OPPO Sonica DAC to Lumin D2 Upgrade
I’m considering an upgrade from an OPPO Sonica DAC to a Lumin D2. I’m generally satisfied with the OPPO sound and appreciate its simplicity of use (there is little doubt that it’s an absolute bargain at its price point).
However, I briefly owned an Aurender A10 and found that it provided marginally better sound over the OPPO at a significantly higher cost. Its only benefit, in addition to Aurender’s decent user app, was it’s on-board storage which was of little benefit to me. So once again I’m considering an upgrade-this time at a more affordable level. I prefer a unit that has similar functionality to the Sonica DAC.
My basic question is this: how much of a sonic improvement might I expect going from the Sonica DAC to the D2? Also, how good is Lumin’s user app when used with Tidal streaming? My OPPO was $799, the D2 lists for $2300. The streamer/Dac (w/Tidal) will function as my sole source feeding a Belles Aria integrated and PMC twenty5.22 speakers. I’ve found the Aria/PMC combo to be wonderfully satisfying and they will not be subject to change for the foreseeable future. Any thoughtful advice will be much appreciated.