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Streamer + Preamp + Amp ... setup

I am new to this and am zeroing in on what I want for my system.
How does the streamer/DAC interact?
I was thinking of getting a Mark Levinson 526.  It is right in my price range.
It has an amazing phono pre-amp.

How would I stream to that pre-amp?  Do I need to get something like a Naim ND5 or similar?
I would assume I could take the Naim ND5 digital output to the ML 526 digital input.
Then I would expect the ML 526 DAC to do the conversion.

Thanks in advance
rrodell367
tomcy6's avatar
tomcy6
2,532 posts
 
A streamer takes the info from your wifi router either wirelessly or wired (ethernet cable) and sends it to your DAC through a digital out and digital interconnect (coax, optical, AES/EBU, etc.) into the DAC’s digital in. Your DAC then converts the digital to analog and sends it to your preamp through standard interconnects (RCA or Balanced) like any other input.

You can also get a combination DAC/Streamer or a DAC/Streamer/Preamp.

If you do a forum search for "Streamer" or "Streaming" and, "Sort by date" and "Search titles only", You will find many recent threads on this topic.
rrodell367 OP
8 posts
 
Thanks tomcy61 - I'll do the search.   Your response helps a lot on a first order.  I know there are a lot of combinations.  
tomcy6's avatar
tomcy6
2,532 posts
 
You’re welcome. There’s plenty of reading about this available.

Let me add that the streamer is controlled by an app downloaded to your phone or tablet. Some work better with Apple or Android devices. The Lumin app works much better with Apple devices, for example, but there are alternative apps available for most streamers.

Digital cables are different than standard interconnects, too.  They should have a 75 ohm impedance.
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