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Surprised by streamer differences

This from a newbie when it comes to separate streamers/DACs, having just recently dipped my toes into them.  I’ve been a long-term user of the Perfectwave DAC with a Bridge II streaming my ripped discs, Tidal and Qobuz via Roon.

Picked up a Denafrips Ares II and was using a Node 2i as a streamer.  Thought it sounded pretty good.  I didn’t do a direct comparison to the PSA unit.  

Read about streamers making a difference so I picked up a Stack Link II.  Listened to Stack/Denafrips rig and heard more detail than through the PSA rig.  

I then compared the Denafrips to the Perfectwave using the Stack streamer.  Here, I expected to hear some differences.  I did, but those differences seemed subtle.

I then picked up a Auralic Aries streamer to compare to the Stack.  I only played them through the Denafrips, but this is what surprised me.  I heard more of a difference in sound quality when swapping the streamers than when I swapped DACs using the Stack streamer.  

Through the Stack, everything seemed tight and precise.  And through the Auralic, everything seemed more relaxed and loose.

The best way for me to describe the differences is like comparing my Lexus ES330 (loose and relaxed) vs my BMW 650i (tight and precise).

I just found that kind of interesting.

 

 

I

audiodwebe

Showing 2 responses by zlone

zlone
804 posts
 

@zlone - were you using the coax output from the Node 2i?

Yes, I used the coax/RCA output of the Node 2i. In the case of the Pi, I am using coax/BNC. I have heard that USB is consistently better in most cases, however that port is in use on my Gungnir for another purpose. So perhaps not a perfect apples/apples comparison since I am using different input ports on my Gungnir, but still using SPDIF for both.

 

 

zlone
804 posts
 

I have two streamers, a Node 2i and a Pi/Allo DigiOne setup. The Pi system has been offline while I build it into a custom enclosure with a linear power supply and front display. During this time I have listened exclusively to the Node 2i run through a Gungnir MB DAC and after a couple months (slow project) have found myself wondering what was wrong with my system. The soundstage had shrunk, was less detailed and overall the system was a lot less engaging. This weekend I plugged the Pi/Allo system in for some testing and the sun came out, that's what was missing. Very significant difference made by just the streamer. 

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