Streamer only

OP, I tried the Bluesound Node and external LPS with good results. Reliable and easy to use.

Those who have recommended Aurender, Innous, Lumin are ignoring your price constraints. They are double and more your limits.

If your budget is $100 max then you really only have a couple of options. One is the Wiim streamer with the optical out and that will give you the best user experience but your DAC would need to have an optical input. The app interface plays a big part in how you access the music and how much you get out of a streaming service. If your DAC does not have an optical input then USB from a computer is the way to go and all it costs you is a USB cable. You certainly won't be getting anything near the sound quality you would get from a better dedicated streamer but at least you can dip your toes in and see what a service like Qobuz has to offer. Someone suggested a Raspberry Pi but from what I have read, that is not the best option for someone who is not tech savy.  I bet once you try streaming and see how much music it opens up to you, you will likely go up the food chain. Digital streaming has come a long way and is the preferred method of listening to music for many audiophiles these days.

@alvinnir2 He said $1000 not $100.

You get what you pay for… it all depends on how revealing a system you have. 
Auralic makes a fabulous stand alone streamer but not in your price range.  Is there a noticeable difference between a  Wiim pro with an upgraded power supply ( about $550) and. an Ever-solo DMP A6 ($850) yes there is . Great sound comes from reducing jitter and having great clocks in a streamer and it cost $$$. If you choose to use “Roon” which cost a monthly subscription you will have more streaming options.  Blusound X and Eversolo DMP A6 are probably your best choices for around $1000.

pal OP

151 posts

04-02-2024 at 05:38am 

Thanks for the suggestions. My budget was under 1000 new or used. 

Hi @pal I think it’ll be up to you, figuring out whether benefit lies in spending your full budget or 10-20% of it. Here’s why -

Streamer DIY doesn’t require being tech-savvy but if you want fully plug-n-play enough to spend upwards of a grand, maybe the latter is the better route. For an off-the-shelf streamer system (basically a limited-purpose laptop in an AVR-looking chassis with, in some cases, specialized power supply of generally unsubstantiated performance benefits), your main concern should be connectivity (what does your DAC accept - asynchronous USB, TOSLINK, etc.?) and whether you like the on-screen or smartphone app. The OS/software part sometimes gets glazed over because most streamers use a company-made OS (often based on Linux?) and each has to keep theirs up, or else you eventually have a brick of an audio computer.

There is no empirical evidence that a streamer can affect sound quality in an audible way. All support for this belief is anecdotal and generally is held without practicing any proper testing controls. Some folks dislike this notion, but when recommending how a stranger should spend the USD 4-5 figure$ that many file transports now command, I think it’s in order to make clear.

Okay, stepping off that soapbox now 😅

Start with any computer you already have, while you learn more about streamer models within your budget and decide if/which ones are worth trying. Because, well, why wait if it doesn’t cost you anything to start now, hey?