First, you have pretty nice stereo gear. I don’t think that’s holding you back. DAC comparisons can be very frustrating, since the differences are going to be much more subtle than with any other major component - that’s been my experience, for many years now. Quick A/B comparisons are definitely not the way to settle on a DAC (really anything, but especially DACs), because the inevitable large similarities will feed right into your brain’s tenacity at pattern matching "yep that’s the same". Enjoy one DAC for a while, then try another for a while. With time you’ll identify a favorite.
One thing that CAN make a surprising amount of impact in the digital world, is your transport. If you’re using the Node 2i as transport to Yggy, that alone could explain your results. I use my Yggy with an Audiophilleo 2 USB-to-SPDIF (with PurePower) converter from my PC, and it sounds a LOT better than the straight USB feed. I’m not sure a cable swap in your case will be enough to improve the Node as a transport. The Node 2i indeed sounds quite good (I have one in a system at the girlfriend’s), but I’m not sure it’s capable of fulfilling the Yggy’s DAC performance. Your Node’s coax-out transport may well be the bottleneck in your system, more than its built-in DAC. Of course, this partially explains the market for much more expensive streamers.
One thing that CAN make a surprising amount of impact in the digital world, is your transport. If you’re using the Node 2i as transport to Yggy, that alone could explain your results. I use my Yggy with an Audiophilleo 2 USB-to-SPDIF (with PurePower) converter from my PC, and it sounds a LOT better than the straight USB feed. I’m not sure a cable swap in your case will be enough to improve the Node as a transport. The Node 2i indeed sounds quite good (I have one in a system at the girlfriend’s), but I’m not sure it’s capable of fulfilling the Yggy’s DAC performance. Your Node’s coax-out transport may well be the bottleneck in your system, more than its built-in DAC. Of course, this partially explains the market for much more expensive streamers.