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Advice please.... streaming?

D

delab

pfm Member
Finding a relatively small budget to 'up-grade' my SuperUniti I've recently bought an Avondale pre and power amp. I'm now looking at a replacement for the streaming end.

I've always been a bit of a heathen when it comes to streaming so found it easy to settle on the SuperUniti as it's a one box solution. My initial thought was to get an NDX but also considering options elsewhere. I understand I need a DAC and streamer but beyond that I'm a little lost when it comes to SQ.

The sale of SuperUniti, currently advertised for £1100, will fund the purchase. I'd love to hear thoughts and advice please?
 
have you seen the Wiim Pro? Works great. $150 USD over here. You could stream directly out of it as it has a built-in DAC or you could add an external DAC whenever you want.
 
The Cambridge CXN is a fine piece of kit - an all new version has just dropped

www.cambridgeaudio.com

Cambridge Audio CXN100 Network Player

Stunning Sound Quality - hear every detail from your digital musicESS ES9028Q2M SABRE32 Reference DAC - for stunning digital/analogue conversion StreamMagic Gen4 module - for full streaming capabilities, incl. MQASpotify Connect, TIDAL Connect, Qobuz & Deezer built-in - for the best possible...
www.cambridgeaudio.com www.cambridgeaudio.com
 
At my house various streamers have all sounded exactly the same, when used into the same modern external DAC.
So, I would go Wiim Pro into a decent Topping or SMSL, or Loxjie D40 pro dac (if you order from Amazon they are simple to return if you don't like them) . Done for half of your budget and crystal clear sound.
 
delab said:
The sale of SuperUniti, currently advertised for £1100, will fund the purchase.
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I have seen old NDX cheaper.
No idea if they are supported or fade display.?

The streaming box market is moving rocket fast.
This months wonder is soon left behind.
Hence I'd not put out big money, it seems as Bluesound, Ifi, or Wiim are the bargains of today.
A separate DAC doesn't need to be expensive, I have a Rega Dac on my Ifi streamer and it was a huge upgrade at €300 s/h.
 
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hifinutt said:
Bluesound node superb too
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I have a Bluesound Node 2 and it performs really well.

I have now had it for 7 years and in that time it has been very stable apart from a 3 month period when I struggled to see it on my phone (I think it was network problems in the software).

There are also a number of "upgrade" paths you can follow with it: change to a better external DAC, add one of the power boards and a linear power supply, upgrade the linear power supply.
 
I'm a very happy user of the Eversolo A6. The streamer section is excellent, the dac is fine but can be bettered with a separate dac costing £600+.
The new Eversolo A8 has a much better dac and is also a pre amp by all accounts although I've never heard one. Steve Huff on YT was very impressed.
 
JezmondTutu said:
^^* which I have an it’s really good.

However, the Wiim has the added benefit of PEQ and is cheaper.
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I recently bought a RME ADI-2 DAC and I can now appreciate just how much PEQ can change the final output.

However, if I put a Wiim into my main system I am sure that I would just end up fiddling with the PEQ all of the time rather than listening to the music!
 
Adam D said:
I recently bought a RME ADI-2 DAC and I can now appreciate just how much PEQ can change the final output.

However, if I put a Wiim into my main system I am sure that I would just end up fiddling with the PEQ all of the time rather than listening to the music!
Click to expand...

lol that is a distinct possibility!

I find it disappointing that my £89 Wiim Mini has PEQ and my Node2i just has bass and treble controls though.
 
I would suggest not to split source and dac in such case and go for Cambridge cxn or Naim nd5 xs2 (Hugo2/2go also an option)
 
Thank you for your thoughts, really useful. Would I be right ih thinking if I were to have a separate DAC and streamer, rather than something like the Wiim Pro, that a larger part of the budget should be spent on the DAC rather than the streamer?
 
delab said:
Thank you for your thoughts, really useful. Would I be right ih thinking if I were to have a separate DAC and streamer, rather than something like the Wiim Pro, that a larger part of the budget should be spent on the DAC rather than the streamer?
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Normally, yes.
 
A good example is the Eversolo A6 which is a bit compromised by the dac section. Actually, even whathifi takes a mark off for sound quality - but they like the style!

"...the Rival streamers may sound more musical, but they could learn a thing or two from Eversolo’s excellent interface and app that puts user-friendliness front and centre."

I've not heard the wiim but it's said to be better into an external dac too.
 
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