CM4 is not a cut down anything.
It removes many of the Rpi3-4 bottle necks with PCI-e & e-MMC v SD. (e-MMC already 4x faster than SD).
BTW - As a result it handles audio much better and I am told *on "circle" NO FIFOS.
So you were referring to the CM4 development board produced by the RPi foundation which has the guts of an RPi4 which you would never use again because it’s so weak and wobbly.
You didn’t answer any of my other questions:
Why would any one want a DAC that gives the kind of sound you would expect from a NEVE console?
Do you know that very many usb DACs have xlr outputs (one of mine does, ain’t nothing fancy just performs perfectly).
Are you aware that Amir has tested a huge number of usb DACs that are measurably transparent to the human ear?
What do you mean by studio quality?
Do you think that a usb DAC with a way beyond the limits of human hearing measurable performance is not as good as a professional DAC which uses the same chip and has an similar if not exactly the same measurable performance?
Do you realise the subject of this thread is using an RPi as a music streamer?