The DAC. If a DAC is overly sensitive to the quality of its (USB, SPDIF, Ethernet, …) feed, then it is not a good DAC.
That said, the better the feed, the better the DAC’s output, at least in theory.
I doubt that the USB output of a Nucleus is particularly good. But perhaps the USB interface of your DAC is very good at insulating the digital-to-analogue conversion stage from the potentially noisy USB stream.
This is something that you can easily check. Borrow a good reclocker/isolator (like the Mutec MC-3+ Smart Clock USB, the InnuOS Phoenix USB Reclocker or the Chord M-Scaler) and check whether this brings a perceivable improvement over a direct Nucleus-DAC USB connection.
You can tell how interested I am about the pre amp on the Matrix DAC, I forgot it had one!
You are correct, about a third of the DAC is committed to it’s Pre amp. But what do you do? Most DACs do have a Pre amp.
I never use headphones in the house, I have a decent NAC 282. I don’t need another unit with a pre amp. What’s the answer?
I have been looking for the answer to the same question, only on a simpler set up. I came across the Auralic Aries femto which seems to be a network bridge/streamer sans dac. Have you considered this?
Please checkout the Sonore offerings, I’m serious. I know for many on here they may seem a bit crude if going by just the website and casework, but I’ve had nothing but fantastic sound and good support from them, plus entirely made in the USA. I do think they have a European distributor so as to cut down on shipping fees. The Signature is a complete package, but you can also do the separates and choose a power supply of your liking. I have an opticalRendu Roon Lite model (for the V1), microRendu 1.4 model (which now solely runs Bridge in order to cast to my Unitiqute in the office), a pair of opticalModules, and the Sonore Power Supply for the oR. Other than the occasional network hiccup (usually my fault for too much monkeying around with cables) I haven’t had a single defect with any of it. Plus they’re small and pretty easy to hide away. Cables and isolation support will make a difference with them. And streaming only, no added cost for a non-needed preamp.
Different possibilities:
Lumin or Auralic transport ( without dac) into Chord dac ( Hugo or tt) or Ndac.
Auralic Vega streaming dac
Ndx2
Sonore Optical rendu into external dac
Innuos Zenith or Zen ( server transport) into external dac
DCS network bridge into Chord Hugo or tt
Linn DSM
Second hand DCS Bartok
All these combos between 5k and 8k.
As it has turned out in another thread, the Bartok only supports gapless playback in conjunction with the dCS Mosaic control point. This is for me definitely a deal breaker and something I have become aware of only the day before yesterday!
Great post. For only about £1300 these days in the UK, our Sonore opticalRendu is not shamed by over £11k of Chord M Scaler and DAVE. The oR is a superb Roon endpoint and streamer.
Perhaps it’s too cheap to be viewed as the top notch streamer that it is.
Not a problem, because it’s still a very good dac and costs less than 1k now. Some even upgraded their new Ndx2 with it. It says something. @marcusman for instance bought it recently, and enjoy it very much, for his Nd5xs2.
Anything where the music should be continuous with no breaks between some or all tracks: in my experience that is particularly a high proportion of opera and prog rock, and a quite common in classical, but also other things as well.
Yes I love my nDAC @DJM best purchase I’ve made recently(source first). As you’ve pointed out, the nDAC is a really good value right now. The only downside is I have a 2 box source solution. Nothing wrong with the ND5XS2 but when you add a nDAC it takes it to another level. XPSDR will be my next purchase but I’m in no rush. Bonus feature with the nDAC is all the extra inputs. I’m running an Oppo 105 digital out to my nDAC and it’s like I just bought a new CD player.
Well, you asked for advice and there is now lots of it, lol!
To answer your question some Chord DACs don’t have a preamp. Are they better than what you have, only listening to them will tell you that. Then there’s the Naim DACs/ streaming DACs but you seem to have discounted them.
If you are UK based then Audiostore provide some of the Sonore devices that are mentioned by @charlesphoto. I have one of their Roon servers and it is very good. They are very helpful too.
Hi Bluesfan
I noticed that a few times you mention that you preferred the DCS bridge to the the Auralic G2. Do you prefer the opticalRendu over the DCS bridge? I use an Mscaler/TT2, and eventually want to get another streamer to go between my Core and Mscaler/TT2. I have also thought about Antipodes, but have not heard any of them. I used to own a UQ2, 272,NDS, but moved them on.
Hi @NO-QUARTER,
I haven’t made that direct comparison and doing so would bring in a number of other variables.
The DCS bridge is designed to work very well in a wired Ethernet network. The OpticalRendu works with a fibre optic network input.
The DCS bridge has its own power supply whereas the OR uses an external smps or your own choice of linear power supply.
The DCS also has a better selection of outputs than the OR, which only has USB, when you might prefer SPDIF.
Hence a comparison depends on the upstream network components, power supplies and outputs that you choose to use.
All I can say is that both work really, really well in a top notch music streaming network.
I went with the OR in the end because a fibre optic network link provides absolute RFI isolation from the upstream network, other than via ground loops in the power supplies, something which matters with Chord DAVE.
If we had bought a DCS Rossini, we would very happily have stayed with wired Ethernet and used the Network Bridge that is built into the front end of the Rossini.
For value for money though, the OpticalRendu wins hands down.
. But apparently still a bargain. But lot of boxes…