SQ Comparison of 3 streamers

*** T8 should be cool side of neutral, sorry

Since I haven’t tried the Zen 3, I’m not sure which one I truly prefer. So far, between the T8 and the Rivo+, I do prefer the Rivo+ because of its tonal presentation. Nevertheless, with the Veritas Argentum XLR interconnect, it really smooths things out and shifts the overall tonal balance to the warmer side due to a heftier bass response. Plus, my CA Azur 851A is a warmer-sounding power amp, so they pair well together most of the time, although I still get hints of brightness from certain recordings. I’m still debating whether to send the T8 back.

I was hoping the Zen 3 would also lean toward the warmer side of neutral. However, based on my research, it seems fairly neutral. I hope an owner here can prove me wrong.

The current version of the Rivo+ is running much more stably now. I haven’t run into any issues for a while. However, two common features are still missing—for example, the Qobuz playlist does not pop up to allow tracks to be added directly, though one can use Qobuz Connect as a workaround. That said, the Volumio app sounds better than Qobuz Connect.

Sir - how would you rate the app that controls them?  

Edit: love the chart, big fan of it.

Sir - how would you rate the app that controls them?  

Again, I have not tried Innuos (although I’ve heard it before), so I’m not qualified to comment on or rate the Sense app, which has been highly praised here by AGers. Between the native apps of the T8 and the Rivo+, the T8 wins without question in terms of usability and operation. However, in terms of sound quality, Volumio takes the lead.

With the T8, I use Qobuz Connect, whereas with the Rivo+, I use the Volumio app. If I need to add tracks to my playlist, I switch back to Qobuz Connect; otherwise, I stick with Volumio because it sounds better. It’s kind of strange that the apps behave that way. So far, I haven’t been able to find a plausible explanation for it.

I though we have many Zen 3 owners here.  Care to render your opinions or confirmations?  Appreciated.  

*** T8 should be cool side of neutral, sorry

^^^ this ^^^

and furthermore, i had the rivo plus with lineo power supply -- i would say it is dead on neutral