"
Does a streamer have a tangible improvement than a laptop?
"
I don't have experience with music streamers but the question is a bit problematic, because if the goal is to improve the sound quality in general, then the whole system should be examined and upgrade the portion that causes the most sound degradation. From my experiece, upgrading the internal DAC embedded in the integrated amp to external DAC would be the first thing I would do. And when one talks about "dirty laptop" I don't know if it is because of the OS/app chaos, or because of the sound? I think USB from a laptop fed into an external DAC would have no sound loss as long as the cable is good enough. My reference for this claim is https://www.musicservertips.com/how-to-articles/best-computer-for-audiophile-music-server/ and also provided that hard drive is noiseless one, SSD not SATA, and gets the internet via ethernet, not wifi.
I had an old Lenovo laptop with 2 GB memory and it was quite dirty, literally, with dust on the keyboard etc. I installed Linux Peppermint and bought Schiit Modi 3+, and connected them to Rega Mira 3 which powers an imitation LS3/5A. Peppermint quickly identified Modi 3 without a hiccup. The sound is sweet for voice/guitar/chamber with a great sound stage. Peppermint came with an equalizer which helps. This is my bedroom setup which is good enough. Other source is Android cell phone streaming casted to Chromecast Audio Opt Out into Modi 3+, through toslink, and the quality is good for Tidal, but I don't subscribe the high-end option. My only regret is not ordering the ethernet for every room in my house when I bought the house. Bluetooth was tried but the sound cannot be compared with the above two options.
I don't have experience with music streamers but the question is a bit problematic, because if the goal is to improve the sound quality in general, then the whole system should be examined and upgrade the portion that causes the most sound degradation. From my experiece, upgrading the internal DAC embedded in the integrated amp to external DAC would be the first thing I would do. And when one talks about "dirty laptop" I don't know if it is because of the OS/app chaos, or because of the sound? I think USB from a laptop fed into an external DAC would have no sound loss as long as the cable is good enough. My reference for this claim is https://www.musicservertips.com/how-to-articles/best-computer-for-audiophile-music-server/ and also provided that hard drive is noiseless one, SSD not SATA, and gets the internet via ethernet, not wifi.
I had an old Lenovo laptop with 2 GB memory and it was quite dirty, literally, with dust on the keyboard etc. I installed Linux Peppermint and bought Schiit Modi 3+, and connected them to Rega Mira 3 which powers an imitation LS3/5A. Peppermint quickly identified Modi 3 without a hiccup. The sound is sweet for voice/guitar/chamber with a great sound stage. Peppermint came with an equalizer which helps. This is my bedroom setup which is good enough. Other source is Android cell phone streaming casted to Chromecast Audio Opt Out into Modi 3+, through toslink, and the quality is good for Tidal, but I don't subscribe the high-end option. My only regret is not ordering the ethernet for every room in my house when I bought the house. Bluetooth was tried but the sound cannot be compared with the above two options.