I have run the following iterations over the years:
DAC/pre/amp
Dedicated DAC to Integrated Amp
Dedicated DAC to amp w. software attenuation
Integrated DAC to amp
(I even tried Integrated DAC to Integrated Amp, which as suspected, is not optimal)
Frankly, its stunning how much variance exists between such systems.
The unvarnished truth; no one can tell you which would be better. You simply have to conduct comparisons. It becomes more interesting when swapping speakers, as often the combo that worked best with a given speaker will not be best with a different speaker. I have one pair of speakers that works best with a $3.5K integrated DAC, and another pair that works best with a $10K integrated DAC, everything else in the rig being unchanged.
It would take a lot of money and time to explore all the options, so most people simply select. Thankfully, you can get excellent results with any combination - depending upon the choice of components and cables.
To make matters more complicated, if you select the "wrong", i.e. inferior amp, it matters not which combo you use in the system, you will never achieve a sound quality as good as when using a superior amp. Looks like you are aware of the necessity of an excellent amp. :)
DAC/pre/amp
Dedicated DAC to Integrated Amp
Dedicated DAC to amp w. software attenuation
Integrated DAC to amp
(I even tried Integrated DAC to Integrated Amp, which as suspected, is not optimal)
Frankly, its stunning how much variance exists between such systems.
The unvarnished truth; no one can tell you which would be better. You simply have to conduct comparisons. It becomes more interesting when swapping speakers, as often the combo that worked best with a given speaker will not be best with a different speaker. I have one pair of speakers that works best with a $3.5K integrated DAC, and another pair that works best with a $10K integrated DAC, everything else in the rig being unchanged.
It would take a lot of money and time to explore all the options, so most people simply select. Thankfully, you can get excellent results with any combination - depending upon the choice of components and cables.
To make matters more complicated, if you select the "wrong", i.e. inferior amp, it matters not which combo you use in the system, you will never achieve a sound quality as good as when using a superior amp. Looks like you are aware of the necessity of an excellent amp. :)