2. digital
  3. 133203-106938

Newbie Looking for Advice on Streaming Music

Hello Audiogon world.

I am new to this hobby but I think it will suit me well as it looks like it is an endless pursuit of perfection of sound without ever really getting there.  I love the endless possibilities, difference in thought, technology driven aspect mixed with old school art.

I am in the process of building my first 2 channel set up and recently picked up a Primaluna Dialogue HP and a pair of Sonus Faber Chameleons for starters.

Im looking to stream music from Tidal to the new equipment as simple as possible without compromising sound as much as I possibly can (budget permitting of course)

I have been doing some research and I must say this part of the equation is rather confusing with a lot of technical speak that gets brought into the discussion which is a bit overwhelming for a newbie trying to soak it all in.

Do I need to purchase a high quality DAC?
Can I just buy a streaming box like the Paradigm PW Link or Def Tech W Adapt and hook it into the Primaluna?
Do I go with the Halide Design DAC HD D/A Converter from computer straight into Primaluna?
I also read about the wyred4sound modified Sonos Connect.  Does that plus into a DAC or straight into Amp?

Apologies for all the newbie questions.  I did try searching and doing some research but found myself getting confused.  If someone could help me clear up what I will need that will set me on the path to researching the best value for my budget for each component I will need to accomplish my goals of streaming my music from Tidal.

Thanks in advance.  I think this will be a fun hobby!

Don

donblackie

Showing 1 response by jbuhl

jbuhl's avatar
jbuhl
1,031 posts
 
One avenue to take is getting a Sonos connect off of craigslist to get a bump start, plug that strait into primaluna .  There are about 3 on Denver craigslist from $175 -$250, they should be easy to find about anywhere.  That will get you bump started streaming red book quality (16/48 ).  This will give you time to survey the landscape.  You can upgrade the power cable on the Connect and add a good coax digital cable and still be in for low investment.   Lots of good used DACS on the market so you can start rolling DACS while you still have the Connect.   Then when you find a DAC you like you can upgrade the Connect with the Wyred4Sound mods or dump (Connect) and jump to the Bluesound or something else.  Depending on you music taste you might take a look at Deezer and compare to Tidal.  Deezer has a very large library of world music vs Tidal. I ran both Tidal and Deezer for a bit and decided on Deezer because the large library.

Note: I have not seen the interfaces on other products but the interface and application for the Sonos products is top notch.  Support is good as well.  I had an issue with dropped connections and Sonos had me run a diag utility within the application.  I then called them back and they analyzed the output and detected some disturbance at the bridge.  I moved the bridge just a short distance and it cleared the problem.  
More to discover