Cambridge CXN V2 or Innuos Pulse Mini?

I have the Bluesound Node, the Cambridge Audio CXU  (a universal disc player with Wolfson DAC chips), and an Ares II.

I haven’t done the research to compare the DAC of the CXN and the CXU. The DAC of the Node is comparable in SQ to that of my CXU. I think the Ares II may be a little better, but it’s not a huge upgrade IMO. It does however let me see what the incoming bit rate and sampling rate are of the files I’m streaming, and I like that. It also allows more flexibility in managing the processing, since you can choose between oversampling/non-oversampling modes and two different digital filter choices, and this is worthwhile. After getting the Node and Ares II I upgraded my cables from preamp to power amps and speaker cables, and with the increased transparency I might be able to detect more of a difference between the Node’s DAC and the Ares II. But I don’t plan to spend more time making such comparisons.

You might want to consider if your amplification and speakers deserve an upgrade more than the streamer (but I don’t know what you have there), even if $1200 won’t get you much of an upgrade. But perhaps it’s worth saving up more to upgrade them than upgrading your streamer?

I have no comparison, but am happy with the Cambridge. Being part of several audiophile forums, I read up quite a bit on streamers. Steve Deckart, owner of Decware uses the CXN as his reference and swears by it. Members there use it as well. so I tried it and it sounds great. Started with Apple Music, which requires the StreamLogic app to stream Airplay. I thought it sounded pretty decent. Had some skips due to streaming via Wi-Fi, guessing that was the cause. Now I ran a land line and have Tidal, which the cxn is ready for so no app required. Sounds fantastic. 

@earthbound   I agree. Besides, Dan at Modwright wouldn't waste time on modding anything that wasn't a good fit for his expertise. 

I used to have the Bluesound Node and a CA DacMagic.  It sounded pretty good.  I switched to a small green computer ultraRendu, which sounded much better than the Node and works well with Roon.  I then got a Denafrips Pontus II DAC and the combination sounds very good.  I would suggest adding an external DAC first, then go from there.  It’s a fun journey

@drmuso I understand your perspective. Check out my virtual system - I think you will agree the Node is the weak link. Should I spend $1200 on a new streamer or an external DAC to enhance my $500 digital investment (not including interconnects) is the question. I may be disappointed.

Anyway, I appreciate all of the thoughtful and very helpful points of view.