Streamer suggestions with both wireless and wired connections

It’s true price does not equal performance, but better parts and additional R&D increase costs that must be passed on to the customer. Moving up a brand’s product line, like Aurender, one would expect better performance. Whether the increased performance is worth the price is a matter of a subjective opinion.

@niodari

I understand. You cannot randomly choose equipment at a price point and expect to realize this relationship. It must be carefully chosen to be the best at the price level and to be purpose built to your sound quality values… like highly detailed, or musical… warm… etc.

I do not come to this opinion by comparing two or three auditions and purchases but from hundreds over fifty years of dedicated pursuit. In general, if you do good solid research… you get performance at the level of your investment. Each 2x in investment gives you a “wow… I can’t believe how much better that sounds!”

Ghdprentice is one of a handful of people here that I almost always agree with regarding an upgrade path.  I use his formula or rational, if it does not cost 2 to 3 times more that what you are replace, it's probably not an upgrade.  In this hobby there is nothing worse, or a greater waste of money than a lateral move.  Happens all the time in this hobby 

It also has a lot to do with your existing components.   Can they fully exploit the new streamer ?   Is the new component a good fit ?  Does other gear need upgrading too?   Only you can decide if pulling the trigger on something is worth the money.  

I have a Bluesound Vault 2i....  a great machine that has served me well.   In my search for it's replacement I got a deal on an Aurender that I could not refuse.    I did a cash and trade deal to be able to afford a N200 but it was well worth it.  I still use the Vault , it still sounds good and for the price it's hard to beat but it's no Aurender.   It is perfect for my 2nd system ,  better suited with that level of components.  

I stream 80% lately so for me it was worth while. 

There are a ton of good streamers out there.  They are not created equal though  Aurender was one of if not the first company to build dedicated streamers.    Build quality is over the top , they sound great and have an excellent interface.   Their support is excellent 

Personally I would avoid a wireless streamer or at least choose one that is wired ether/ wifi

There are simple exceptions from the rule "the more expensive, the better". 

Some time ago I bough a Chinese  clone of a very expensive Swiss amp. The clone is claimed to perform 99% as the original one and it costed about 15 times less than the cheapest amp I had before. On the one hand, it is a clone of an amp which costs about five times more than the most expensive of my amps. On the other hand, it is 15 times cheaper than the least expensive amp I had. How the Chinese amp sounds? Excellent, better than some of my expensive amps, the sound is open, extended highs, deep lows  3D soundstage. And it also looks beautiful. How cheap or expensive parts it has inside? According to the info I have, the parts are not cheap, however the amp is cheap. Does Aurender use extra super expensive parts to charge so much for their streamers, or does it have an exceptional design/patent that makes their streamers so expensive? 

Some time ago I bough a Chinese  clone of a very expensive Swiss amp. The clone is claimed to perform 99% as the original one and it costed about 15 times less than the cheapest amp I had before…According to the info I have, the parts are not cheap, however the amp is cheap. Does Aurender use extra super expensive parts to charge so much for their streamers, or does it have an exceptional design/patent that makes their streamers so expensive?

Well, good for you.  How can you confirm the internal parts aren’t cheap crap and will hold up over time?  You’re just gonna trust the word of some Chinese knockoff product company?  If something goes wrong how will you get the amp serviced?  Aurender has an excellent reputation and makes some of the best-performing streamers extant, which speaks for itself.  I suppose you can maybe try to buy a cheap clone of an Aurender as well, but good luck with that and with your cheap Swiss-clone amp.  You roll the dice and you take your chances.  To each his own.