Your journey is your own. Don't be on someone else's journey.
It's OK to make a wrong turn as long as you stop to see the sights on that road.
In the end the destination does not really matter as much as the people you meet along the way.
Have been using a Synology DS920+. Plex works very well. You can also run docker containers on it which has been very useful. Has been rock solid, much better than than my previous Qnap.
In Darko's latest video on the NodeX he discusses the different value propositions between the Node, Wiim and Sonos streamers to some extent. It aligns with my perceptions.
In the end it's all relative and there is no one answer. The better your speakers are the more difference the other components make. So if you want to spend more on those things, spend more on speakers. At a certain point even streamers make a difference but if you don't want those things to...
Thank you Achim, every year I say I will have to do this next year. So next year it is...
What speakers did Brinkmann use? What are your impressions on the new stereo amplifier from Brinkmann?
Indeed yes. My comment was aimed at the fact that if that behaviour makes you happy, keep on doing it. Nothing wrong with it, except when it does not make you happy anymore.