Newbie Looking for Advice on Streaming Music


Hello Audiogon world.

I am new to this hobby but I think it will suit me well as it looks like it is an endless pursuit of perfection of sound without ever really getting there.  I love the endless possibilities, difference in thought, technology driven aspect mixed with old school art.

I am in the process of building my first 2 channel set up and recently picked up a Primaluna Dialogue HP and a pair of Sonus Faber Chameleons for starters.

Im looking to stream music from Tidal to the new equipment as simple as possible without compromising sound as much as I possibly can (budget permitting of course)

I have been doing some research and I must say this part of the equation is rather confusing with a lot of technical speak that gets brought into the discussion which is a bit overwhelming for a newbie trying to soak it all in.

Do I need to purchase a high quality DAC?
Can I just buy a streaming box like the Paradigm PW Link or Def Tech W Adapt and hook it into the Primaluna?
Do I go with the Halide Design DAC HD D/A Converter from computer straight into Primaluna?
I also read about the wyred4sound modified Sonos Connect.  Does that plus into a DAC or straight into Amp?

Apologies for all the newbie questions.  I did try searching and doing some research but found myself getting confused.  If someone could help me clear up what I will need that will set me on the path to researching the best value for my budget for each component I will need to accomplish my goals of streaming my music from Tidal.

Thanks in advance.  I think this will be a fun hobby!

Don

donblackie

Showing 2 responses by uberwaltz

Totally agree with Willemj here
I upgraded to a $3k DAC that has a very fine volume control AND one set of analog inputs and after listening tests decided I no longer needed my separate McIntosh preamp. Even the majority of cheaper DACs appear to have balanced outputs.
I thoroughly can recommend Bluesound but depending what you want to do as well, you might want to look at the Vault 2. This can store your entire cd collection on its built in hard drive as well as streaming not only Tidal but most other popular streaming services AND internet radio stations.
Best of all in my opinion you can control it direct from your phone (android or iPhone) or tablet/ipad. You will need a Tidal account obviously at either $10 or $20 a month depending on quality of resolution of files. You do not even need Tidal app, just the Blusound app to stream all services.
You have a choice of digital output (coax or toslink) and analog output.
Many other choices out there for sure but if you have the slightest possible need to rip your cd collection and store them as well then this is a superb all in one solution at about $1000 online.
Good luck!