Ready to move onto next stage of streaming

Uber,

What are you using to control the Vault?  Tablet, phone?

I'm using an Auralic Aries w/ Femto clock, and control it with my iPad via Roon.  Auralic has it's own app, Lightning DS which I only use for setup, which I believe you can only do via an iPad at the moment.

Anyways - the Aries has USB, Toslink, Coax, AES out (pick your poison) and is only a streaming transport - which of course is all you need, since you're using the Lyngdorf's fantastic DAC.

I believe Auralic and Bluesound are neck & neck with each other regarding internal circuitry processor blah blah, but the Aries does have the Femto clock, and no DAC (extra hoopla inside), plus a very nice linear power supply, which should be an upgrade to your Vault.

I haven't used any Bluesound products, but I had the Aries Mini (no Femto/Built in DAC) and the Aries I have now sounds noticeably better.

I can vouch for Mytek. I’ve used the Brooklyn DAC+ and it’s sound is spectacular. Especially with MQA.

Equally as good as the Lyngdorf, with maybe a slight edge for the better. But, once I bought the Lyngdorf, there was no need for a second DAC.

Always a compromise.

I think as long as you’re using the Lyngdorf, you need not worry about MQA. It’s not possible to play full MQA with the 2170 in the chain anyways, as it will always convert/resample all sources feeding it.

That was the main reason I reluctantly parted ways with the Brooklyn DAC+. There was no need for it and the 2170 in the same system.

Uberwaltz,

The 2170 will read the correct incoming sample rate, so if you click "info" on a 24/192 (MQA) is will indeed say 24/192, but the 2170 will then resample the MQA to PWM (24/96) before the final output, as it does with any incoming signal.  So you're getting resampled MQA.

My Aries Mini, which had a BETA firmware installed, was MQA capable with it's internal DAC and would do a full MQA unfolding.  I'd send MQA to the Mini, and then singled ended out into the Lyngdorf's unbalanced input.  I did not like the sound at all.  I'd send the same MQA file through the Mini's digital out into the Lyngdorf and the sound was a bit better, although there was no MQA unfolding, since I was using the Lyngdorf's DAC.  So I ended up just playing the FLAC files (Mini digital out to 2170), and to me that sounded better than MQA

Before the Lyngdorf, I had a Hegel H160 and did the same test.  This time, using the Mini's DAC and playing MQA, going into the Hegel's unbalanced analog input, the sound was always superb.  I always preferred the MQA version, over the normal FLAC.

Hope that makes sense.  ramble ramble

My guess is that the Mytek would produce  similar results regarding MQA as the Aries Mini.  Although the Mytek is a much better DAC, but you would need to pair the Mytek with a different amp unfortunately.

Room Perfect is a game changer, plus the DAC in the 2170 is far superior to that in the H160.  IMHO.

If you're going to keep the 2170 for long term, maybe best to stay with the Bluesound.  But, If you're keen on upgrading your streamer, I would not purchase anything that is a DAC/streamer combo.  You don't need a 2nd DAC.

Wise choice.