I can speak to this with some experience. I have 6 Sonos zones in my home. My main system consists of a Sonos zone player driving a pair of Audio Note kits 300b Monoblocks directly (downstream from them is a horn system). I have tried, quite literally over a dozen DAC's in the 1k - 3k range. Every time I put the Sonos in directly, I feel that the sound is more direct, more honest, and more live sounding. It is a bit hard to believe I realize, but I have proven it to my own ears at least. If you by chance live near the Maryland / D.C. area, I would love the opportunity to show you just how good a Sonos zone player can sound driving high quality gear directly, with no preamp.
Sonos to Amp - is simplicity better?
I'm curious if adding a dac and preamp into the path between a Sonos and amp will improve the sound?