Audiophile quality streamer/server-in-one without a DAC. Does this exist?

I am working in audio for almost 19 years of time. The knowledge in music and in how music sounds in real is a lot less than it was in the past.

When I speak to my clients and the things we hear from dealers and distributers is that digital audio is in many situations not the quality people hope to find or hear.

I sold my Meridian 800Daxv4 in 2012 (over 20.000 euro new) and I wanted to buy a networkplayer/streamer.

But....everything I auditioned had almost no diversity in sound. I a period of about 6 months I auditioned a lot. At the end there was not even one I wanted to buy. I thought, if this is the quality it offfers I prefer not to buy any streamer/networkplayer.

Now in 2017 it is not a lot better. Many shows we visit have demoes that all systems have no diversity in sound.

When the people who buy audio have no idea what diversity in sound is and what it does, they have no idea what is missing.

So What is missing?

The most important part to create emotion for all human beings is DIVERSITY. This is the layering in sound, what influences our emotion for the biggest part.

I wrote with people who develope and create dacs and streamers. They said; USB is not a great choice for audio. The facts proof that the level in diversity is very poor.

When people who work in audio have no idea what diversity is and does they can easily sell digital audio without diversity.

When you let people hear the difference between digital audio with a stunning level in diversity in sound and with almost no diversity in sound, I can garantee that no one will choose any digital source with a low level in diversity.

Music is all about emotion, most dacs/networkplayers are not able to reveal the emotion of the music. This is F. insane that it is even being sold. The emotion is only inside the music.

What audio needs is to show people how music works and sounds in real. And to show what diversity does to our emotion.

Bluesound is like Senseo coffee. But when you want the full emotion and taste you want and need an italian coffee. This will give you so much more flavor and intensity.

When I would sell Bluesound to my clients, it would be time to look for another job. I see it as my task to create and sell emotion. And give people a system what sounds like how music sounds in real.

And never sell any kind of digital audio without diversity. The facts proof that people will rather stop after a matter of time using their audio system.

People need quality and you need to give them emotion. Most digital systems are not able to reveal the emotion the music possesses.

We are a different company in audio. In the last 2,5 years I did a lot of research in many different aspects of audio.

In 2016 I started to focus on diversity in sound as well. Most digital sources have no emotion and lack of diversity in sound. This is a serious problem. It is not possible to reveal the emotion of the music when a source is not able to create diversity in sound.

In 2016 we visited an audio show. There were over 30 rooms with audio. All rooms proved that there was no diversity in sound. I spoke with many distributers and people who visited the show. Many said; all sysems had no emotion. There was not even one system what made real music.

It is very clear that there is a main reason why people react this way. Because they are so right. The thing is; nothing will be changed next time. They are not able to correct it. When you don’t understand music you never will understand audio either.

We always want to create the best quality for the money. The focus is on creating audio with a heart. So people can experience the emotion of the music.

Digital can be exceptional good these days. We modify streamers and powersupplies to create a more diverse sound. Everything we sell needs to outperform in sound and quality each other product in it's price level.

We are Lumin dealer and we modify Onkyo networkplayers. And we also modify SBooster powersupplies.

I spend a few hours on listening to new music each single week. I have spend about 10.000 euro on new music in the last 3,5 years of time. I have to admit I am addicted to music :). We are talking for about 98% in streams what I bought.

I use IPV so I can buy music all over the world. I listen to many different kinds of music; pop, rock, jazz, classical music, blues and also electronic music.

The great thing about now is that you can buy a lot of great music and also often at a high level in recording quality.

Even many great 16 bit 44.1 khz can sound very analogue like.

Diversity in sound has nothing to do with what kind of music you like. It depends more on the digital source you use and the rest of your audio system.

First you need to understand which parts music owns and how you can create these in your audio system.

The focus should be on how music sounds and is being formed in real. You need all the properties to be able to create an audio system what comes as close as possible to the ’real’ sound and stage as well.

I said it many many times overhere. Most audio systems sold in the world are still 2-dimensional. I can ask a very simple question to all people who own a 2-dimensional system?

Did you ever hear live music with a stage less than 1 metre like all 2-dimensional audio systems create?

Here you have the answer....

Compare an acoustic recording with just a voice and a guitar between a 2-dimensional system vs the same music with a 3-dimensional system.

Then you will learn and understand what 3-dimensional sound does with the voice and the guitar. It will make the voice and sound so much more intimate and intense during listening.

This is an important part to creat a higher level of emotion during listening.

DIVERSITY in sound also has a great influence on our emotion. Layering in sound influences your emotion. So when you use a digital source what is not able to create a lot of layers in sound, people always use the word; it is not musical, or it sounds dead and others say; there is no connection to the music.

In most situations this is caused by the lack of diversity in sound. Many people prefer a turntable. This is also based on the fact that the turntable can create a great level in diversity.

The good thing is that even in digital sources you can create a much better level in diversity these days. On the other hand, most digital sources are not good to create diversity.

We think and work in options which can be used. And we never will use any audio product what is not able to create a high level in diversity in sound or is not able to create a 3-dimensional stage.

Audio is all about choices, and you need to create an audio system being build on the right properties. Because when you listen to your system at home, you will listen to all the different properties of each single part in your audio system togheter including the acoustics.

And that is why you need to understand and become aware of the properties of each single part in your system at home. When you do not know these properties, you will not understand why the stage and sound is what you hear.

When you do understand how your system is being created by the different properties and the acoustisc, audio becomes a lot more easy to understand.

This makes is more easy to adapt so you can create a higher level in sound realism. When your system will own more different properties as music owns in real, the level in emotion and intensity during listening will increase.

This way audio can be used so much more effective.

Facts proof that many networkplayers/streamers with an inbuild dac can create a higher level in diversity. Facts also proof that USB is not a great choice for audio.

The level in diversity is very low by the use of USB. And no cable, powersupply or clocklink can solve this limitation.

Audio is all about shootout and the things you can hear. The emotion is inside the music. Each source was is better in revealing all the emotion of the music wil be prefered by each single person.

Audio is all about facts and what you can really hear and reveal. When you hear most separate dacs and streamers there is almost no diversity in sound.

We are not talking about personal preferences. No human being prefers a networkplayer or dac with less diversity. It is a fact that diversity in sound influences our emotion for the biggest part.

Most people believe that 0/1 are always the same and it does not matter how you connect it the sound will be the same. Audio is not based on what you think or what people say.

No it is based on what you really can hear and reveal. Because the sound you hear always tells the truth. The source who can reveal more layers and diversity in sound will be prefered by each single human being.

That is why people need to learn how instruments ans voices sounds in real. When you want to understand audio, first you need to understand music.

The facts show and proof that most dacs and sources does not sound as in real. The people who bought these products often have no idea what they are missing.

Diversity in sound will make the same music so much more intense and emotional.