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Help settle a streaming argument!

This is a SQ argument and is as follows-  I argue if you connect your streamer to an outboard DAC the streamer does not matter it’s just serving the music to the outboard DAC to do the work.  Therefore, buy a basic streamer.  The other is that you need to buy a top quality streamer and DAC to get great SQ. 
 

I liken it to cd players or the more pretentious cd transport argument- if the intent is to connect to outboard DAC the cd player doesn’t matter the outboard DAC DOES!
 

features and functionality aside!  Thoughts…..

polkalover

Showing 2 responses by mteetank

mteetank's avatar
mteetank
17 posts
 

+ 1 to carlsbad2

I think the question is the core of the issue if I am to learn more about streamers and how to spend my money wisely. Lets remove the listener from the chain for the moment. I pose the questions that if the only variable in the chain is the streamer and each streamer under consideration is receiving the same digital file from the provider which it is then delivering to the DAC, What degradation can or is taking place within the streamer that the file received is not identical to the file delivered to the DAC? What makes the streamer the weaker link if the files are identical and if they are not identical what changed?

mteetank's avatar
mteetank
17 posts
 

This was a great discussion!!! My perspective is that streamers vary in SQ based on the observations of members of this forum. This would indicate to me coloration of signal going into the DAC is added to the actual digital file and that the engineer who designed the stream designed that coloration into it based on the capabilities of the components used. Do some streamers sound better than others or are they just different? Ok, back to speaker cables, now there is something we can all agree on!  :>)

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