[Csericks]

Has anyone reading this message compared the HRT Music Streamer with the Nuforce udac. They are the same price, how do they sound?

 

[Csericks]

bump

Can anyone comment? Has anyone out there heard both?

 

[Csericks]

Anyone?

 

[AmanGeorge]

I had a Music Streamer+, currently own a uDAC, heard the entire new Music Streamer lineup at CES, and currently have a Music Streamer Pro that I can't use yet (still waiting for the dealer to ship me unbalanced mini-XLR adapters). I'm optimistic about the MS Pro based on what I heard at CES, but if I had to choose between the Music Streamer+ I had and the uDAC, based on memory, I think it would be very close and the uDAC might get the nod from me (which suggests that the uDAC should probably be taken over a standard Music Streamer). I thought the plus version I had was very musical, but lacked a little bit of transparency, lacked some extension both at the bottom and the top, and was missing real bass impact. In the uDAC, these flaws are not as glaring at all (especially on the bass side, which is excellent). It really is an astoundingly good DAC for the price. I'd say buy without remorse.

 

[Csericks]

Thanks for the reply. Did you use the udac to feed your amp or to power your 'phones by itself?

 

[AustinHorn]

Hey, I currently have both the Music Streamer+($299) & the udac ($99) & between those 2 it is very close. I heard the regular Music Streamer when I bought the + & it was not as good as it's big brother so given that I'd recommend the udac over it in a heartbeat, given that they cost the same. I use the udac primarily to feed my desktop amps on my laptop (LDV & Doge 6210II) although it is ok as an amp too with the right headphones. IMHO, I don't see the udac as clearly better than the MS+, but given the price difference I'd recommend u go for the udac, especially since it can serve as a headphone amp too, in a pinch. To tell you how good both dacs are, again imho, I've moved my Benchmark dac1 into my stereo setup rather than feeding my amps from my laptop 'cause I do my really serious listening over there. Still I'm happy with either the MS+ or udac feeding my amps for what listening I do on my pc. I honestly think the udac is way, way, underpriced for what you get. Hope that helps.

 

[AmanGeorge]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Csericks /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks for the reply. Did you use the udac to feed your amp or to power your 'phones by itself?

I've done both. I've used it to feed my 'stats and my dynamic rig through their respective amps, and I've used it on its own with my Klipsch Image X10 at my desk. All the rigs sound terrific.

 

[AmanGeorge]

One quick addition - my impressions of the MS+ were based on the older version. At CES, HRT debuted a whole new line from top to bottom - Music Streamer 2, Music Streamer + 2, and Music Streamer Pro, with the big difference being that the whole line was I believe now asynchronous USB. So the newer generation might be a step up relative to what I have experienced to date (can't wait to take a listen to this MS Pro!)