Digital Front end for Dummies

oldhvymec

Streaming iS Qobuz (I recommend over Tidal) for lossless.
BluSound for starters because it has it’s own player app (BluOS) that is virtually plug and play so It’s the easiest for beginners.
Start with its DAC and when you try an external one your listening preferences will guide you to the SQ you prefer.
It plays virtually all services.but MQA which is a money grab. If you want Roon, (try it on your computer) then you are better off with a Ras Pi.
Less money for better sound.
See Erich for that.
You’ll appreciate the savings that you can apply to your subscription.
It displays art better than Volumio does.
(Not as good as Orange Squeeze)
It plays most ALL internet radio and has plenty of USB power for local SSDs.

Thanks everyone. After reading the comments I feel like Bluesound is probably the way to go. I've done some more reading since starting this thread now though and am wondering if I shouldn't try and go even a little less expensive and give myself more options. 

I've read a bit about the Allo Boss Player R-Pi based unit. Saw Darko's review as well as a couple others and seems like it sounds pretty darn good for the price and could use Volumio to access Qobuz or Tidal. Later, I could swap out the Boss DAC HAT for the Allo DigiOne and get a great outboard DAC. 

Thoughts? 

I agree with everyone here about the Bluesound products. I’ve got two Node 2i’s- one upstairs and one downstairs. Setup is easy, usability is solid, and the flexibility they offer is astounding.  I wanted to chime in as I’ve actually tried the Audioengine adapter for a simple airpla antwnna. I didn’t care for the internal DAC, and when I fed it through the DAC in my Yamaha as801, it just sounded lifeless. I know this is a different caliber of equipment than yours, but with the bluesound, my setup sings. I’m not sophisticated enough to really describe it better than that. We returned the Audioengine (still love them) and shelled out for the bluesound node and never looked back. The two units I have sound phenomenal streaming Tidal masters. The music sounds alive but not overly warm or cool- it’s my favorite digital source because of how it sounds. NAD has also started manufacturing integrateds and network streamers with the bluesound compatibility, operating system, and features. I’d look into those as well. Good luck! 

Agree with what others have said about the Node 2i. I started with that and used it for a few months, sounded pretty good. Then got a MDHT Orchid with a WE 396A tube and with Qobuz, it's damn good. The Bluesound App is very good, it could use some minor improvements like the ability to alphabetize my Playlists.
  

Not to harp on this, but the anti-jitter setting in the BlueNode2i has a serious issue. Turn it off.  How good the BlueNode2i works is going to be DAC dependent. If your DAC is really good at rejecting jitter/noise, the results will be excellent.