Quality Streamer under $1k

Anyone have advice for a streamer they like for tidal and such?

My chrome cast and Sonos sound terrible compared to my CD players but I’m having trouble finding decent reviews that utilize external DACs for a lot of the popular models.

I feel like most of what I’m paying for in a lot of these is the internal dac, which I don’t need, so I’m curious as to how the streamer itself sounds.

Will something like the Marantz or Cambridge player give my sound a boost with an external dac or should I look into something like an Auralic? What about a Mac mini?

 

I have found the CXN (MK1) excellent, but I've only used it in preamp mode with its analogue outputs.

 

Did you setup your Chromecast for full dynamic range?

 

I've got a Cambridge Stream Magic 6. Few years old now. This goes into a Qutest DAC. I also sometimes connect my macpro direct into the DAC via USB. I stream Tidal in both cases. Sounds the same (great) using both methods. If you are using an external DAC then the streamer is just providing the raw digital data to the DAC and the DAC will have the major contribution to the ultimate sound. That's my understanding anyway. I'm sure someone will tell me to stop talking rubbish.

 

Any interest in easy DIY? You can assemble a Raspberry Pi 3, Allo DigiOne card, Allo Aluminum case, Volumio (software), and iFi iPower for about $250 plus the cost of an SD card to hold the operating system. That is for Ethernet; for WiFi, add about $25 for the suitable dongle.

The combination will provide very good SPDIF coax output. To my ears, it gives the Auralic Aries G1 a run for its money, though the G1 is a little smoother in the high treble. But IMO the DIY streamer is very good indeed.

 

I completely agree, its the best value for the money. The only drawback its a DIY so it not as physically appealing.

 

Is there a video on that?

 

I dont think there are any direct tutorials, but its quite simple. Place the digiOne HAT on the raspeberry pi board and flash a microSD with volumio and you're good to go. There might be videos on how to flash Volumio on to a microSD card (which is probably the hardest thing to do), putting the digiOne HAT on the raspberry pi is as easy as lego.

 

Allo can also sell you a pre-built unit:
https://www.allo.com/sparky/index-plug-and-play.html

 

I think the Marantz NA6006 is a fantastic value. I've been using one lately running in to either a Bryston BDA-3 or PS Audio Stellar DAC / Direct Stream DAC and it's really quite good.
Or if you can bump your budget just a tad, the Bel Canto e.One Stream is fantastic.

 

This is a good option but I think you still need to install Volumio to the microSD

 

You might like the Marantz, and you absolutely would not need an additional DAC, as the model NA-6006 offers the Sabre ESS9016 DAC chip, all you will ever need. Here are a few files it can handle, FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF, DSD (Big One), MP3, WMA, AAC, PCM. You can use remote control, or use a cool phone app called HEOS to control the NA6006, turn it off, everything.

 

That sounds like a great value if it really stacks up to the Aries. Correct me if I’m wrong but I think I saw you can setup an i2s output on these as well?

 

Thanks, that’s great to hear because I’m running a BDA-1 and might upgrade to a DirectStream down the line. Glad to hear some testimony on similar equipment!

 

So the question remains, did you set the Chromecast for full dynamic range in the Google Home settings menu? This makes a drastic difference in sound quality. The CCA outputs bit-perfect data through its toslink output, unless one is streaming through the Chrome web browser (does anyone really do this?), so unless you want full unfolding of Tidal's Masters albums, there's no reason to go with a more expensive streamer.

 

I really like my Cambridge CXN using the internal DAC. If I was upgrading to an external DAC I would probably want a Lumin U1 Mini for the streamer, but that's double your budget.

If you can get your hands on an Auralic Aries Mini that is probably the best solution to use as a streaming transport under $1000.

 

Of course beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I happen to think the Allo aluminum case is professional looking -- neat and presentable -- though not gorgeous.

