This thread is spawned from an initial discussion within the Dutch & Dutch 8c thread about digital pre-amps that can feed the speakers like the 8c which have digital inputs. To summarise, the 8c have a single input that can be configured for analogue or digital (AES), on-board volume control via a web-app and, soon, in-built Roon. All this works well for a single “enthusiast listener” but it’s a bit problematic when the speakers are used by others and/or integrated into a multi-source environment. One approach is to feed the speakers with an analogue input which opens up a wide range of main-stream remote-controlled options including stereo DAC with volume control or, if the situation demands HDMI connectivity, A/V Processor. The only downside with this would seem to be the A/D conversion in the speaker but it’s not clear to me that this would necessarily be audible (even at low volumes). Another approach is a “digital pre-amp” that, ideally, would provide multiple digital / analogue inputs with remote controlled source switching and a volume controlled digital (AES) output. The pro-audio interfaces (e.g., RME ADI-2 Pro, Tascam UH-7000) get close but don’t seem to include remote control whilst the emerging set of consumer solutions (e.g., Yamaha WXC-50) don’t have AES output. What, if any, digital pre-amp options exist? Or is modern A/D good enough in terms of both sound quality and latency to render this search irrelevant?