New streamer? N150 vs U2

@txp1 I looked at the Cary as well, and in the review I posted, Steve Huff mentions them positively, but he ends up buying the RS150B review unit . What sold me  (I had to take a leap of faith since no Audio dealers near me had a RS150B to test when I bought it) was the display (14.2 Inches) and the added functionality like Internet radio, EARC, and silly as it may be, I like the multiple volt meter options for the screen. Good luck whatever route you go. My next leap is to go AES out from the Rose to an Ayon Kronos SignatureTube Dac.

I have used the streamer with both my Michi X5, and my primary system of a Mark Levinson 523 Pre and 534 Power. it sounded great on both.

@txp1 exactly! I did the same thing plus added fiber optic, and it sounds amazing! Why would I want to upgrade? Try spending another $100 to add fiber and you’ll answer your own question. Good luck!

@txp1 ,

If your DAC doesn't make you happy, then nothing upstream will make it better.

I have no experience with the Chord Qutest, but can recommend DAC's by Ayre.

The QB-9 Twenty and QX-5 Twenty really sound great, IMHO. The former, used, is probably in the Qutest price range.

First, I started with Bluesound Node-very nice for the money, but it sometimes got messed up with upgrades-And Bluesound tech is rather slow-albeit determined to get things fixed. 

Then, I owned Aurennder for a short while and gave it up when I learned I couldn't network with it (run two systems together). The Aurennder app is nice, but you only get to use Qobuz and Tidal for services. As you are coming from Bluesound, I think you will find it a bit limiting, I know I did.

Afterwhich, I moved Innous and really like it. I also got Roon instead of the Innuos app. 

I don't know why so many hate it, as I find it to be unbelievably configurable, as well as easy to use.

B

@txp1

I am sure you are astute enough to decipher who actually here have tried and compare Node with other high quality streamers. Those who have not are clearly in the camp, “why would I want to upgrade”. And those who have, heard definite improvement over Node. BS OS app is very versatile in terms of streaming options with a good (not the best) interface, very similar to SONOS app. All others, Innuous - Sense, Aurender - Conductor and ROON is limited to 2-3 streaming client cause their focus is best possible integration and user experience. I have been using Conductor app over 10 years now and it is one of the best app, in terms of user experience, sound quality and stability. And lastly, once you hear Qobuz high resolution files, you may find MQA unlistenable afterwards. 

As I said in my first post, easy way to settle this quandary is to pick a player from Lumin, Aurender or Innuos lineup and listen in your system.