Currently, it’s a 5italic, NATO5, Rega DAC , plus an Apple Airport sending various optical output streams of lossless CDs, Tidal, McIntosh music etc all from the iPad.
Any downsides to expect from using a Unitiqute as the DAC & streamer?
The DAC ought to be no worse than the Rega, the internet radio is a bonus… the power amp will be redundant ( although now it opens up multiroom for a nice vintage set of MA Mini monitors…also adding headphone capability is a big plus…
How reliable are these at this point is a concern.
If you plan to use a Unitiqute as a streamer and DAC you will also be using it as a preamp, as it has no line out, only a pre out. So I would say it’s debatable whether there is any benefit in keeping the Nait rather than just using the Unitiqute standalone. No harm in trying it though.
Being a rather old design, you should be aware of the limitations of the streamer in terms of supported services and be sure that it can meet your needs.
lol! Rather than being aware of the limitations of the unitiqute it might be better to point out that whilst it is older generation and won’t entertain Quoboz and the like it will be perfect for streaming Tidal and (with latest software) Spotify!
Personal experience with my Qute that I’m using since 10years.
Even though I was sitting my wifi router right beside the Qute, I was experiencing music drop which was highly frustrating.
A wire connection fixed the situation.
I had the Qute updated 24/192 wayback and it still fill my streaming needs for my NAS, Spotify and internet radio. (At some point I even had the kids game console and the cable TV service provider plugged in digitally into the Qute and I really appreciated it)
Only reason I’m thinking of an upgrade is the power since I moved the system in a room 3 time bigger. Otherwise, it’s a lot of fun.
As usual, if possible test for yourself and only thrust your ears!
Edit: Warning, one thing that Qute/Streaming and Naim app got me into is music control from my cell. Now with Spotify it goes even further with control on my watch when doing casual listening.
I won’t detail all the many situations where it’s SO convenient but if you use your system for more then dedicated music listening sessions, it’s a game changer.
I can no longer thinking of investing in any piece of hifi if it’s not app control compliant at the end.
Remote controls are to me Stone Age (even though I agree it might lead to better sound system sometimes)
For the good or the worst, there is no turning back for me, we are in 2022 after all!
