I have an HRT Music Streamer II that I was able to pick up open-box for $120. Though it's not broken-in yet, I like what I hear so far: rich bass and mids, and clear upper treble. However, the soundstage could be better, frankly, and in comparison with my Marantz CDP this is where the HRT loses. Maybe that will change as the output capacitors burn in, however.
I'm in the market for another one of these devices - to sit between my iMac and any desktop solid-state amp I end up building this winter to power my older-vintage SR325's. (For my main tube rig, I've moved on to HD650's). The question is, would the $200 jump in price between the MS II and MS II+ be justified? My only beef with the MS II right now seems to be a compressed soundstage and lack of "air" around the instruments, and this is even through my DIY SET with 96/24 source material. I'd appreciate hearing from anybody who was listened to both, or even has compared models side-by-side. (FWIW, the HRT does have a bit better soundstage and a clearer sound than the analog outs of my SQB Touch, so perhaps I'm just nitpicking...)
I like the HRT's because they are easy to hide away and require one cable, and I don't have room in my new, tiny apartment for more audio gear. That's one reason why I'm not really looking at things like the DacMagic, Emotiva XDA-1, etc. right now. If the MS II+ also won't fit the bill, are there any similarly-sized devices to take into a CMOY that would put out 96/24?
Thanks in advance for any observations or suggestions.
Edited by auricolari - 12/5/11 at 9:41am
