"I will share both the fine audio quality, and this story of excellent customer/product support with all my friends. It's wonderful to have a product that delivers an audible difference at such a good price point."

Music Streamer II with Synology NAS

The best investment I have made this year was the purchase of the Music Streamer II – found it at MacWorld 2011. I have been happily listening to my music "as new" ever since. After hearing new details in songs that have been familiar for decades, I decided that I had to go back and re-rip my entire CD collection (2,000+) using the best possible digital quality (Apple Lossless – in iTunes). If you truly love music, you must try this product. For best results, invest in a better-than-average USB cable as well, and you will be hearing every detail that your favorite artists included in the recording.

Just to let you know that I am very surprised and absolutely delighted with the performance of my Music Streamer II. I can now enjoy my music again :-) .

I wrote you a few weeks back to give kudos to you for the Music Streamer II I was so enjoying , a few days back I bought an iStreamer.......How crazy is this ? For $350.00 I get TWO way cool sounding DAC's one for my macbook pro and one for my ipod. Recently my highly reviewed $2000.00 cd player went down and needs repair....I'm in no hurry ..more kudos !!!

Thanks for the quick reply. I am really enjoying the iStreamer. The only downside is that now I am greatly sensitized to all the poor quality DAC's in my life: the ipod, the DVD player, even my Onkyo receiver. After the convenience factor wore off with digital audio, I found myself disappointed by the poor sound. Ripping at higher bit rates didn't provide much improvement. I even noticed how good my old cassette recordings sounded compared to an iPod connected to a stereo.

Now that I have an iStreamer, I may have to upgrade other portions of my audio life with HRT gadgets. Life is too short to be bombarded with harsh digital sound.

I have been enjoying the Music Streamer II for a couple of months now and will be purchasing an iStreamer.......these products truly are timely and you deserve kudos and some more kudos for producing very listenable dac's that put to shame some very expensive products I've owned in the past.

Dear Michael, After reading many great reviews of the Music Streamer I decided to purchase the product from Music Depot, which, if I may, were very helpful. I am extremely pleased with my purchase, and the fact that it arrived in a very timely manner. Although, after hooking it up to my laptop I found that it did not play through my desktop speakers so, I called your company and spoke with you. I appreciate the time you took to personally walk me through my laptop settings so I could finally hear the wonderful clear sound, tight bass and open soundstage. This device works and sounds great; it also conveniently fits into my laptop bag. Another great plus it that it's powered by a USB which is less electrical plugs that I have to deal with. I have run a successful business for over 25 years and know that great customer service is key, along with having a great product at a not so outrageous price. I just wanted to state that you and your company have all of these things and that I appreciate you specifically for helping me out. You now have a dedicated music listener/customer who will keep your company in mind the next time I decide to purchase any future products. Sincerely, Richard Fernbach

AVguide.com - "HRT iStreamer In-Car Cool Shocker"

Glad to see HRT on Facebook. I love this product. I bought the cheapest version to connect my laptop to my Denon AVR and now my wife, who has been a steadfast CD user, has been completely won over to computer audio, first the ease of selection, and she keeps raving about how the sound is so much better that CDs. I couldn't agree more. As time goes on, and I continue to move, piece by piece, to a high-end dream setup, I won't need to pay 1-2k for a quality DAC, when HRT is showing the way!

A couple of weeks ago I purchased a Music Streamer II over the Internet. From the reviews I expected great things! I did indeed hear what I was hoping to hear, true hi fidelity with a clarity and presence that I found truly delightful. Unfortunately, there was also a significant problem. Not finding a solution on the web and feeling quite dispirited, I contacted Michael Hobson and Kevin Halverson at HRT. The customer support provided by both of them was superb. Through a series of emails and phone discussions they were able to resolve the issue (which had to do with the USB ports on my laptop). They also gave me additional advice regarding how my system might be improved (including a recommendation for a passive volume control). It was clear that they wanted to ensure that my experience was as good as it could possibly be. I thank them for that and for introducing the Music Streamer series in the first place.

This is truly an amazing product that does what it was designed for - streaming high fidelity music. I am an extremely satisfied customer. Kudos for a job well done!

My shopping requirements were for a DAC that supported a minimum 24/96 asynchronous USB and provided sampling rate indicators. I auditioned several DACS from highly regarded audiophile companies that ranged from the $149 for the HRT II streamer up to $1600 for a certain Canadian manufacturers unit. The three best sounding DAC's were easy to listen too and provided very good sound fidelity. Although there was a slight difference in soundstage and detail with the higher priced DAC's the HRT got me 95% of the way and I could not justify the substantial additional investment. I bought the HRT and am absolutely satisfied at the ease of setup, great sound, low power draw and elegant, simple design. If you need a great USB only DAC for a steal of a price, just buy the HRT.

The iStreamer has done wonders for my digital music collection. It's absolutely fabulous - fuller, richer, wider, deeper - you name it - marvellous addition to my system !!!!

