Step up from Bluesound Vault 2, next move?

Uber

I did try an Auralic Aries in my system about a year ago and wound up paying a restocking fee to return it.  It sounded slightly different than the Vault into my DAC, but not better.  The bass was a little tighter, the treble less crisp, the overall presentation was (slightly) more laid back, overall I felt it was a tie.  I found the Auralic harder to operate and preferred the plug and play of the Vault2, although if I had spent more time with the Auralic perhaps I would have acclimated.  I also tried a Bryston BDP-2 and felt was a tie-slightly different, not necessarily better.
  So again, I urge you to audition in your own system.  We all hear things differently.  You may however, find that the Vault2 compares favorably.

+kahlenz

Heard the Node2 at Axpona 2 years ago as the front end in a Megabucks system with Magico speakers and Boulder amplification (can’t recall the DAC, which I think was actually the product on display, but I am sure that it cost at least 10K) and was similarly blown away.

I think what does matter the most with streamers is the App.  The quality of the user experience is IMO largely determined by the ease of access, especially large collections.  Bluesound OS is ok but hardly perfect.  I didn’t find the Auralic or Bryston apps to be improvements.  Since the OP now primarily listens to Tidal I guess one question would be whether the Tidal app is identical on all of the different streamers.

And this is why the Vault 2 is still here after nearly 2 years ...lol.
I truly have had no grounds to fault it but also at the same time realise it still is a budget item and if people make and sell streamers that cost a lot more then surely they would give me something more in sq?
And least that is the thought process.

David to define "best direction" in my case...
I guess it really just means better sq on the streaming front than the Vault is presenting. Yes the user interface and experience has to be at least the equal of the Bluos app as well.

My thoughts were some of the streamers combine a DAC and if that was the better way to go then it replaces two items with one item in my chain.

However again I have zero complaints about the Brooklyn, it is by far the best DAC I have had in my system so far.

Now I know there are a lot of people streaming their music today and was hoping for some users of higher end streamers to chime in and no that does not mean I do not appreciate and welcome all the comments I have had so far.

@uberwaltz ,
I was in a similar place a few years ago trying to figure out how to get the best digital source sound quality to my dac within a modest/medium budget. My mac mini running Audirvana+ just wasn't involving compared to my vinyl rig and I was missing out on enjoying many digital recordings I have that aren't available on vinyl.
After comparing Aurelic Aries, a couple of other servers and trying every trick I could find for the Mac I bought a Sonore microRendu, a linear power supply(important!) and a Synology NAS. The advantages fit my situation perfectly. The NAS goes in next room. Bluejean ethernet cable runs to the input of the mR(sized like a deck of cards) which sits directly behind the dac and connects via a tiny included USB connector. I went with a 4bay Synology and 4 x 3TB Western Digital Red drives that slide into the NAS. 12TB will last me quite a while! 
For control, the free Lumin app runs on my iPad, providing a great experience that equals the Aurelic, without bugs, but perhaps not quite at the level of the Aurender's Conductor. 
SQ improvement is obvious to me & all visitors. Most agree they haven't heard a better sounding digital source and I am only using a $1200 Schiit Gungnir Multibit as my dac. Your Brooklyn is indeed formidable, give it a chance to shine! 
This type of setup gives you room for growth to later change dac, get more storage or use new apps for control. The microRendu overcomes many of the challenges of digital by allowing for mechanical drives to be elsewhere, minimizing noise(RF and electrical) with a low power, single purpose approach, and running a small Linux operating system that avoids all the noisy processes that run on Mac & PC based solutions. It's a real giant killer at it's price point and supports a long term strategy making it a rare fair investment, something that doesn't come along frequently in digital! Please read Chris Connaker's 2part review for the best explanation, or some of these:
https://www.computeraudiophile.com/forums/topic/28381-sonore-microrendu-reviews/
Cheers,
Spencer