STREAMER - WHERE DO I GO FROM HERE?

@fire_water I have the 50 ASLs which I bought after having heard the 150 ASLs. I went through a long process of auditioning multiple speakers and just when I thought I had found THE ones (was between Audio Note and Devore O96s) I heard the ATCs and while different sounding they seemed to handle every genre of music much more effortlessly. The option to just simplify everything with just the MU2 and the active ATCs and save me a world of decisions with streamer/dac/pre/power/ICs etc. was enough for me to pull the trigger. Do try and audition a pair when you can!

@patrickalston 

RESPONSE:  Of course, I agree with you on taking my own advice.  I’m only saying that my research tell me that an AES optimized DAC will not allow the BAT to perform to its potential.  I’m sure the N20 is great, it’s just not the best for for the BAT because the BAT REX 3 DAC is a USB‑first, asynchronous DAC the DAC’s internal clock becomes the master clock and the N20’s biggest engineering advantage (its clock) does not apply to USB.  So, if I selected the N20 and connected using USB, then I’ve wasted money paying for technology (the N20’s master clock) because the BAT’s clock controls the audio stream.  

Am I missing something?

Sorry if this has been mentioned before,  from personal experience, the USB output is quite good on the N20.  You’re really not sacrificing anything on that end.  I do see your point about not spending money on something that you won’t use, unless the BAT DAC has an AES input? We carry many of the brands listed in this thread, they all have their own strengths and weaknesses, but you can really go wrong with Innuos, Aurender , Grimm or Antipodes

Cheers

James

@ ATC SPEAKERS 

I know this is a different topic but I actually demo'd the ATC active 100 and was blown away and like you said it handles all genres of music without any lame excuses. But I need to spend more time with these and that's the issue because unless you commit to actually ordering them no demo is available.  But you are right,  a good all in 1 box streamer/DAC/preamplifier connected to a great active spkr like ATC does make life simple!

What's the size of your room?

I have the 50 ASLs which I bought after having heard the 150 ASLs. I went through a long process of auditioning multiple speakers and just when I thought I had found THE ones (was between Audio Note and Devore O96s) I heard the ATCs and while different sounding they seemed to handle every genre of music much more effortlessly.

That’s because the ATCs are equipped with solid state amps and very high quality drivers. The others mentioned have drivers that are better than mid-fi but definitely not top-tier, they are essentially just variations of Seas Prestige series and mid-level ScanSpeak stuff. 
 

Didn’t see the OP’s speakers mentioned, but as long as he’s using the tube amps and BAT DAC, there is absolutely no way he is going to hear differences in streamer quality. Any audible differences (for which there is zero supporting science anyway) will all be highly masked by the tube distortion and noise floor. 
 

I currently have the RS130. I've been curious of the Volumio Rivo+ based on the stellar reviews and I'm not tied to the display on the RS130. If the Rivo+ sounds as good I'd sell the RS130. So I acquired a Rivo+ with Teddy Pardo LPS and used it the past couple of weeks. I was also curious if I could hear a difference in streamers as I feel the streamer and dac have a smaller influence on the sound of a system compared to the amp, preamp, speakers and listening room. Anyway, the Rivo+ has a very open transparent sound. It has a bit of a forward presentation and sounds very good. I did notice a softening of the leading edges of lower frequencies. I could tell because when I started listening I had to double check that my RELs were back on (I turn them off when changing components around). They were on but I wasn't getting the bass impact I got from the RS130. Now that I've put the RS130 back in it sounds a bit more refined to me. The Rivo+ does light up every detail which gives it that transparent open sound, but I think that it also brings things forward in a way that slightly flattens the soundstage. The R130 sounds deeper and just as resolving, but the sounds that are supposed to sound further away and slightly softer do sound further away, giving the music more scale. Now, I think most people would be perfectly happy with either streamer. I didn't feel like the music was any less enjoyable on the Rivo+ than the 130, just a slightly different presentation. The main reason I'm keeping the 130 vs the Rivo+ is because my wife does like the display on the 130. And, when my wife and I listen to music we both stream from our phones and "DJ" back and forth. She likes Tidal's app because she knows it, even though with the 130 we're just using Airplay as it doesn't do Tidal Connect. I use Roon. The reason I'm mentioning this is when we "DJ" back and forth, a few times the Rivo+ would disappear from our phones once I connected to Roon, so my wife couldn't take control again without rebooting the device. Maybe its something we're doing but its a dealbreaker as my wife's enjoyment of our system is at one of highest priorities. Even if something sounds better, if she doesn't like it or like using it I move on. Sometimes she comes around to liking something she didn't initially like but I'd rather have her listen with me and enjoy it. Based on that, I'm keeping the 130 and will be selling the Rivo+ and LPS, but I do recommend the Rivo+ as for the money it sounds excellent. And, after going back and forth, I still think the influence of the streamer and dac in a system are not nearly as strong as the room, speakers, amp and preamp.