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New DAC or New Streamer?

This should be fun. After I pay to get my amp upgraded at VAC next month  I plan to either upgrade my DAC or Streamer next. I should have enough for that by late spring/early summer. I'm retired so I save some each month until I have what I need. My system is in my user profile. But to keep this simple my current DAC is the Dinafrips Venus II I got a year ago. (I also have the Hermes DDC)

My streamer is the Cambridge CXN V2 via coax to the Hermes-> I2s -> DAC which is also 1 year old. I was just getting into streaming then and knew little about it. I have learned a lot this past year, a whole lot.

I think the bottle neck is leaning more toward the streamer. It seems the DAC is pretty good, I know there are much better DAC's out there but it holds it own I think. Maybe not? I cannot afford the likes of DCS, Lampizator, etc.

The next planned upgrades are a Terminator II DAC and Aurender N200 Streamer. Both are $5000-$6000. (Unless I go for the Terminator + DAC that is $7500 but I am not sure it is $2500 better than the Terminator II)

So, since both will get upgraded a year apart, which should I go for first? Which would provide the biggest upgrade?

Thanks. Happy holidays to all.

128x128fthompson251

Showing 2 responses by jeffseight

jeffseight's avatar
jeffseight
574 posts
 

Recently I attended a Linn presentation of their newest DAC/Streamer

$45K? not sure.  As they outlined all the new improvements I asked

which part improves the SQ most? Immediate reply-the DAC.

 

For your situation Aurender is good but pricey. The Innuos

Zen 3 I have Streams/Rips and stores. I paid $2,200 new and I think

they up about $1k today. Love the thing.

You should still be about $2k ahead if you go with Innuos

and that gets your new Terminator as well.

Yeah you owe me now fella!!

 

 

jeffseight's avatar
jeffseight
574 posts
 

Latik,

I tried Innuos Sense briefly when first out and I had issues with functionality

so I went back to Roon where my libraries reside.

I have heard respected makers state the reason they do not incorporate

Roon is the SQ degradation they found. What they do not say is how they

must expose everything and change formats to accommodate Roon.

And likely pay Roon something. So it is not an exciting prospect to some.

 

Recently I heard Linn folks say they worked out "an accomodation" with

Roon that they could live with hence are now Roon Ready.

 

So there is a question of bias by makers and using SQ as their defense.

 

Is there any result of blind testing of Sense vs Roon ? Love to hear it.

 

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