why expensive streamers

Well, there it is. Again. Everyone should buy the Topping because it measures perfectly, and therefore nothing else will sound better. We are all such fools. I feel so ripped off. Guess I’ll sell all my expensive streamer and DAC gear and buy something more practical, like carbon fiber wheels for my car.

Oh, and don’t forget to like and subscribe the above video, because you know, this digital expert who has never designed any digital gear in his short life said so.

Let me guess, he is very popular in places where people can't think for themselves, like ASR.

@mclinnguy 

my main point in this whole thread has been that it is very common for many of us to cite “lower noise” to explain differences in sound that we can’t otherwise explain.  but there’s this weird cognitive dissonance among many when confronted with actual measurements of noise; they cite marketing materials promising “decreased jitter and noise” and their experience of improved sound, rather than accepting actual evidence and then trying to figure out more plausible explanations for what they’re hearing.

by way of example, on another thread a while back, the op was insisting that a new streamer’s noise level had to explain the improvement in sound he was experiencing.  when pushed to reveal what his actual A/B experience was, it turned out he preferred a non-oversampling algorithm that deferred to the native sample rate of his new set-up vs. the always oversampled algorithm of his old setup.  in other words, he was definitely hearing a difference, he just hadn’t done the right analysis to figure out why.

Audiophiles with disposable income can chase after the ultimate gear, seeking the last-mile's diminishing returns. We all know that a $500 streamer doesn't provide twice the sound quality (SQ) of a $250 device, nor does a $1000 streamer sound twice as good as a $500 one, or a $2000 streamer twice as good as a $1000 one, and so on. However, that 5%-10% improvement at each level justifies the craving for many enthusiasts. These incremental improvements are considered crucial for their systems, which are capable of revealing the subtle differences in those upgrades.

Yes, audiophiles pursue the best possible sound they can possibly achieve given their income level (pretty much the definition of an audiophile), and relish it.  Enthusiasts pursue cost effective sound quality and relish that.

Lumin x1 streamer/dac is awesome.  I had a separate dac but I found integrating it with a streamer at least in this component was a great idea.  It also has an optical connection.  And a separate power supply which I think is really nice to have.

You can buy a separate streamer but then you gotta spend a lot of time deciding which dac and there are so many choices and so many interconnect issues it's an incredible pain in the ass.  So I would check out the Lumin x1 to avoid all the annoying issues related to this area. I am a big proponent of separates otherwise.