I will answer here as Andrewjvt doesn't mind *smile* .
I haven't auditioned the new Electrocompaniet ECM1 streamer / Dac yet but hope to sometime soon, I have been wiped out by a recent larger than expected tax bill so all purchases are on hold at the moment.
Obviously I am a little biased when it comes to extolling the virtues of Electrocompaniet equipment being a huge fanboy, but my love of the brand comes from many years of experience and supreme satisfaction with sound and build quality.
I also like the fact that when Electrocompaniet build a product they engineer it to the best possible spec and performance and then leave it alone with no new 'upgraded' model changes every other year to make my equipment appear old and obsolete in the eyes of the buying public .
My AW180 monoblock amps have been in continuous production since 1994 with only relatively minor changes and they are still compared to some of the best power amplifiers in the world at any price !
I have been reading up about the ECM1 streamer / dac and it seems to do everything I need and more in a simple easy to understand fashion that is future proofed as much as possible with free automatic updates as they become available , a choice of 2.5" or 3.5" automatic play after installing internal storage of any size required for your Cd collection and downloads and the £2000 ECD2 dac built in, it can also be used as a pre amp with active speakers or in other systems, all you have to add is a external USB disc drive at around £20 to rip your discs.
For me the bit that tickles my senitive parts the most is the discrete class A analog output stage that is so important in achieving top class sound quality imo. *i-m_so_happy*
As soon as I try one I will let you know but for now here is the spec and some internal pictures to stimulate your interest. *biggrin*
Technical Data All measurements are made at 120V / 240V //50Hz / 60Hz No. of channels2Output Impedance300 OhmsNoise floor (20 - 20 kHz)< -145 dBFrequency response0.5 - 48 kHzTHD+N< 0,0005 %Upsampling rate192 kHz, 24 bitDigital/Analog conversion192 kHz, 24 bit
Input sampling rate: 2 x SPDIF Coax 192 kHz, 24 bit2 x SPDIF TOSLink 192 kHz, 24 bit Network connection:[/b]Wi-Fi or LAN Internal drive:[/b]
Docking, self installation. 3.5"/2.5" - unlimited capacity.
Supported audio formats:[/b]All popular formats including: WAV/WAVE, MP3, AAC+, Vorbis, ALAC, FLAC, APE, AIFF, WMA, up to 192kHZ/24bit, DSD, up to DSD 128 (5.6 MHz) Supported control interfaces:[/b]DLNA, UPnP, Android and iOS remoteInternal storage: docking, self installation
Streaming services:[/b]
• AirPlay
• Spotify Connect
• TIDAL
• Qobuz
• Internet Radio
• DLNA as renderer
• MQA*
• Deezer*
*Future functionality.
Power consumption
(no load or signal)50 W standby 0.5 W
Dimensions Width465 mm / 18.3 inchesDepth371 mm / 14.6 inchesHeight78 mm / 3 inchesWeight8 kg. / 17 .6 lbs. *(without internal drive)