2. digital
  3. 175408-120426

Wanting to upgrade my streaming sound quality.

I would really like to get my streaming sq up to my analog sq. My equipment is a McIntosh MC 452, C47, TD 124 with an AT 150 SA on a SME M2-9 tone arm, a Rega P8 with an Alpheta 3, a restored MR 74 tuner, driving Aerial 7t speakers. My streaming now is an iPad with a usb cable into my preamp with Tidal. I would be willing to spend around $2500 . A one box solution would be preferable for a steamer/dac combo although two boxes could also work. I’m not interested in multiple clocks and separate power supplies etc. Also I don’t use CD’s for a source.  I do have AT&T fiber internet with up to 1000 mb speed and my modem is only around 5 feet from my audio rack. Balanced inputs is preferable but not a deal breaker. I’ve looked at the HiFi Rose 250 and the 150 although the latter is more money than I want to spend. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I’m an Analog guy in a digital world.

Greg

gphill

Showing 2 responses by hilde45

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hilde45
5,309 posts
 

@jperry +1

 

hilde45's avatar
hilde45
5,309 posts
 

I find this topic so difficult, personally.

In my local audio society, some of the very best rigs have great dacs and then have a raspberry pi or a mac mini or just a simplified computer (built with a kit) with good power supplies, good cabling, etc. for the streaming part. The emphasis is on everything around the streamer. This leaves flexibility for changes in DAC's. 

I do see the logic in getting a one-box solution, especially if one has a good unit in mind and they like the sound of the DAC built in. And, of course, if they're willing to take the digital out from that unit into another, external DAC if their taste or curiousity changes.

For myself, I have a modded Orchid MHDT DAC that I really like and a Bluesound Node 2i. I have pressed people in other threads about whether they could hear a difference when they changed streamers, but there are almost no cases where someone had a controlled comparison to describe. They were almost always changing the DAC involved, too.

So, for now, I'm likely to continue taking the digital stream out of my Orchid, improving the power supply for it (PD Creative, Teddy Pardo, something), and then remaining focused on the other elements of my system.

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