Help settle a streaming argument!


This is a SQ argument and is as follows-  I argue if you connect your streamer to an outboard DAC the streamer does not matter it’s just serving the music to the outboard DAC to do the work.  Therefore, buy a basic streamer.  The other is that you need to buy a top quality streamer and DAC to get great SQ. 
 

I liken it to cd players or the more pretentious cd transport argument- if the intent is to connect to outboard DAC the cd player doesn’t matter the outboard DAC DOES!
 

features and functionality aside!  Thoughts…..

polkalover

For the moment, I see one major obstacle, the number of miles that one can run with a single charge of the battery. 

You can install a charger at home and it's like having your own private gas station in your house. Full "tank of gas" every morning. Unless your daily commute is hundreds of miles obviously. Better yet, free charging at work (car charges itself while you are working). Or plenty of fast DC chargers all over the place (where I live). Not an issue

I am getting more from this thread than most.  Thank you all!

I'm getting the itch and ran an experiment.

I have a Bluesound Node, current model using usb out to a highly modified MHDT Orchid dac.

I have Dali Epicon 8 speakers, Luxman 509x integrated and a Marantz CD I use as a transport.

Transparent and Shunyata cabling.

I can hear virtually no difference between the Bluesound streaming Qobuz and the cd.

Does this mean that the dac will probably not keep up with a better streamer and perhaps I should start with a new dac?

Thanks.

If you are using the same DAC for both, your CD transport and the streamer, then you perhaps may check your CD transport and also other your audio  components, the amplifier on speakers. In general do not expect a huge difference in sound quality.  If you have a good system both sources will give you dicent sound quality and often it is a matter of taste which source you like more.