On the contrary,my weakest link is anything having to do with audio. I've made any number of ill-advised purchases over the years, detrimental to friendships, bank accounts, and most importantly, my ears, so take everything I say with the usual caveats.
Because of my sensitivity issues to brightness, I've auditioned about a 10-12 DACS in the last year, so I don't recommend this painful chore for anyone. But I do think you are on the right track in trying to assess where your system is making the digital conversion when you switch between your preferred components. Since I know nothing about A/V systems, I'm wondering whether you might have a couple different options in your existing setup(s) to convert the digital signal without even buying any new cables, etc. I know there's a DAC chip in your Arcam, and I know that there's a DAC chip in your Oppo, though don't think there's one in your pre-amp. So are you using both the MF pre-amp and the Arcam for switching duties at the same time?
Because of my sensitivity issues to brightness, I've auditioned about a 10-12 DACS in the last year, so I don't recommend this painful chore for anyone. But I do think you are on the right track in trying to assess where your system is making the digital conversion when you switch between your preferred components. Since I know nothing about A/V systems, I'm wondering whether you might have a couple different options in your existing setup(s) to convert the digital signal without even buying any new cables, etc. I know there's a DAC chip in your Arcam, and I know that there's a DAC chip in your Oppo, though don't think there's one in your pre-amp. So are you using both the MF pre-amp and the Arcam for switching duties at the same time?