2. digital
  3. 164685-139155

Check in: How quickly are streamers and servers evolving?

This is a question for those who have been trying streamers and servers recently, watching reviews and product launches, or who just know their stuff and keep up with the technology. I am trying to separate market hype and churn from what is happening, technologically.

Many have said that DAC technology development has slowed down enough for people to feel comfortable spending real coin on a good DAC. Good to know.

So my question is: How quickly do you think streamer and server technology is evolving? Is it still a moving target -- in other words still worth being somewhat cautious about perhaps waiting before dropping serious coin as the technology is soon to change again? Or are we slowing down?

(For those who think these technologies can be accomplished in economical ways (Raspberry Pi, etc.), I'm still curious about your opinion about the speed of change, regardless of whether high dollar expenditures are unnecessary.)

Of course the other yet integral issue is how fast music catalogs are keeping up with the hardware changes to supply the new hardware with files that it can play. I just watched Darko discuss the Spotify move to CD quality (which he celebrates and for which explains the rationale), and it seems most of the music out there continues to exist at CD quality only, not higher resolution.

(Oh, and before someone chimes in with how analog beats digital so why bother...please don’t. I know you think that.)
128x128hilde45
fuzztone's avatar
fuzztone
5,496 posts
 
Trolling child with a runny nose.  


Is the weather changing fast enough?
Doo doo question.
pennpencil
109 posts
 
I think this is relevant to the OP's question: 

I have a DAC that I like. I run Tidal on my iPad into it. Is there some sonic improvement using a streamer instead of an iPad as the music source? 
hickamore
523 posts
 
An illuminating thread with many viewpoints. Any old streamer will do if the DAC is great? Vice-versa? A question I'm trying to answer for myself,  allotting $5k for the experiment. Could turn out the new front end is no better sonically than the Macbook Pro + streamer/dac combo, nor even more convenient. But then the learning of costly lessons is often a major narrative in our lives, and whether these even count as errors is a purely subjective assessment. Worth a run, wot?

asvjerry's avatar
asvjerry
4,253 posts
 
...how about faster than you can spend to keep up with it? *L*

It's likely that by the time you've heard about X; investigated, considered, decided upon and purchased, plugged it in, decided 'yay' or 'nay' about it.

It's obsolete.

Laugh and sneer all you like.  One can literally 'process' digital to 'sound' analog at the studio.  But even given that, that output goes through digital processing at some point on the way to your ears.

Given, there still exists 'pure' process extant.  But, like the gramophones of the past, all things pass.  And that passing is accelerating daily...

May as well enjoy the ride, as you can't stop the vehicle.  You can opt to jump off, though.....;)

Happy Sunday, J
surfmuz
374 posts
 
No, it’s not slowing down at all... pretty soon we’ll see descent DACs implanted in our phones, streamers will be in headphones and in car audio. Also Codec technology will expand and get better. 
More to discover