Desktop DAC/Headphone amp in addition to a DAP Kann Alpha merely for Win 10 Tidal app?

[PortableMusic]

Dear All:

i'm at my computer desk from 3 to 8 hours a day. i have my Meze Empyrean headphones with my Astell and Kern Kann Alpha right here at my computer desk, and i merely have to recharge it around once every 3 days approximately. my initial idea was that i may take this portable set up over to my sofa and lay down to relax during the day every so often, but alas, in the 4+ weeks i've had these two items, i've never once done it! only used it at my desktop.

i had intended to, originally, to ALSO buy a desktop DAC/headphone amp in addition to my DAP Kann Alpha, so that i may navigate with the large desktop monitor via Windows 10's Tidal app. fyi: i ONLY use Tidal for my music, no downloaded music files, strictly via Tidal Hifi and MQA when available.

so...i thought about buying the Matrix Audio Mini i-Pro 3. Well, it's complicated...

my Kann Alpha, despite being diminutive, has DUAL ES9068 dac chips inside, and a generous output to power my Meze Empyreans. Quite excellent!

however, i can't navigate via the large generously sized Windows 10 desktop PC's Tidal app, which is pleasant to navigate and browse and organize one's playlists, favorites, etc. It allows for greater discovery, greater exploration of music, etc.

buying the Matrix Mini i-Pro 3 means that i'll get the ES9038Q2M (2 channels) dac chip, which is NOT the ES9038 PRO dac chip (8 channels). Well, this means that i'm going from my Kann Alpha's DUAL ES9068 dac chips to the Matrix Mini i-Pro 3's single ES9038Q2M dac chip.

well, this isn't going to be much of an improvement, if not even a slight downgrade, which may or may not be even noticeable. the 9068 has baked in, ON CHIP full MQA unfolding (via hardware unfolding). the ES9038Q2M uses another chip, the XMOS 216, to do the MQA unfolding.

considering that this is not going to be much of a sonic benefit, if any whatsoever, it becomes an issue of merely being able to buy this Mini i-Pro 3 JUST FOR THE CONVENIENCE and benefit of being able to browse via the Tidal Windows 10 desktop app!

may i ask the good folks here, who are very experienced, if this is a lot of effort for very little actual benefit please? that means the purchase of the Mini i-Pro 3 is JUST for the convenience and pleasure to be able to browse and control via my desktop Windows 10 tower PC's Tidal app.

is it worth doing?

look forward to your comments. thank you in advance.

 

[M00ndancer]

I'm afraid that is a question only you can answer. If it was bugging me enough I would do something about it, or I might stop enjoying the important thing: listen to the music. In your specific case there is a possibility that you start listening/thinking about the gear instead of the music. What value that has you you can answer. If the expense doesn't bother you then go ahead. Convenience and pleasure makes people pay stupid amount of money just to get it right and not having to worry about it. Without it you might not want to listen to your music as often.

There is a few studies about similar things. One example is the Bicycle VS electric bicycle.
Why is it that E-bikes makes you healthier than a ordinary bike?
You get a better workout with the bike.
The reason is simple, the e-bike is easier to use, less a burden to ride on and makes the hills, wind and rain so much easier to cope with.
The affect is that you use the e-bike a lot more. So the net effect is a e-assisted bike-ride are a lot more fun, pleasurable and healthier.
Some goes for listening to music, if you have to do non-musical things to get to that pleasure you want, you wont enjoy it.
That's why I'm a member of ASR, get the best out of what I have and only invest in things that makes a difference to be able to enjoy the thing that matters, music.

Sorry for the long text, but I hope it helps you decide what to do.