Which streamer to buy?
I think the days of cdp are gone. I will buy a streamer, but which one? I don't like a bright sound with shrill highs for my music (much older rock, symfonic metal, pop).
I like a "hifi" solution. Also:
NAD C446
Marantz NA 7004
Pioneer N30/N50
Cambridge
Etc.
I think the NAD is too expensive.
My system: NAD C355, NAD C545, MA RX 6
+1 on the SB Touch. However you will need either a PC or beefy NAS to host the files and server.
Hi,
Am looking at similar items and another consideration maybe the Yamaha NP-S2000 which is available with a large discount so is less than half original price from ssav.
There is a review in the media server section which can give more information if interested.
Linn Sneaky could also be of interest and superfi offering very competitive price
Good luck
+1 ... but it is a fairly hefty beast and won't fit on to most hifi racks ... it is nearly 450mm deep.
The Yamaha's lovely looking but is a bit short on DAC funcitonality. I like the Stream Magic 6 in this regard very much (though obv the NP30 doesn't do it).
Cambridge 
However...the Pioneer N50 looks very attractive and it'll be interesting to see how it sounds when it arrives (if it hasn't already), but I think you should also add a Squeezebox Touch to your list, which is extremely cheap and higher-fi than you might think, straight out of the box.
Worth checking out Marantz NA7004. It's a very impressive piece of kit for the money.
Computer and a DAC?
My Mac Mini / Pure Music / Arcam rDac outperforms the Meridian 508 that it replaced, which was no slouch. Use a windows laptop to keep cost down?
Just a thought. As I said in a post elsewhere it would be interesting to pitch this solution against a good streamer. Haven't a clue which would be better.
Really check the features you need, many of these streamers still can't do gapless playback.
Isn't the Marantz the best choice?
Personally I think the Squeezebox approach is hard to beat, particularly as you could add an external DAC at a later date. The user interface is better than almost any other streamer and it is very easy to use and navigate.
Hi Crocodile. Yes, not set it up yet but I have been using a Squeezebox Classic for some time and I've used a friend's Touch a few times. I think they are really good products. Will sort it out at the weekend and report back. Very grateful to you for sharing the voucher code, as it is something I've been after for some time but I haven't been able to stretch to it along with all the other demands on money! 
I've had the SB Touch for a few months now and I'm still amazed by it. The old cliche about playing all the old music and it being given new life still stands. Best £135 I've ever spent on hi-fi and I was a confirmed CDPphile/streamer sceptic until I took a punt. I do recommend a decent NAS drive (I didn't know what such a thing was until a few weeks ago) or using a PC for storage though; the Touch currently doesn't bond with external hard drives too well, especially, in my experience, if you have over 20,000 tunes going on - random play? Forget it!
The other features of it are great bonuses, but the main one as far as I'm concerned is its Spotify ability; brilliant!
Currently listening to: Neu! - Neu II
SBT aswell. See the thread on SBT set ups http://www.whathifi.com/forum/hi-fi/your-squeezebox-touch-set-up
Computer and a DAC?
My Mac Mini / Pure Music / Arcam rDac outperforms the Meridian 508 that it replaced, which was no slouch. Use a windows laptop to keep cost down?
Just a thought. As I said in a post elsewhere it would be interesting to pitch this solution against a good streamer. Haven't a clue which would be better.
+1
I'd be surprised if a wells et up PC isn't at least as good as a budget streamer. I'm going to audition a Linn sneaky, i have a sneaky feeling it won't be that much better than my laptop / mc
Cambridge
However...the Pioneer N50 looks very attractive and it'll be interesting to see how it sounds when it arrives (if it hasn't already), but I think you should also add a Squeezebox Touch to your list, which is extremely cheap and higher-fi than you might think, straight out of the box.
CA StreamMagic 6 | CA 751BD | CA 651A | PMC DB1i
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