The best solution for under or around 5k would be:
get a used Mac mini with 2-2 TB external disks for ripping/backup
get a lifetime subscription to Roon
get a ps audio ds jr dac.
Don’t spend $500 to have somebody rip your cd’s, download the free app MAX and rip each cd to 1 of the 2TB disks. It takes a few minutes to rip a cd. The other 2TB disk will be used to backup your music.
There is no interface that betters Roon for playing ripped music or streaming Tidal. Tidal runs on your Mac and your iPad.
You never want to place a computer/streamer device in your audio room and you don’t want to use USB. The ps audio ds jr dac comes with a network card built in and the dac is FPGA based which allows Ted Smith who develops the dac code for ps audio to better the dac code every 6 months for no charge. This dac is highly rated and supports all formats including MQA. The Mac mini can be nowhere in your house as long as it’s not in your audio room and the ds jr dac is connected to your network.
Very simple and sounds great
get a used Mac mini with 2-2 TB external disks for ripping/backup
get a lifetime subscription to Roon
get a ps audio ds jr dac.
Don’t spend $500 to have somebody rip your cd’s, download the free app MAX and rip each cd to 1 of the 2TB disks. It takes a few minutes to rip a cd. The other 2TB disk will be used to backup your music.
There is no interface that betters Roon for playing ripped music or streaming Tidal. Tidal runs on your Mac and your iPad.
You never want to place a computer/streamer device in your audio room and you don’t want to use USB. The ps audio ds jr dac comes with a network card built in and the dac is FPGA based which allows Ted Smith who develops the dac code for ps audio to better the dac code every 6 months for no charge. This dac is highly rated and supports all formats including MQA. The Mac mini can be nowhere in your house as long as it’s not in your audio room and the ds jr dac is connected to your network.
Very simple and sounds great