That has not been my experience with some ethernet-based DACs like the Ayre QX-5 Twenty. It still sounded better with a SOtM tX-USB Ultra behind it clocked by a master reference clock and through a modified switch.
If there is USB involved, then it's not Ethernet to the D/A converter. You are maybe using a uRendu?
This is not the same as using Ethernet to I2S to the D/A chip.
Steve N.
Empirical Audio