streaming and audiophile stereo

@bill_peloquin 

I would recommend a Aurender N150 or if that is too much then a used Aurender N100… You should be able to get this for less than $2500 allowing you to jump forward a huge step. 

The streamer is as important as any other component and should be carefully chosen and in general of the similar or greater value than the other components… preamp, amp, DAC. 
 

MQA… not really important. Ok, Qobuz is the best sounding streaming service… they don’t use MQA. If for some reason you are adamant about using Tidal, then your Streamer / DAC needs to unfold MQA. MQA can sound good… don’t listen to the haters… but the technology came too late… it was intended to save band width… well guess what… bandwidth is no longer an issue unless you have a 2400 baud modem.

You need the best possible streamer possible. The sound quality of mine equals my great analog/ vinyl end. 

OP,

Roon adds a layer of complexity that you may not want. Qobuz will give your access to tens of millions of tunes. They have over half a million high resolution albums, for around $12 / month. I don’t buy CDs any more, and have been giving mine away… my streamer usually sounds better, or at least as good. Physical media is becoming a thing of the past.

I recommend a single box streamer… BlueSound on the budget (~$1K) end to a much better unit the Aurender N200 (I own the previous iteration ~$3.5K) to the Aurender W20SE (which I own $22K). None of this is about status… only sound quality. It improves dramatically with price. You plunk the box down, connect to network (I use a wall wart wifi extender next to my audio system ((~$59)) ). You log on to the box with your iPhone or iPad… and connect directly to Qobuz or Tidal. You get high end audio output to sent to your DAC / preamp / amp / speakers.

This is this simplist and best (my streamer sounds as good as my high end vinyl leg) solution for high quality sound and simplicity. The streamer app… allows search, creation of libraries and play lists… etc. Roon adds a layer of complexity and greater search function and cost. If you want high sound quality then you want a dedicated streamer and not a PC with some software to make it stream… this is a long and endless discussion among luddites and those living in the present. I spent 40 years in IT, I am happy to leave this stuff behind.

@russbutton

You are correct that bits a bits. File transfer protocols will assure you that a file in one place is exactly that, bit for a bit,  the same as in an another location. Also, the DAC is a very important component of your system. However, it is also true that the streamer is just as important as the deck, or any other component.

I have extensive experience with, for instance, a MacBook Pro, running on batteries, optimize for streaming, the Aurender,, and 100, the Aurender, and 10, and the Aurender W20SE, all using the same excellent quality DAC. Each in sequence sounds very significantly better than the previous one. This is true either through USB connection or through other digital connections. There are a number of reasons for this, including noise suppression, isolation, and I’m sure many others. But they sound very different, and the better the streamer, the better the sound..