Just to give you a little background on my current system, i have a Sugden Bijou Headmaster & AmpMaster connected to a pair of Neat SX1’s. I am using a raspberry pi 4 to stream via Qobuz with a AudioQuest Dragonfly Cobalt connected directly to the raspberry pi.
As good as the sound is, i am acutely aware that the DAC (DAC / Raspberry PI combo) is the weakest point in the system.
I am currently looking at upgrading just the DAC (have been looking at the Chord Qutest), but if someone can suggest a decent alternative to the DAC/Raspberry PI combo rather than just the DAC it would be much appreciated!
Budget is approximately £2k
ideally would like what ever the replacement is to contain a remote to be able to switch between the various ports, but this is not essential!
Have a look at the Wattson Audio Emerson ANALOG (DAC and Streamer), the Emerson DIGITAL (streaming bridge only) or, for an all in one solution, the Matrix Audio Element i2 (this has a nice display and a remote as well).
Happy hunting!
EDIT: if only a DAC, then check the Merason frérot - a very nice device.
So, there a number of options. The largest difference will be the DAC. So getting a really good DAC and adding it to your Pi is a really good option.
DACs to look at in that price range start with the Schiit Bifrost 2/64 and Yggdrasil. The Chord Mojo 2 is also great value. I currently have Mojo 2 and Bifrost 2/64 hooked up to an iFi Zen Stream. That’s about a cost of $1200. The RME DAC is meant to be amazing with lots of filter options. There are some Denafrips DACs that sit in that price range of you want R2R with NOS.
All in ones include the iFi Neo Stream, was very impressed with that, NAD M12 would also be good.
I know the Matrix Audio Element is highly thought of as well, though I’ve not heard that.
Consider the Topping D90SE or LE. I own the older D90MQA and am quite happy with it, fed via USB from my ROCK. It’s highly regarded and the price is well within your budget.
I am currently in my other home using a Benchmark DAC (also recommended but a bit more expensive) and set up a card similar to a RPi as a bridge connected also via USB. It works perfectly and the sound is indistinguishable from USB directly from the NUC.
Based on my experience I do not believe that your Raspberry Pi has any effect on sound quality or functionality assuming you are connected to a quality DAC with good USB 2 support.
I recently took the plunge on a Qutest. Previously I was using a Khadas Tone DAC. I don’t know what I expected, but I didn’t hear an amazing improvement in sound quality. Certainly not what you would expect since the Qutest costs about 20 times more than the Khadas. I suspect the Khadas is an amazing bargain. It does test quite well. Having said all that, I suspect your Dragonfly may be better than you think. Bottom line, find something you like.
just to update you all, i bought a Chord Qutest off Ebay (mint condition) and 40% less than when brand new. Because (i feel at least) i got quite a bargain, i also bought a MCRU Linear Power Supply at the same time (and still cheaper than buying the Chord at full-price).