When time came to assemble mine, I found some stuff on YouTube, and I needed it to figure out how it all fits together. Once I found that, it was about 20-30 minutes of easy work. And, as @Apesbrain pointed out, you can get it pre-assembled by Allo, though you still will need to install Volumio yourself. IMO, that is easy but not trivial, and there are instructions online to follow.

Now, if you remember, I found the Aries G1 a little smoother in the highest frequencies, and the Aries G1 has a lot of other features (display, built-in server, EQ, resampling). But I do think the Allo is not easy to tell from the Aries G1 without concentrated listening. I was quite surprised at how very good it is.

I don't think there is I2S output, but I could be wrong. It uses I2S internally between the Pi and the addon (HAT) board.

 

Yea full dynamic range enabled, high quality cable, streaming direct from the app. Compared to any CD player I’ve used with the same dac there’s no comparison.

I’m guessing the CCA just has too much jitter for my dac to handle, or too much noise from the usb power supply.

 

@CodecCowboy : I think you would find the RPi-based streamer I suggested far superior to a Chromecast device.

Here's a photo, with a pen for scale. On the left is the WiFi dongle, plugged into a USB port, and in the back are the power connector and the SPDIF cable (with orange sleeve) from BJC.

 

The Bluesound Node is a great deal at $499. No bling but it sound good and is easy to setup and use.

 

+1 for the BlueSound Node. I have an original model and the most recent, the Node 2i. The 2i is said to sound better, but I have the first in a headphone system, the second in a 2-channel rig, and I haven't been bothered to compare. Both work great for me and seem to get a good bit of the digital "glare" or jumpiness out. The ergonomics on the 2i are way better, that's for sure.

I did plenty of research on streamers and settled on the BlueSound stuff as generally well-regarded, reasonably priced, and... with a good app and good support. No way to tell, of course, but since the BlueSound stuff is fairly mainstream, I'm banking on its app and other software to be around, say, 10 years from now. And I find the app pretty solid, well-designed (though the aut0-fill option is slightly annoying), and more or less fuss free.

I'm also curious about the Volumio Primo. I like that you can use its HDMI out to hook up a touchscreen, which would make for a nice all-in-one streaming solution beside the easy chair, etc. That said, controlling the BlueSound from a phone or a tablet works just great, so I'll likely stay in that ecosystem.

 

Also bear in mind - I use Chromecast audio in to the same DAC as I play CDs with (same unit) and even with ripped lossless files it's not up to CD standard. Nor was Qobuz or Tidal high res. Nor were these through the laptop straight in the DAC also. I haven't tried a 'proper' streamer though, if that would make a difference.

Only saying that as I think/find straight CD playing sets a higher digital benchmark in itself than can sometimes be appreciated.

 

This, I have the Raspberry Pi 3 with the Allo Boss DAC in the solid Allo aluminium case for the Boss DAC. The Boss DAC is much better than the DAC you'd get in a CCA or Sonos.
One can have the Allo DigiOne instead of a DAC hat to output to an external DAC via SPDIF or BNC making the Pi a transport rather than a DAP. You could alternatively forgo any hat boards and output to an external DAC via USB, the choice is yours as is the operating system. I run Volumio on my Pi3 DAP.

The Raspberry Pi's a solid computer that is inexpensive and does a better job in a listening room than a x86 PC as it is silent, low power, with no moving parts and has more than enough power for audio playback and processing.
My Pi-based DAP probably cost around £180 in total taking into account the computer itself, the Allo Boss DAC, Allo Boss case, sd card, power brick and interconnect and it sounds great.

 

I agree with this. Computer/streaming-based digital is not quite on-par with CD playback in most cases. YMMV of course.

 

OP was specifically asking for a transport only unit. No internal DAC.

I think the Bluesound would be a stronger competitor in the higher end market if they put out a version with a USB out.

But when it comes to streaming transports, Raspberry Pi, Lumin, and Auralic seem to consistently rise to the top. Pi for the low cost DIY crowd, and Lumin/Auralic for the higher end crowd. Most other streamers are "players" with built in DACs.