I would say no, there won't be a difference, digital is digital. I built a small Atom-based music server with 1tb of storage for $150, then built a coax out from the motherboard to my equipment - this also gives me complete control over the hardware, and (if I wanted to) I can use Foobar's DSPs...

Thank you for the suggestion, but I don't believe the Sparrow is what I'm looking for, especially considering the odd preamp out conditions. My headphone upgrade will come at a later date, I'm trying to get the best sound within the budget I have currently without buying upgrades piecemeal.

I posted previously about purchasing a combination of a Meier StageDAC and a Woo Audio 3, but sadly, budget constraints have bitten me in the rear once again. My budget of $1400 has now been slashed to $600 at the max, and I have started to look at alternatives. Ideally, I would like to maximize...

Thanks TheWuss, good to hear that it is a solid performer. I have heard about the DAC19, and read quite a few reviews, but I am quite excited about the fact that the Stagedac can be used as a preamp. I didn't mention this in the original post, but I also intend to use my DAC choice with a pair...

Alright, I figured that my potential choices in amplification might be a bit overkill for an HD595. I will do some research on the hifiman ef2, but are there any other 'cheaper' amps I should be looking at? Also, is there any point in pairing a Stagedac with HD595s, or will I just be throwing...

I have done some reading, and found that both of these products received good reviews, and had features that I like. My budget, unfortunately, is a bit smaller than I would have liked, so my max would be around $1200 for a DAC and an amplifier. Ideally, I would like to keep it under $1000, but I...