If Steve Got You Last Week...

I just use a CDP. No separate transport and DAC and cables to connect the two. Just separating the CDP into two components and then trying to decide which connections to use and then which brand of cable introduces too many variable for me. It becomes the old one step forward, two steps back routine.

Many a reviewer has said not to get hung up over which type of DAC to use and to just concentrate on the sound. As of now, most mid to high end CDPs have advanced to the point where I believe, the evidence points to that being the case.

I've yet to hear everything out there but just from the tweaks I've done with my set up in the last half year has really opened my ears up to the potential that's just sitting there, waiting to be uncovered. Even with old set ups, there's bottlenecks that need to be addressed.

All the best,
Nonoise

Darko isn't the only reviewer who's said that CD is better than streaming. I make it a point to go over dailyaudiophile.com on a daily basis and found many who've said they preferred CDs over streaming for many a year now. 

Even Srajan, over at 6moons, has found that SD cards, which bypass the PC/streaming side of things entirely, gives the best sound he's heard by a large enough margin to matter. The only streamer he's heard that rivals his set up was over $15K (and that was before he delved into SD cards in a serious way).

I think a lot of people bought into the marketing hype which magnified what could go wrong with CD playback. The truth is, it doesn't mean it does.

The hype helped open a lot of wallets to the new kid on the block. Trouble is, that new kid has yet to fully grow as evidenced by the never ending parade of upgrades and what not that was overlooked or not addressed at the time. 

If the past is any indication of what the future holds, streaming will keep on improving for the next decade, if not longer.

All the best,
Nonoise