why expensive streamers

@grislybutter - me too since people claim to hear difference. I am open minded. However, I am also a former software engineer and have masters in math, singnal processing....

I can imagine that low end streamer may have weak CPU (like low power ARM) and small RAM, so it may be losing packets and not sending bits over USB in a timely fashion.

Another thing that network traffic includes other people in the household watching movies, browsing, playing games. Having network switch isolating this traffic from streamer may be beneficial, if streamer itself is a low performance device. After all, high performance would need fans and most people would not want that.

@mikhailark right I am not saying there is no room for poor processing, flawed transmission. I just don't get the $1,000 vs $20,000 streamer argument. 

The only reason I went with a streamer was to use i2s, I used ethernet prior to using i2s. All the streamer does is to accept data from another server using ethernet, then output using i2s to my dac.

grislybutter

I just don't get the $1,000 vs $20,000 streamer argument. 

Have you tried listening for yourself, perhaps at a dealer who's willing to demo?

I’m not sure the price matters so much as a separate steamer matters and seperates tend to be higher end than integrated.  But as to why a separate streamer:

1.  Tech constantly changes. So it’s a generally better long term proposition to get distinct components, so you can just replace the parts that get outdated.  Or break.

2.  As far as why a nice streamer sounds better than an integrated:  

a  isolation from the noise on the network

b  isolation from the noise of the streamer itself

c.  It’s a dedicated component that does one thing well, with less compromise than in an integrated component 

d.  A quality streamer will:  check data, isolate and organize, and present the data in the best, most digestible, form for the DAC, allowing the DAC to do what it is supposed to do without it having to use resources making corrections or removing junk.

FWIW I use a Lumin U1X, which is not a cheapo streamer but hardly a $20k.  You can buy them used for $3-5k all day long.  I think they are about $10k new.