I still use my A17 for some tracks, with heavy sound processing, its soothing and satisfying but it can’t beat the genuine quality of a high end dap. Hilariously, I like karaoke mode in it when used mildly and it delivers great results for handful of songs. It all comes down to how thin or thick of a digital blanket (Sony sound signature) you prefer on the original audio, but agreed that high end daps sound natural without any digital processing. Sony gives all the bells and whistles with all their daps so that most of the music listeners find their peace. But unfortunately, tweaking a mediocre dap 100 times won’t yield a premium result.
Feeding raw hi-res files from usb to a decent Sony receiver will make those premium tower speakers sing for their money, no sub needed, no walkman needed here and the entire music team would be performing in our large room, instead of our head. Sometimes head gears just don't cut it in all cases, you need a good sound studio/listening room, a real one to feel the music. And yes DSEE sounds good on receivers too, but not for all music. Sony slaps that proprietary technology in all their products, but its application and appreciation is highly subjective. We all have good ears, thats why we are here but we may prefer different sound signatures.
