spend on the streamer or on the DAC ?

That’s a good count there Ron. 

I just got an Audioengine-BFi unit, this is quite a recently released product - I was quite amazed at the sound quality. Its comparatively inexpensive, has nice connectivity- (apple airplay-which i love), connects via the wifi network rather than bluetooth, ESS 9023 chip performs DAC functions, along with analog RCA outs it also has a digital optical out for use with an external DAC....this may be a game changer for those seeking to integrate an affordable decent streaming option with their audiophile equipment..having said that I have not compared this with more expensive options discussed above...but when I compared a good streaming source with CD's I was impressed.

Interesting thread.
I just purchased a Vecteur transport and Ares 2 dac for my red book cd habit. Very happy with the result.
I won’t be purchasing a lot of new Cd’s and won’t be adopting DSD. I wish to purchase a streamer that would mate well with my current components which include the Ares 2 dac, a VTL preamp and Sumo Andromeda 3 (250/ch) amp Paradigm Reference Studio 100 V3 speakers. I only have WiFi in my room. No Ethernet hard line.
Since I have the DAC already I would be interested in a DACless streamer if that option would allow me to get a better device at the same price as the DAC included options. After some research it seems to me I am not going to achieve a better streamer without DAC unless I spend a lot of cash on a high end streamer which would be overkill in my system.
So far I see my best option as a Node 2i and feed digital out to the Ares 2.
Any suggestions? I am not crazy about spending over 1K on the streamer and used is always an option.
Thanks

Good grief, 5000 dollars spent for a music "server" is getting close to the peak of audiophool stupidity (dudes who are largely clueless about anything related to pc hardware).

A basicc synology NAS+Seagate Ironwolf NAS drive should run you about 300 bucks. It should sit isolated and serve your music beautifully to multiple systems around the house. You gotta know where to spend your cash.

Depending on how golden your ears are, spend your money on a good standalone R2R DAC (Denafrips Venus, terminator, etc). DS DACs in 2020 peak out on diminishing returns at 1k. If you spent more than 1k on DS DAC offerings, it is cash down the drain.

When tech companies see the audiophool, i bet they laugh all the way to Chinatown. I recently saw a review for a audiophool "network switch" priced at 1000+ dollars. This is outrageous. I understand that not everyone may have advanced degrees/work experience/exposure in certain tech areas. But, I sincerely hope that some of you guys do some research and attempt to educate yourselves better

@deep_333 

laughed out loud reading your post

audiophools are not born, they are made... 

this is the land of $20,000 power cables after all... there was adam, there was then eve, there was then the audiophool