WiFi Streaming Versus An Ethernet Cable Connection

@cagma7 I use EERO exactly the same way you do. If you can hardwire directly from the router, definitely give it a shot. 
Otherwise, get a good ethernet cable for EERO to streamer connection and you are good to go.

@x5owner1 

it’s more likely the poorly timed data coming out of the router. A switch will re-clock the data so the Bryston will have an easier time re-clocking it (again) before it sends it on to the internal DAC section.

a switch will not and cannot reclock anything. That is not what a switch does.

@goofyfoot

If you are leaning towards inserting a switch between your router(modem) and streamer, I would look into LHY SW-6 Ethernet which checks all the boxes. I ordered one last week to try it out in my 2nd system.

Hmmm….Hans Beekhuyzen seems to think there are clocks in switches.  And voltage regulation.  And he has been involved in digital audio for 40+ years.  And he uses audiophile switches in his systems.  Why, I wonder?  

https://youtu.be/gwTATKd69FQ?si=lsNGW_J7NSdhJQBz

Here’s my take on it…

Every active electrical device, be it a router, a switch or a copper to fiber optic to copper converter setup (2 FMC modules) will inject its own noise into the output.

If you’re looking into a switch, the main objective in designing one for audio would be to reduce, as much as possible, the power supply noise and its digital circuitry from polluting the output making a signal transfer to the output as clean as possible.
As to the fiber optic converter setup where you have two FMC units - one converting from copper to fiber optic one converting back to copper, on the so called “clean side” of the second unit where signal is fed thru the copper into the streamer, you once again introduce all the noise you had eliminated when you converted copper to FO. Even if you use linear power supplies on the modules…they are usually made with cheap components and without audio in mind. Insert a switch into that equation or on its own, and you get the same garbage thrown into the output ethernet cable. This wont matter for pure data transfer in an industrial/commercial setting but in audio it does as it makes your streamer and DAC work more to clean it all up.

I tried that FMC set up and it didn’t sound as good as the straight ethernet or ethernet cleaned up by a Network Acoustics Eno passive system.

I also tried a cheap switch and it made things worse once again.

All this adds nothing but clutter. So unless absolutely necessary, I wouldn’t use a switch or the FMC stuff. Use a good ethernet cable from router or mesh - that’s all you need.

Before spending money on all these tweaks, invest in better quality components. No switch or ethernet tweak will bridge the gap between a low/midfi component and a high end one. No matter how many of these tweaks you throw at it. You just can’t polish the turd.

Now…if you have a streamer that accepts fiber optic input, there’s your chance to get rid of noise and interference feeding the streamer.