Any audiophile use computer (MacBook) as your audio streaming source?

As for the dude saying adding a DDC is just adding another box so can’t possibly help and is just a way for a manufacturer to make more profit, well that’s just stupid and not even worthy of a response. Many, many people here have added a DDC and/or external

Comprehension of the technical nitty gritty has historically never been your strong suit, but, it's ok. What i said was that DDC function is better incorporated inside  the damn dac box. Carry on, string together your 15 boxes with wires and hit the play button. Enjoy the music (which is all that matters)...

I use a $150 Ubiquiti switch that has multiple RJ45 and 2 fibre optic input slots for my office system. This system is now essentially a reference level headphone system. Last time I looked my Ubiquiti switch was about $500 on Amazon. I think a lot of audiophiles started chasing it and the price went up.

I have a different brand $75 Fibre switch in my Livingroom that connect to a great 2-channel system. So, I have 2 Fibre network endpoints just before the DACs. I connect the Fibre and the USB input of my DACs together with the Sonore OpticalRendu. It is a very good sounding streamer though I think there is an improved new version from Sonore.

I posted many times of my listening tests with the opticalRendu, Lumin X1, and the Playback Designs STREAM-IF. I had all 3 in the house at the same time (owned them) and did a lot of comparisons. One clarification, the X1 did not use USB, I went directly into the Fibre input on the Lumin X1 DAC, the ultimate solution.

They all sound different and all were great in their own way. I kept the OpticalRendu because I traded my Lumin X1 for speakers, the Yamaha NS5000. I decided the Schitt Yggi+ OG DAC (at $3k) was incredible, and I did not need to spend $24k on the PBD Dream DAC for which I previously bought the STREAM-IF.

All 3 of these streaming solutions supported Fibre optic cables and I did not need to change anything upstream of the Fibre switch. I do not care what is upstream of my Fibre moat.

I use ROON for all my streaming.

https://www.amazon.com/Networking-Instant-1930-Smart-Managed-Ethernet/dp/B08BFBR5X3/ref=sxin_16_sbv_search_btf?content-id=amzn1.sym.5cde1a09-4942-4242-87c5-e66d2d3b6a3c%3Aamzn1.sym.5cde1a09-4942-4242-87c5-e66d2d3b6a3c&cv_ct_cx=ubiquiti+switch&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ccZtcG5f23MSDq_P3Ot7kg.kKB0JszMVSRUXVRDypzJPGrDGe5Yy8bszJzhQ32g2Kc&dib_tag=se&hvadid=153629231166&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9026816&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=6475068282701296984&hvtargid=kwd-49177637957&hydadcr=18005_9429560&keywords=ubiquiti+switch&pd_rd_i=B08BFBR5X3&pd_rd_r=4fe0f804-ee69-4f8e-a052-7d6d41d61e2e&pd_rd_w=BcHbJ&pd_rd_wg=C26Pp&pf_rd_p=5cde1a09-4942-4242-87c5-e66d2d3b6a3c&pf_rd_r=VF932E5FH2PWSRMKPMG6&qid=1728239304&sbo=RZvfv%2F%2FHxDF%2BO5021pAnSA%3D%3D&sr=1-1-5190daf0-67e3-427c-bea6-c72c1df98776

I went back and read the OP’s original post from 10-2, as well as their one follow-up post from 10-3. I don’t believe the responses have addressed the OP’s actual questions.

It seems the OP already owns an EVERSOLO DMP-A8 combination network streamer/DAC/preamplifier that you can read about here, and also a McIntosh C53 preamp, which also includes an onboard DA2 DAC. The OP is apparently using the DMP-A8 as a streamer only (presumably connected to their network via Ethernet LAN), and then to output a digital signal via coax to the C53, which is performing DAC and preamp duties.

The OP’s questions, as I understand them are:

Original question from 10-2: Should I purchase a MacBook to replace the DMP-A8 streamer. Answer: Probably not. Based on what I have read of the DMP-A8, it should be competent as a streamer and, since it can output a digital signal, you can use it as a streamer only, and bypass the DAC and preamp sections of the DMP-A8 in favor of the presumably superior (in your words) DAC and preamp sections of your McIntosh C53 DA2.

Second question from 10-3 post: Should I change the digital coax cable I am using to feed the C53 to a giga lan or usb cable? Answer: The C53 does not appear to have a LAN input, so no to that option. Regarding coax vs. USB, my experience is that with all but the most optimized DACs, I like the sound of the coax input better than USB. However, every situation is unique and it would be very easy for you to A/B compare your coax cable input into the C53 against using a USB input, since the C53 takes either. Therefore, try both and choose whichever connection sounds best to you.