Problems with the IFI Zen Stream.. What's a better Alternative?

@soix @allanblissett The outside hardware was checked by a tech a few years ago at my summer location and some equipment was replaced. Again, given that I have had the same experience at two locations, I am not optimistic that this is the problem, . Nevertheless, on your suggestions I will spend the money and schedule a tech visit to be sure. It seems to be a rational move to possibly avoid spending another $800+

@yage Yes, I previously did a factory reset on the one in my summer location to no avail. (Since I use cable and not wi-fi, I’m not sure the reset matters, but I did it any way.) Yes I checked the switch by bypassing it and the problem persisted.

@dbb - Your problem may be Volumio, not the iFi hardware.  I had a miniDSP SHD streamer running the Volumio OS.  It didn't drop the signal, but it behaved in a quirky, intensely frustrating manner that I couldn't control.  The hardware was excellent, but after knocking my head against the wall for six months I sold the unit.

With a budget of $1000 why not the Cambridge or Blue sound.  You could get a Node and an LHY lps and stay within budget using your external DAC.  Best of luck.

@treepmeyer 

  I second this post.  I had the same problem with the MiniDSP SHD.  I had bought the Dirac,mini DSP combo, primarily to add Dirac to my system, and that has worked great.  However at the time I decided to get the Dirac/Streamer combo, because it was only an extra hundred bucks and figured what the heck, another streamer to play with.  I had the same issues with Volumio and never use it.

  I also have the CACXN 60 and had previously owned the Bluesound.  The CA is a real bargain and I bought a second unit for a second system 

These are some suggestions with sound comparable to Ifi below $1k. You might have watched some of these reviews already. Take a grain of salt as always but I found iiwi’s recommendation is quite reliable.

- Matrix mini-i 4 ($650) with optional remote RM5 ($50)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctJ7Yitq7JI

- EverSolo DMP A6 ($900) with optional remote BTR12 ($20)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ua4j36ZrQ6g

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LuCI6k0xcF0&t=673s

- Pi2Design Mercury V2 ($800)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ythleydJhk&t=627s (look under the hood for some tech details)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAaExQ2yNsM&t=833s

- Innuos Pulse Mini ($1250 new; if you could stretch the budget a bit OR $970 used https://tmraudio.com/components/music-servers-streamers/innuos-pulsemini-network-streamer-black/)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Osjv8MgmenA

@lanx0003 Thanks for yout post. It was very helpful in bringing me up to date on the latest in sub $1000 streamers. Since the Zen Streamer sounds so good, it  probably is a good idea to spend more. I’m considering also a used opticalrendu.

To bring all up to date, the cable tech visited today. He found no hardware issues. He suggested the drop offs may come from the Zen Stream switching wifi off and on causing hicups in the router. I did note that turning wifi off through the settings of the zen and saving it didn’t always hold.