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DDC or Better Streamer?

I’m trying to decide which would provide greater reward, adding a DDC or moving up to a better Streamer.  What am I looking for?  Just better everything including bang for the buck.

 

DDC – I’m a LAIV fan, but the Denafrips Hermes has optical inlet and would allow me to use it with both my OPPO (toslink) and Bluesound (digital coax).

Streamer – Am I better off just cutting to the chase and looking for used $3k Streamer (which would be more than twice the price of the Hermes)?

 

Will the better $3k Streamer be the better value over the $1.2k DDC?

 

Thanks for your input.

 

Room - Essentially 18'x18'x18' (ugh)

Power - Furman Elite 15i

Transport - Oppo UDP-203 with Glass Toslink

Streamer - Bluesound Vault 2i with Ice Age Ulitmate C7 Power Cable, Nordost Silver Shadow Digital Coax

DAC - LAIV Harmony with Shunyata V10 NR Power Cable, Kimber Cable Silver Streak RCAs

Amp - Music Fidelity M6si with Shunyata Black Mamba HC CX C15 

Speaker Cables - Cardas Quadlink 5-C

Speakers - Martin Logan Motion 60XT

Subwoofers - Dual SVS SB-2000 with Blue Jeans LC-1 Cables

audiostick

Showing 2 responses by mdalton

mdalton's avatar
mdalton
556 posts
 

here’s a recent, relatively robust discussion re streamers.

streamer discussion

 Re DDC, I have no experience myself, but would simply note that It makes sense to me that Denafrips would make a separate Hermes in part because their DACs are NOS, and as such may be more sensitive to digital noise (i.e., by definition they’re not doing any processing to the signal), so a DDC provides a cleaner data stream.  Query whether the LAIV would benefit (benefit as much).

mdalton's avatar
mdalton
556 posts
 

oops, did a bit more research. any reason you wouldn’t just go with Laiv Harmony uDDC?

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