Why are so many people spending so much money to build “perfect” streaming system?

Oh boy, more preaching from the biblical, oh forgot, measurement pulpit, you know, the place where all truths known, The heretics believe in things like ghosts and their senses, best not to trust your senses, you really aren't experiencing the things you think you're experiencing. Looks like I need to get out my  measurement bot to tag along with me at all times and tell me the 'real' truth.

Wow this guy is off his meds. Slow week at ASR.

I stream through an Amazon Echo via voice control, or a $179 laptop into a $130 SMSL DAC

@jssmith understand and respect that you’re coming from a "bits are bits" perspective presumably from your software engineer background that you had mentioned. For the purpose of this thread, are the Echo, laptop and SMSL DAC your only experiences with streaming? Or have you experienced/owned other streamers?

@jssmith pronouncements are very similar to a former poster on this forum named "cindymint". Essentially listening to and judging what audio components actually  sound like is foolish, misleading and subjective rubbish. Measurements rule. Antithetical to my experiences, but oh well.

Charles