[Andyb90]

Hi Everyone,

I'm looking to get a new streamer to feed my Hugo 2 DAC and head amp.

I stream Tidal and Qobuz and currently use the mconnect player HD as a controlling app on my iPad. I stream up to 192 khz / 24 bit on Qobuz.

I don't have the option of using Ethernet so I need a streamer that has Wifi. It also needs to support DLNA/UPnP.

So far I have a very small short list
- Stack Audio Link II

Just one streamer so far.

I had to rule out the Innuos Zen Mini and Lumin u1 mini as neither have Wifi.

Can anyone recommend any other streamers?

Thanks,
Andy

 

[m-i-c-k-e-y]

Project Stream Box S2 Ultra

Auralic Aries G1

 

[Andyb90]

Thanks. I hadn’t looked at those 2 streamers.

Do you have any experience with the s2 ultra? I’ve seen a review on Amazon claiming WiFi is limited to 96khz with the s2.

 

[vmiguel]

On a budget but with really good results, a Raspberry Pi4 with Volumio.

Edit: you will need a My Volumio subscription to have Tidal and Qobuz

 

[kr11048]

I have 3 streamers including the Stack Audio Link II. It's a nice device, but I did have some configuration issues with it. If you've done any sort of Raspberry Pi (which I haven't) you won't have any problem and once I had it configured it worked like a champ. I also have the Ifi Zen Stream, which (unlike some other Head fi-ers) I had no issues with and very much enjoy using. The other one I've got which no one else here has mentioned is the Primare Prisma NP5. It's a nice streamer and very easy to set up. It's only serious drawback is no USB out to the dac. It's optical and coaxial only. I've only streamed using Roon, so I can't say how any of them do with DLNA, but overall I like the quality and performance of all 3. The Ifi is significantly less expensive though and if it had been available when I bought either of the other two, I probably would've opted for it.

 

[Andyb90]

I have 3 streamers including the Stack Audio Link II. It's a nice device, but I did have some configuration issues with it. If you've done any sort of Raspberry Pi (which I haven't) you won't have any problem and once I had it configured it worked like a champ. I also have the Ifi Zen Stream, which (unlike some other Head fi-ers) I had no issues with and very much enjoy using. The other one I've got which no one else here has mentioned is the Primare Prisma NP5. It's a nice streamer and very easy to set up. It's only serious drawback is no USB out to the dac. It's optical and coaxial only. I've only streamed using Roon, so I can't say how any of them do with DLNA, but overall I like the quality and performance of all 3. The Ifi is significantly less expensive though and if it had been available when I bought either of the other two, I probably would've opted for it.

Thanks. I had looked at the Ifi Zen Stream, but read about stability issues. So it’s good to see you’ve had a positive experience with it. Do you notice much difference in the sound quality between the 3 streamers?

 

[kr11048]

Thanks. I had looked at the Ifi Zen Stream, but read about stability issues. So it’s good to see you’ve had a positive experience with it. Do you notice much difference in the sound quality between the 3 streamers?

I've never had time to do a head to head comparison between them. They all sound quite good on their respective setups.

 

[surfgeorge]

Project Stream Box S2 Ultra

Auralic Aries G1

I bought the Project Stream Box S2 for my parents last year and the user interface is not very good IMO.
It’s a little unstable and Tidal implementation is not very good.

Personally I am using a Raspberry Pi 4 with Allo Digione Hat on the main stereo feeding a Chord 2Qute.
Software is Squeezebox with Logitech Media Server, which was quite easy to set up and works very well with iPeng App control from iPhone. The nice thing about an RPI streamer is that you can try various softwares and pick your favorite GUI.

I can’t say anything about Hires content and Qobuz integration though.

But for me the lesson learned is that the user interface is hugely important

 

[crmiller]

When I got started with streaming, I quickly fell into Roon and like it well enough to use that with its Tidal (initially) and Qobuz (recently) integration. My first attempt at a Roon endpoint with wifi was an Allo USB Signature with a DigiOne hat, Shanti power supply, and their Comfast USB wifi dongle. I could only get the wifi working with Ropieee, and eventually that broke (driver changes, but eventually this was fixed). I pretty much gave up on wifi being completely stable in that combo, but I was able to use Ethernet and it’s a great streamer used that way. It was my primary streamer for a year to 18 months. I went through some all-in-one units with built-in streamers and wifi and they worked OK, but I decided to try an iFi Zen Stream too. Mine has been pretty solid. I’ve used both Ethernet and wifi in various systems. Ethernet has been 100% solid. Wifi I’d give a 98%, but that little bit of instability could just be my network. From my experience I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it, but I have seen threads on various forums where people have had all kinds of problems. Maybe I got lucky? My luck is usually the other way ‘round.

 

[der luda]

The Project Streambox S2 itself is good, just the app ... unfortunately a SW disaster. Unfortunately for years without support, improvement. I can only advise against it.

 

[rkt31]

dear member please suggest a cheap dap with wifi and coax out. i want a streaming capable portable transport with coax out. some recommended shanling m1s but availability is poor.

 

[audiobomber]

Hi Everyone,

I'm looking to get a new streamer to feed my Hugo 2 DAC and head amp.

I stream Tidal and Qobuz and currently use the mconnect player HD as a controlling app on my iPad. I stream up to 192 khz / 24 bit on Qobuz.

I don't have the option of using Ethernet so I need a streamer that has Wifi. It also needs to support DLNA/UPnP.

So far I have a very small short list
- Stack Audio Link II

Just one streamer so far.

I had to rule out the Innuos Zen Mini and Lumin u1 mini as neither have Wifi.

Can anyone recommend any other streamers?

Thanks,
Andy

IME, it is best to have the wi-fi upstream from the streamer. In other words, use an extender or second router in Client mode (Client mode converts wi-fi to ethernet). That allows you to use your choice of streamer, and the sound quality will be better because the digitally noisy wi-fi radio won't be in the same box. For even better sound quality, get an extender with external power, which would allow you to upgrade the power supply