@woots I have a very similar set up to you and have recently changed my DAC/streamer. I own the ARC Ref 160S amp, ARC Ref 6SE preamp and Roon Nucleus. Roon is my only source and I have now stopped using my CD player. I previously had those components hooked up to a Lumin T2 that I upgraded to a X1 a couple of years ago. The X1 was definitely an upgrade which included an outboard power supply. By recommendation, I added an Uptone EtherRegen but I honestly can’t tell if it made much of a difference. A few months ago I got an itch to explore a MSB DAC/Streamer. I found a dealer that offered me a demo of a MSB Discrete DAC/Streamer with 2 recommended power supplies. I was able to A/B test the MSB with the Lumin X1 for a couple of weeks and found the MSB to be more analog sounding than the Lumin X1. Both are excellent DAC/Streamers and you can’t go wrong with either. I chose to buy the MSB and sold my Lumin X1 and am very content. For the time being…. Best wishes on your HiFi journey.
Curious to know your streaming and dac set up and the best recommended streamer under $15k
Curious to know your streaming and dac set up as well your best recommended streamer. I have recently upgraded my dac and have used 2 different set ups in an attempt to find the my best combination. Former set up was Roon Nucleus+ connected to a Lumin T2. New set up is a new Nagra Tube Dac and a separate Power Supply and I had that directly connected to my Roon via Shunyata Sigma USB cable and using a Shunyata Ethernet connection to my network. Didn’t feel like that was my best possible sound so introduced the Lumin T2 back into the fold as my streamer and then connected the Nagra to the Lumin T2. This was a much improved sound. At this early testing point I’m curious to see if anyone uses and/or recommends a streamer that has significantly improved their sound under $15k. I would like to stay with the Roon platform.
Current set up is Audio Research Ref160S amp, Audio Research Ref6SE pre-amp with Wilson Alexia speakers. All cabling between these components is Transparent Reference.
Unfortunately, I have not had time to photograph and upload my new Nagra dac.
I really appreciate anyone who takes time to assist with some thoughtful ideas, experiences, or recommendations.