Good afternoon all from sunny Sweden. My first time posting and I want you to help me answer an impossible question!
I really want to add a streamer to my set up and have been considering an AirLens. But, as I don’t have a DAC this would have to be part of the purchase. I was considering a Stellar Gold. Over here that’s a total of 75000 kronor which is quite a lot. But it would also give me a boost in my CD listening (I have an old Meridian 208). Alternatively, I could go for an all in one solution such as the Eversolo A8 (22000kr) or the new Aurender A1000 (50000kr). There are no sound/functionality reviews of the Aurender yet. While both have DACs, they wouldn’t be as good as the Stellar Gold, I guess.
What thoughts or perspectives do you have? Is the 75000kr worth it - and that’s the impossible question!
If it was me I would wait for some reviews of the Aurender before making a decision . I used to have an Aurender streamer/server and not only did it sound great but the Conductor app was very good. Some people prefer the sound of the AKM DAC chips over ESS so my guess is it will sound competitive. The price of PS Audio gear outside the USA is higher (at least here in the UK and Ireland) so thats another factor.I have an all PS Audio setup but I chose not to go with the Airlens and use a different brand of streamer.
Thanks and I agree that I need to wait for the reviews, but you know when you have that itch lol I’m surprised there are none out there yet. But like you say, Aurender has a very good name, so it should be good, right.
I think there is also a conceptual choice which is confusing things for me. Buying a DAC vs not. There don’t seem to be many reviews of the Stellar Gold, but they are all good.
Has anyone added a Stellar Gold to an older CD player? How was it for you?
Yes - I had a Meridian 500 series CD player that I connected to my Classe DAC using Coax - the newer DAC recognized the signal and worked flawlessly - quite a big improvement over the analog outputs on the CD player. The 208 has a coax digital out so will connect to a modern DAC no problem.
Yes i was a beta tester for both the SGD and SGP, I used the DAC first with my Modwright modified Pioneer LX500 with tube output. Most people like tubes in the signal path as did i, but the detail and the less noise was intriguing.
I bought the Modwright to play SACD’s also so i bought a used PST and i am very happy with the sound of both CD and SACD. Highly recommended.
Then I got the AirLens and this also increased my love of the SGD, good stuff.
Yes, that is correct, I could do that and it would help me make the first step and maybe get an external DAC at a later date. But I also know that I would be rather disappointed if the sound quality wasn’t there.
I did see something that said the AirLens really came alive with the I2S connection and the Stellar Gold, but with other connectors and DACs, it was only ok.
I know, ultimately, that I will either have to listen to them or take a risk. The closest PS audio dealer to me though, is 5 hours away!
I am sure those with an Airlens / Stellar Gold DAC combo will be very happy with it. There are some other considerations though - namely the cost of the quality interconnect (HDMI) for I2S and the question of a Roon subscription. With the Aurender one could easily live with the Conductor App and wouldn’t need the HDMI cable or Roon. Personally I dont have experience with either hardware but I did convert my streamer USB output to I2S using a DDC and am happy with the improvement with that connection type. I am also a Roon user but liked the Conductor app a lot when I had an Aurender streamer in the past. I think it’s wise to consider both options once there is enough review data available and include the additional costs mentioned above. But its your money and I know this bug bites hard in our hobby.
and I agree that I need to wait for the reviews, but you know when you have that itch lol 
I’m surprised there are none out there yet. But like you say, Aurender has a very good name, so it should be good, right.