Be careful with the router distance from your system. Both the wi-fi signal & the EMI from the cheap router wall wart can cause you problems. chatGPT recommends at least 10 feet.
I ended up stealing the Ethernet backhaul from my main downstairs router for my mesh system and ran it directly to my Aurender, and moved my 2nd router to the other side of the room, switching to a wireless backhaul.
Cleaned things up quite nicely.
BTW, I own a Chord DAC. Would not call it warm, but clean, accurate, fast & articulate, especially with a good LPS & proper isolation.
Good luck!
Thoughts on DAC option
Current DAC is the original Auralic Vega . This was a HUGE upgrade in sound quality from a Cambridge Audio DAC Magic.
And things are good right now. Well, mostly, it's not like we are generally blessed with freedom from the desire to upgrade!
And now I have an option of a Chord 2qute. My main issue with the current setup is the fatigue on some music. EDM is generally fantastic, however rock is often harsh. Voices are great.
So the question is whether the Chord could smooth off the sharper edges of things.
All feedback gratefully received.
System is:
Sources - PC and Auralic Aries Mini
Amp - Prima Luna Frank Hybrid Integrated
Speakers - Krix Harmonix 2
Interconnects and speaker cables are average but not the biggest factor here from what I can tell.