Thanks .. Have PM7004 as my integrated amp. Would ideally like to utilise that for music. Am not very familiar with Raspberry Pi / Allo Digione ecosystem.. Saw the Raspberry pi board is available at Amazon for ~Rs3.5K. I guess would need to buy casing etc and program it for it to stream music - or do we get some thing similar readymade and how would the quality compare to a good streamer
For CA CXN costs 2x MF Mx DAC..Assuming MF Mx DAC has better DAC vs CA (which I was told), may be cost effective if I could stream /play files to the DAC,
You are on the right track as the better approach is to get the best dac in your budget and then add streaming capabilities after all we are all into separates approach, for good.
MF MX dac support standard digital inputs like optical, digital and usb so you need some streamer that can get you one if these digital outs. But interesting aspect is only the UDB support DSD native playback. Even if you do not have any DSD for now does not mean you would not be tempted to test them in your system be it exclaiming at the end "no difference" in the worst scenario. So my suggestion go for streamer that accept USB output not that source cannot convert DSD to PCM but it's not generally recommended.
Now coming to streamers, if you prefer a dedicated streamer box nite that it is expected to come with following feature based options
1. A good power supply
2. USB implementation to guard from noises and jitters
3. Album art display on a screen
4. Screen based navigation control
5. Remote with play, pause, next
6. Optional built in dac and preamp
7. Multiple output mechanisms
8. Brand and looks
9. Upgradable firmware for future updates
10. Obvious network and connectivity like ethernet, WiFi, Bluetooth.
I have been using RPI based streamer for past 5-6 years and can tell you this
Except 7,8 and 5 (to some extent) you can ache the rest on DIY options. Even these can be achieved except 8 may be to an extent but requires more effort and alternative mechanism available.
In my mind for DIY in streamer, upgrades are much cheaper be it case / power supply / or softwares and hence preferred with ever changing market. Caution: never owned a branded streamer as of date, so cannot give you a A-B comparison.
So be it an RPI or any other single board computer there are multiple options. You can even start with your PC and then upgrade to a usb streamer and feel difference. A streamer is a hardware / software which is not a general purpose device rather dedicated and optimised for streaming. There is on Allo usbbridge on sales on hfv now, btw
Look at Allo USB bridge that is clubbed with a single board computer called sparky and comes everything pre-installed, just ready out of the box. You don't need to do anything else than connect to its webui and start streaming. I even recommend you do this from PC upgrade so you understand what improvement it brings on.
