I started with a Bluesound node2, great piece of kit. Recently went down the Raspberry pi rabbit hole.
I was using the Node with a Schiit Bifrost multibit, and was happy, until...
The Bluesound node did everything I needed, streamed my music on a NAS, Tidal integration, excellent web radio stations, and more web music services than I thought existed.
However, after experimenting with the pi, and Roon, I’m happier with my new setup. Roon is more than a simple music player, it gives you info on the album, musicians, producers, etc. It helps you explore musicians that you might not have heard of and looks(to me) nicer. The Bluesound app doesn’t do that, it relies on Tidals’ suggestions for you to find new music.
If that is worth $12 a month to you, is up to you, it is to me.
If you have a dac already, the pi route is the least expensive option, but requires a bit of work on your part. It sounds better to me (Allo Digione sig -> ADI-2 dac)
good luck
mdr