Lots of advice here. I looked at streamers with built in DACs between $4-5k on Upscale website and they have several that have been mentioned and look attractive. Check out Hifi Rose RS150B, Cambridge Audio Edge EQ, AURALiC Altair G2.1. You said you were not impressed by an Aurender device previously but there is an A10 on the site for below $5k as well. kn |
Question for knownothing and anyone else who has actual experience with this. I am one of those who really is impressed with the sound coming from my Bluesound Node N130 with the Teddy Pardo LPS. I added a power cable from Triode Wire Labs, and I am just really impressed. Important Note: I also use a Weiss 501 DAC and a Purity Audio Design (super good) preamp. That is important for responders to note, as adding those components in the chain allows this streaming rig to sing. *Please don't offer comparisons without a really good DAC and Preamp. Just to put it into perspective- my analog turntable rig is at the $30K level, and the sonics of this streaming rig 'approach the neighborhood' of that. Q: Do you have experience or a sense of how much better it might be to use a good streamer like Innuos or others at a price point somewhere maybe $5K-$8K? I have read how some folks quickly dismiss the Node as being mid-fi in performance, but that is not what I am finding in my system. I am getting imaging, soundstaging, depth and details from Qobuz that are truly impressive. And I'm not talking about female vocals, but well-recorded, complex classical music. Thanks for any experienced comments. |
@mark6088 I agree. I too have owned and used a variety of streamers. They all sounded roughly the same to me. It wasn't until I bought the RS130 that I was satisfied. Definitely another level. It even took a jump when I ran a ground from it to my line conditioner. |
What’s your budget? A friend sold his Holoaudio Red to me, bought the PS Audio Airlens, sold it and re-purchased the Red. Why? I’ve let him borrow my ideon stack which is USB centric and the Airlens doesn’t have that feature. While my streamer was out being upgraded, he the Red via USB, to good effect. Try to find a used Red and go from there. |
I own a Bluesound node, and have owned a number of streamers. I would recommend an Aurender... N200 (used would be fine). I have had Aurlic, Grimm, Linn, dCS and other streamers in my system... I have a N100 in my headphone system... Yes, they are worth it and a significant upgrade from the Bluesound products. A benefit to Aurrender is the Conductor control app. It is highly regarded and becoming more powerful all the time. So many of us have gotten hooked on this pursue because we are so happy with the sound we have, and then upgraded. The difference it huge... although we could not see how.. .until we heard it. |
