Moving up from a Node 2i

Right, the consensus is the Node 2i is the perfect $500 device. I had a basic Emotiva XDA-2 and had been focused on upgrading speakers and amps. Once that was done, I was in a dilemma into how much more would be needed to show notable performance over the Node. The answer seemed to be more like $1,500+. Wanting to stick to the $1,000 range I found a used Lumin D1. Wow, that is very much a sweet spot of performance value. 

I almost bought a Lumin D2. But I was afraid the on board DAC would not be the equal of my Pagoda.

Oz

I found a Bryston Pi for ~$600. Took a few weeks to get it up and running, had to get a new OS snail mailed from Bryston. Manic Moose interface is spartan compared to my Sonos. iPad Safari is particularly annoying.  Nice not to have another app to deal with.  I am comparing it to various digital sources now (Wyred for Sound mod’s Sonos, iPad streaming 16/44 radio). So far I really like it. The big knock for me is the Radio Paradise app that plays FLAC does not work and it only appears to stream Tidal and Qobuz. Prolly find another place to use the old Sonos zone player until Sonos kills it with a software update. Use my iPad to stream Radio Paradise FLAC. Use the Pi to stream Qobuz and play Higher Rez file purchases.

A little late to the party but thought I would mention that I went from a Node 2 to the Cambridge CXN v2 and found it to be a solid upgrade. The Node was always a little flaky but the CN has been rock solid. The onboard DAC performs well and the unit supports running things balanced which is a nice bonus.