Antipodes Audio!!!!!
Suggestions for a streamer only (I have a great DAC)
I have a dCS Paganini DAC and Paganini Clock. I’m looking for a streamer only to pair with the Paganini to stream via Tidal. That’s it, I don’t need a streamer/DAC/etc. I don’t want to extra for pay for redundancy. Any good suggestions on a streamer only that you have paired to a high end DAC with good results would be appreciated.
PLEASE no “try some at home on your system” responses …. that’s the reason I came here, for some recommendations. Price range $1500-$5000.
Thanks!
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- 91 posts total
I'm going to be 'that' guy who tells you that you can WAY over pay for a pure streamer (no DAC). Streamers don't follow some audio myth like cables where people tell you to spend a certain % of your overall system cost on cables as if that directly improves your sound. It's a law of big diminishing returns with cables and streamers. You spent the right $$$ on your DAC but getting bits from a network stream transported to your DAC is not subject to massive qualitative differences. I second the Bluesound Node (2021 version) recommendations as the best bang for the buck. I would suggest you do what I did and buy the Bluesound and also whatever high end streamer you think would be a big improvement on the BS. Then test them both with your system using a truly blind testing method to see if you can really hear a difference consistently. I have a nice system that is very resolving and I could not. So I sent the more expensive streamer back and kept the BS. I use a quality USB cable into my Holo Audio May KTE DAC and it is fantastic. If you actually want a qualitative improvement then feed your BS output into HQPlayer upscaling. But that is a project for a different time once you've made your decision. Good luck. |
I have tried a number of network bridges. I would recommend one of the following; Pro-Ject Stream Box S2 Ultra. This is a tiny box with a wonderful network bridge inside. It retails at around $1000. It is designed by John Westlake, a great designer, and based on a Radpberry Pi and runs Volumio software to access Tidal very intuitively. SOtM sms-200 ultra NEO. This is a great upgradeable small box solution. It is upgraded by adding the sps-500 power supply, the sCLK-ocx10 clock, and the tx-USB ultra USB ’cleaner’. So you could have 4 of the SOtM boxes with the full set up. The Auralic Aries G1 or G2 is a traditionally sized Hi-Fi component with its own software to integrate with Tidal. I found the SQ was no better than the two above though I have tried other options from a home built Pi to ones from Sonore and BluSound but none of these were as good as the 3 manufacturers above.
Sound quality wise between these they are all very close. I have the 4 box SOtM in one of my systems and the Pro-Ject in another. By adding the other boxes to the SOtM I got minor improvements on one of my systems, but no noticeable difference on two others, I guess it depends on the DAC, but the SOtM is not as intuitive to set up. Both models of the Auralic sounded no better than the Pro-Ject or the base one-box SOtM and at around 3 to 5 times the price. Personally I’d go with the Pro-Ject. It sounded as good as the Auralic and is a tenth of the size and a quarter of the price. If you like the upgrade path I’d head for the SOrM and you can see if your DAC responds to the changes you make. For ref I have tested these network bridges on my two high end DACs (dcs equivalent) and one mid range. |
If that's been your listening experience then I believe you but you represent a tiny minority. Reading on this and other forums on the topic of streamers the overwhelming number of listeners who've heard/owned Blue Node say there's significant sound quality improvement to be gained from moving toward better quality servers/streamers. Blue Node seems an unusual match with the dCS DAC. I believe that the OP can likely do noticeably better within his given budget. Charles |
Since OP is streaming from TIDAL (and likely subscribed at the TIDAL Hifi Plus level), he'll want to look for a streamer that supports MQA to get the most out of TIDAL Masters, etc.. The Bluesound Node is one such device, and it's been a great addition to my Rega/Dynaudio system. Obviously, it's way below the OP's budget, but the results are consistently outstanding. Just an excellent value. |
- 91 posts total