Big source improvement using CD player

@roberttdid,

My Esoteric player is dated 2008.  Ralph at Spearit Sound told me it was the third best player he ever heard, the other two were made by DCS.  I really didn’t believe it at the time but this player sounds so right.  The music server is a Sony HAP-Z1ES which Stereophile rated an A+ and it received a very high rating from TAS.  The Esoteric player is better, not by that much but it is more enjoyable sound.  

Hey @puffbojie ,
Other than Spotify you never mentioned what the streaming config was?  setup can make a significant impact.  Streamer, DAC, Network config, interconnects etc.

Like a said before I have been streaming for years and been making little upgrades along the way each with SQ improvements.
I stream internet radio.  The station stream FLAC 16/44Khz.  One of my configs is to stream off a URL via  ROON.  The other is to go directly to my endpoint using an app built specifically for the radio station.  Significant difference in SQ for each implementation.

stereo5

I, too, enjoy a dedicated cd/sacd player compared to a music server/streamer. More musical to my ears.

Happy Listening!

I also prefer the sound of discs and do not like having to get into a menu on my phone to play music. But I do enjoy streaming at times 

stereo5,

"The music server is a Sony HAP-Z1ES which Stereophile rated an A+ and it received a very high rating from TAS.  The Esoteric player is better, not by that much but it is more enjoyable sound."

My observations, except that it is a Luxman SACD player, are similar. Even when using Luxman player as a DAC for SONY (with SSD). Differences are not that big, but I think they are consistent (no, I never did any kind of real test except  "try this, switch to that").

Thankfully, I take it only as an interesting observation and it is the end of my involvement. Convenience prevails and I virtually never play CDs. And, to emphasize, difference may really be down to my preference and not to "better than...".