Reconfirming the known: DAC hierarchy

@facten i use a pc and when the audio is mastered right the noise floor is silent on my system that is how I know.

@ghdprentice 

+1 ….Bigtime

@muvluv 

what you believe is limited to your system , a fine and important distinction.

(1) Toddle down to your local bricks and mortar high-end audio store and personally audition a direct bake-off in a high-end system between a quality build high-end streamer and your PC suggestion ,

(2) Contemporaneously, ask yourself the question why audio presenters at the major audiofests use high-end streamers in their high-end systems in lieu of your suggested PC’,

Here’s an abbreviated summary of what most people experience as the differences that weren’t subtle.

- First, you can witness more clarity across the audioband with the high-end streamer, most noticeably through the midrange and highs.
An example: Cymbals sound cleaner, losing a touch of digital roughness and edge; voices not only popped more noticeably from the mix, but also had more fullness, presence, and detail. The voices  sound clearer, were noticeably more defined on the soundstage, with greater weight with a greater sense of presence and liquidity that are riveting to listen to.

-  The bass will be a bit tighter and “meatier,” but many may find the improvements in the lower ranges as not quite as big as in the mids and highs. Still, they were apparent. To repeat a phrase that other reviewers have used: There was more there.

 

- But the sound isn’t  just cleaner -- the musical backdrop seemed quieter, too, as if the noise floor had dropped. This results in some other improvements. One was that you can expect to hear deeper into recordings -- subtle details are easier to discern. In a nutshell, resolution was improved.

- soundstage  and imaging are markedly improved as well. With better clarity, increased resolution, and “blacker” backgrounds, images hang more starkly in space, the spaces between musicians on the stage are far easier to discern, and the width and depth of the stage were greater (provided the recording contained that information)

@akg_ca a lot of audio companies are full of scammers and thieves, they will do anything to push sales they even made up words and false measurements that don’t matter. Many places are going out of business if they were honest they would never have an issue. If people use a pc and not a streamer they will lose out on money for they do get kick backs and do not believe any sales person most of them will sell their own mother or whoever they want.

Hans Beekhuyzen speaks again in very brief manner herein starting at 4:02

https://youtu.be/-WDIho5AeK0
 

Here is a précis of his thinking and mechanics behind it in the 25=years  gone by since streaming first started on a PC back in thst Jurassic Age of capabilities ,

A minority cohort believe that a well‑built PC can equal or outperform many “high‑end” streamers if it’s engineered as a low‑noise, bit‑perfect transport.

But in real systems—especially high-end resolving ones - dedicated streamers win because they control electrical noise, timing stability, and OS‑level interference in ways a general‑purpose PC simply cannot match.

This is a chain that ruthlessly exposes upstream noise, timing, and tonal artifacts. So the “PC vs streamer” debate is not theoretical—it’s audible.

Changes in Sound 

Three variables matter most:and the differences are not subtle. 

A. Electrical noise (the big one)

A PC is a radio transmitter disguised as a computer with inferior and limiting characteristics :

• Switching power supplies
• GPU/CPU noise
• USB bus noise
• Ground contamination
• Fan vibration and EMI

And all of this rides along the USB or SPDIF line into your DAC.
.

High‑end streamers attack and improve on this with:

• Linear power supplies
• Low‑noise clocks
• Galvanic isolation
• Optimized OS with minimal background processes
• Shielded, vibration‑controlled chassis

This is why even “bit‑perfect” PC output doesn’t sound the same.

 

B. Clocking & jitter

PCs are not designed for real‑time audio.

Dedicated streamers use:

• Femto clocks
• Reclocking stages
• Asynchronous USB optimization
• Low‑phase‑noise oscillators

The output benefits massively from a stable, low‑jitter source.

 

C. Software stack

Windows/macOS = noisy, multitasking, unpredictable.

High‑end streamers run:

• Stripped‑down Linux
• Real‑time kernels
• Dedicated audio pipelines
• No background tasks

This reduces timing variance and noise injection.

 

PC as source typically sounds:

• Flatter soundstage
• Less micro‑detail
• Slight digital “glare”
• Less separation
• Bass less defined
• Harmonics less liquid

High‑end streamer sounds:

• Blacker background
• More holographic imaging
• More natural decay
• Better micro‑dynamics
• More organic tone
• Cleaner transients
•  

TAKEAWAY: High end components and high end speakers especially will expose the noise floor and other differences instantly.

 

 

one drunken senile uncle just has to ruin a perfectly pleasant holiday dinner gathering...