Do streamers make a difference?

Streamers are different from each other just as other components are. Earlier in my audiophile journey I tried streamers that came with a Yamaha preamplifier,  a NAD preamplifier,  and one that came wirh the Cambridge Azur preamplifier. I then purchased a McIntosh MA12000 integrated amp and experimented with a Bluesound Node, a Lumin, an Innuos Pulse and an Innuos Pulsar. Each streamer was a step up. I now have Accuphase components and there is a clear difference between the Innuos Pulse and Pulsar. The Pulsar takes streaming to an entirely different level and worth all the money spent.

And just when I thought the Pulsar was the endgame,  I replaced the factory cord with a custom Furutech cord and the improvement was immediate and next level once again.

Good Morning @tcutter ,

Ironically, one of the reasons I chose to get a separate streamer is to distance it from the computer running the server function. No data, just rationale.

I get that.  I keep all my computer things (except my Scion and Grimm) in my office. (Modem/ router  > Switch > Switch > Audio feeds , all with nice Linear power supplies).

But having Core reside in my Scion  (or Grimm), avoiding LAN connections here seems to work great for me.  Now I never  need to visit the office to check on my Core / Server.  More direct perhaps.  Quite a passion this is.

Anyone heard the $6k Lumin U2 streamer. I just looked at a photo of it, and I see that it has a fibre optic input. I was under the impression that it was only the $10k Lumin U2x that had the fibre input. I used to own the Lumin X1 and it was a great streamer, but just a so-so DAC. The U2 and U2x are only streamers.

Streamers are different from each other just as other components are.

I wish I had ears that could make this determination – I do not.

I have done extensive A/B comparisons – between amplifiers (I can usually detect relatively large audible differences between many amps), between  preamps (subtler for SS comparisons but tube preamps vary widely), between DACs (still quite detectable but sometimes vanishingly small differences, depending on the units). But streamer differences – almost nothing compared to the others – for me.

My inability to hear may be a prejudice based on my understanding of how these things work – which may be wrong.

As I understand it, of all the components in the signal chain, streamers have the weakest theoretical basis for audible differences. A streamer's job is to pass a bitstream intact to the DAC — and on a functioning network, that's exactly what it does, regardless of price. Unlike amplifiers, preamps, or DACs, it operates entirely outside the analog domain and adds no gain, no impedance interaction, and no signal processing.

The one technically coherent argument is jitter, but modern DACs with asynchronous inputs and onboard reclocking largely eliminate whatever jitter the streamer introduces before conversion even happens. So even that argument depends on a poorly designed DAC to have traction.

Contrast this with amplifiers, preamps, and DACs, where differences are not only audible but measurable and theoretically explicable — gain, distortion profiles, impedance interactions, reconstruction algorithms. There's a clear prior reason to expect variation before you even sit down to listen.

This makes streamer comparisons hard for me. If I bought an expensive streamer, my expectations would be high and there'd be ideal conditions for motivated perception. 

These are the prejudices I have which might be preventing me from hearing differences. Or, it could be my physiological hearing, which is getting worse as I age.

@hilde45 hey you have quite the setup and room.  In one of your photos I see you have a Bluesound Node.  Have you actually tried other streamers because the NODE is more of a lifestyle product. While the Node is a good entry level streamer and DAC it's limited. I tried a couple different NODES and compared them to Lumin and Innuos on McIntosh, Yamaha, Prima Luna, and Accuphase components and NODES don't sound nearly as good as other notable streamers, not even close.  So I'm curious as to which other streamers you tried with your system.