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Digital separates or all in one music hub

My digital front end is lacking and I would like to upgrade my DAC as well as get a digital streamer. As of now I currently stream tidal with my MacBook Pro through a dragonfly cobalt into my integrated amplifier. So there is a lot of room for improvement. With that being said, would it be better to invest into a single unit such as a marantz SACD 30n or Arcam ST60 (just examples) that have everything I would want in one package. Or would I get better performance if I were to invest into a dedicated streamer, DAC, and SACD/CD player?

also how much am I really missing out on by listening through my MacBook the way that I am? Would it be worth while for me to get a less expensive streamer such as a used bluesound node while I save for something better?

james1911

Showing 1 response by calvinandhobbes

calvinandhobbes
309 posts
 

FWIW, I have a Pro-ject Stream Box Ultra S2 streamer that has sounded quite good. I got it as a "starter" streamer, but have compared it to an Auralic Mini streamer and a $8.5k Naim NDX 2 used as a streamer. I’m sure there may be differences in sound quality between streamers, but couldn’t hear a difference in sound between the Pro-ject and the Naim used as a streamer.

I do like the really small size of the Pro-ject streamer. The fact that it fits nicely on one shelf with my DAC takes away one of the big drawbacks of having a separate streame and DAC for me.

I also think that streaming standards are likely to change over time so I think that there is merit to keeping the streamer separate from the DAC. I do like the simplicity of integrated audio equipment when I think standards are less likely to change such as for integrated amps.

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