Boy, it sounds like a lot of us are at the same place at the same time. I was quite happy streaming from my Bluesound Vault 2i and simply using the DAC built into my surround processor and everything was great. Then the bug hit and I decided to ditch surround in favor of a two channel only system. Using the Vault by itself sounded dull and lifeless, so I added the new Denafrips Venus II DAC. Things improved substantially. It was just like everybody said, way smoother, more refined, and easier to listen to. After getting just a taste of this improvement, and now dealing with a much nicer amp and preamp than what I had before, I was turned onto the SOtM SMS-200 by watching lots of videos on the Hans B. YouTube channel. Adding the SMS-200 Ultra Neo was just the ticket. Now, every single time I sit and listen to my system (which is every day), I can't believe how good it sounds. It's truly amazing. So, I would say the DAC and the streamer both make a significant and audible difference if you have the system to hear it.
spend on the streamer or on the DAC ?
I a considering splashing north of 5000 (euro) for a new source for my rig (MOOON 340i, OPERA QUINTA speaker, McIntosh SACD, Node2). Better to spend more for the DAC or the streamer ? I was thinking about a Schitt yggrasil.Or would it make sense to spalsh on a more expensive DAC and use the Node2 as a streamer, or, for that matter, stream from my Macbook Pro. Regards.