My take: there is no silver bullet playbook here. Either option can work with no assurance of success or disappointment.
(1) You get what you pay for in most circumstances- coughing up for a stand-alone DAC stsrting going north of $3K is where the differentiation starts to really matter in terms of audio digital performance satisfaction . But that is also with high regard that one has the worthy requisite finess and resolution in the accompanying system to warrant it.
(2) Build quality matters … full stop. Choose wisely, and ignore any temptation of the current low to mid tier marketing flow ads that a lowly or bottom price-point are Goliath killers that assure you all you want and expect. The only thing that goes with the flow are dead fish.
(3) OEM technical setup and problem support for DACS and digital players is hyper-critical. Far too many of both amp-DAC unibox units as well as stand-alone DAC options may really suck in support. They can leave the user trying to sort it out himself with big trouble, and feeling like a one-legged man in an ass-kicking contest and very frustrated.
(4) With reference to (2) above, try to audition at least some of your contenders and pretenders first. And strongly then consider buying pre-owned to save a lot.
Brand new “Latest “ brands and models is no assurance of a Yellow Brick Road to audio OZ Go check out how many of the current flavour of the day brand options now appear in the various forum FOR SALE LISTINGS after high expectations from new.
This is a journey of experimentation, experience, and rolled up sleeves rather than any fast destination. Forum member testimonials of certain brands and models may help, but intuitively they have a high measure of personal bias of performance that may or may not be symbiotic with your bespoke system
