in digital audio, and follows with an obvious stretch to say something positive, though quite clearly, there probably was no difference, read this drivel:   https://audiobacon.net/2018/09/26/sotm-sclk-ocx10-a-high-purity-10-mhz-master-clock-generator/2/

So what is left w.r.t. good sound?  Electrical noise on the USB I/F.  Invest in a good USB 2.0 High Speed Isolator (that does 480mbps), and a low noise power supply for the DAC side. Problem solved.

Assuming you have a good DAC, with a small outlay of money you now have something that has the ability to deliver audio quality that will match any server/streamer, and will keep doing so for many years. The only downside is the physical I/F, i.e. the computer, can be a pain to remote.

@rhodes My favorite Clint scene is when he yells at an empty chair.

Completely missing the point. But whatever. There's a lot to be said for, "Get off my lawn."  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NelBNtNm8l0.

   Most appropriate funny reply in a dogs life. Not exactly PC.   Right on Clint.

I think the OP is answered. Here's where this thread seems to dead-end for me.

Thanks to @jjss49 @corente @headphonedreams for offering detailed answers with justifications about where things stand. Plus, your sense of what that implies for the best ratio of effort/reward ratio at the moment.

From what I see here, no one has offered a good reason to think that the streamer/server side of things is as stable as the DAC side. Many have argued well that this side of things is still changing rapidly (tied, as it is to the technological churn of the computer industry) and "investments" is a word deserving of quotation marks.

These edited comments from above will stick with me:

@jjss49

- dac technology is quite stable/mature...very good sounding dacs are less expensive than ever, from chi-fi and other makers -- this brings very good sound to the budget audiophile, and puts alot of pressure on makers of 3-4-5-6 grand dacs on really delivering something superior... they are really making super high quality output stages as in megabuck line stages with excellent circuitry, isolation, parts quality, often with tube buffering to get purity and beauty in tone to go along with the excellent resolution that can be gotten out of the d/a conversion stage...

- streamers are also fairly stable as pieces of equipment, but the key here is that streaming services are still shaking out, and this will continue for the next 5-10 years...each offering new interfaces, sampling rates, higher resolutions, specialized content, each trying to lock each other out from the user’s eyeball range with proprietary u-i’s, dedicated software wrap-arounds (witness tidal connect, spotify connect, and so on) -- this tough and evolving competition creates some level of instability (and risk) in streamer purchases, as these are basically dedicated computers that will need updating when the streamed sources change the game, their interfaces etc -- to me, the resulting indicated action is to buy a good low to mid priced streamer (that sound excellent, btw, so long as proper internet connectivity is provided) so as to keep options open and don’t end up owning an expensive brick down the road that are no longer supported/updated

@corente

DAC's: ...have reached the technological maturity...there will not be major changes in the next years, except perhaps the DSD ratio.
SERVERS AND STREAMERS:...just the opposite: you find many different technical solutions rapidly evolving and many commercial solutions trying to cover "everything": you go from "dedicated computers" for storage and streaming to totally separated solutions: server + streamer + renderer
indeed more, you have to consider your "music manager software" going from proprietary and closed hardware integrated solutions (Aurender) to proprietary solutions accepting external ones (dCS with Mosaiq, accepting Roon) to full open hardware accepting "music managers" using UPnP or Roon that is based in a network proprietary standard (RAAT)....comparing what I presently use (Mac mini dedicated and configured only for music) with a basic Innuos...I can clearly hear differences but they are not significant ...with the DAC...the differences were huuuuuge.
My opinion is to wait and see (two or three years minimum) and use a commercial computer or some specific but CHEAP one (Intel NUC, Green .....) or the very basic line of the dedicated hardware solutions if and only if they work with non proprietary software (Antipodes, Innuos, 432Evo, ............) and when market and solutions consolidate and start to be "similar" to spend the big buck.

The problems of jitter and timing were solved a decade or two ago! Nowadays a $200 Ch*nese streamer is indistinguishable from the four/five figure touted offerings of the High End (hand me your money, please!). 

That’s always a “risk” with “investments” in technology. It always get cheaper but that doesn’t mean don’t do it.  JFDI and enjoy it. Otherwise there’s never an optimum point of pricing to quality and you’re paralysed. 

That’s always a “risk” with “investments” in technology. It always get cheaper but that doesn’t mean don’t do it.  JFDI and enjoy it. Otherwise there’s never an optimum point of pricing to quality and you’re paralysed. 

I have not compared enough streamers to really say how fast they are evolving, this is more based on what I've read.

I think streamers may improve a bit more but the biggest change will be the trickle down effect, cheap streamers a few years from now will probably sound closer to the expensive streamers of today. The manufacturers already know that good clocks help, good power supply helps, lowering electrical interference helps and so on. When they sell more the parts will go down in price and they won't need as much R&D as now.

So, a $5k streamer may be a risky purchase today because in 3 years there might be equally good streamers for $2.5k.

@bluemoodriver...now, there's a DAC worth a crack...;)  Thanx!

@surfmuz....*G* Precisely....I've got Bluetoothed hearing aids that have eq (although not enough bands for my tastes, but...) that can actually be 'focused' so I can hear 'behind' me as well as F2F....

...so talking behind my back isn't 'safe territory' anymore...*L*

They're decent ear buds, loud enough...They even work with headphones, although that seems a tad silly.  I can duplicate the correction they apply to headphones, but swapping things out is relegated to 'serious listening hours' only.

But I will opt out when offered implants that run on my body heat.
Anything I can't shut off easily (or can't) would make me mildly paranoid.

What happens if one's late with the monthly installment?
What sort of 'other connections' would the devices 'require'?

I've got a Watchman implant that monitors my heart, and it's TAVR valve.
Pacemaker and an 'on-board' defib functions; instead of a major 'zap', it gives little 'taps' to ensure that I 'keep the beat'. ;)

Late Payment?   Let's make J 'skip a beat' or 3....
The implant's in your head.
You go 'blank' for awhile...how long?
No concept, no clue....

You wake.
You're doing some process you've Never Done Before.
Somewhere you've never been.
With people you don't know, in the same clueless state.
No idea as to how long you've been There, doing That.

Welcome to the Collective.
Work might set you free...maybe....*evil L*

I like the Future, as long as I can pick and choose the bits 'n pieces. ;)

Sleep well, J

This DAC, the Khadas tone board, derived from a chip designed for mobile phones. 
https://www.khadas.com/tone
I’ve got one. Sounds great. And it objectively measures very well indeed. They publish their own figures and some verifications are here;

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/review-and-measurements-of-wesiontek-khad...

its $99...

No, it’s not slowing down at all... pretty soon we’ll see descent DACs implanted in our phones, streamers will be in headphones and in car audio. Also Codec technology will expand and get better. 

...how about faster than you can spend to keep up with it? *L*

It's likely that by the time you've heard about X; investigated, considered, decided upon and purchased, plugged it in, decided 'yay' or 'nay' about it.

It's obsolete.

Laugh and sneer all you like.  One can literally 'process' digital to 'sound' analog at the studio.  But even given that, that output goes through digital processing at some point on the way to your ears.

Given, there still exists 'pure' process extant.  But, like the gramophones of the past, all things pass.  And that passing is accelerating daily...

May as well enjoy the ride, as you can't stop the vehicle.  You can opt to jump off, though.....;)

Happy Sunday, J