Just to let you know, I am totally besotted with my new Music Streamer II. It really is an amazing little red box. The sound is so brilliantly measured and controlled, but never cautious or boring. Rather, it's incredibly engaging and insightful, even bringing something fresh and exciting to music that I know really well. My CD player is now at serious risk of being made redundant!

Because I really like this little gadget and have told others about it for the money I think it would be hard to beat. And in many cases I don’t even know that more money would do the job either. I had a original music streamer and got the music II. I was so convinced about your product I gave not sold one to a friend and also gave him a set of headphones and headphone amp just to get him started in the right direction. Really nice product. Thanks

We hooked up a little netbook to the HRT Music Streamer II and then to the Pass Labs XP-10 preamp. We listened to Ray Charles & Van Morrison, Crazy Love from Ray's Genius Loves Company CD. We also listened to The Ballad of Bill Hubbard from Roger Waters' Amused to Death album, Rachael Yamagats's Be Be Your Love from her Happenstance CD, and Rafael Sadiq's 100 Yard Dash from his The Way I See It album. First impressions are really good. We truly can't believe we're listening to 44.1 WAV files on a $300 laptop played through a $150 DAC. Kudos HRT.

Just wanted to say thanks for spending time to answer my Streamer II questions. As requested, I'm writing back to tell how much I like what I'm hearing. In fact the sound is amazing! I'm a musician (drums) as well as a music major so I've played a lot of acoustic and electric Jazz, fusion, pop, classical (you name it) over the years and I know what music should sound like. I'm amazed at the clarity and imaging as well as the sound staging. I want to be an audiophile (meaning I read the magazines and would love the gear) but I truly know what is meant by the use of those terms. Lately, I've been listening to classical music and as a formal member of a college orchestra, I was hearing every instrument as expected as well as their exact placement, and could distinguish the placement every instrument. Thanks again for creating such a great product!

Well, the Music Streamer II has been in my audio system for two weeks now, and I am extremely happy with the way it's letting me enjoy the wide world of computer audio. I followed your advice, and am using the Belikin Gold USB cable and a nice pair of Audioquest Sidewinder interconnects. The music coming through my Rogue Audio tube amplifier and Vandersteen speakers is sounding simply wonderful, and I've been enjoying great old concerts via "Wolfgang's Vault" website. In fact, I'm probably spending more time listening through my computer and Streamer II than I am listening to vinyl records. For me and my musical habits, that's really saying a lot about the quality of your product.

All in all, the HRT Music Streamer II+ offers a fine means for the emerging audiophile to make a smooth entrance into the world of high resolution, without having to take a community college course in computers or worry about the next upgrade in digital playback. Recommended.

I believe I am your first customer from India. I bought your Music Streamer II a few days ago and I feel I have to complain about your product. I found that I cannot really listen to my badly compressed music anymore as I can easily hear all the flaws in the recordings. Thanks to your $149 DAC I will have to spend many many more times that amount on buying CDs to replace my poorly recorded collection. :D Now I am not new to good audio equipment. I have an Audio-GD Compass which retails around $345 with a Sennheiser HD650 for some time and so I had no real expectations from your 'cheap' $149 DAC. After my first listen I had to lift my jaw which had dropped to the floor as I was stunned that there could actually be such a huge difference between my earlier DAC and the Music Streamer. I could hear so many new things in the songs that I used to listen to for years together and the soundstage was also 3D like that I found myself turning my head to listen to some background sounds ! I was most surprised because I had heard 4 different DACs retailing between $80 - $179 before the Music Streamer including the rather popular Nuforce udac. The differences between all 4 of them was subtle at best and I sold off the uDAC as I believed it was an overhyped product and I preferred my Compass as it was more 'neutral'. Kudos to you guys for making such an amazing product for such an inexpensive price. I kinda thought all the reviews of how good your product was a bunch of baloney since I heard the equally hyped udac and found that it was not all that great but I can safely conclude that they were all spot on and I suppose the biggest indication that they are is the big smile on my face right now as I am re-discovering my music collection all over again. :) Cheers ! Brendon

I absolutely love this product. I've had one at home since I had my new HiFi installed & my digital sound coming from my laptop really is a million times better than just coming from the headphone socket. Anyone who wants to vastly improve their digital sound for their home & office use should invest the tiny sum in getting one of these bad boys. WOW.

Not just bargain of the year but one of the greatest audiophile bargains of all time, the HRT Music Streamer II is going to change the computer audio map forever. A 96kHz, 24 bit DAC with asynchronous USB input, the Streamer II goes spec for spec against excellent multi-thousand dollar DACs from Ayre, dCS and Wavelength… and does so at just $150! Its bigger brothers offer improved performance at slightly higher price points and the upcoming Streamer HD brings 192kHz sampling rates. Even on the briefest of auditions, it’s clear this really is a game-changer.

The Music Streamer II, available through Audiofreaks, is its most affordable model, yet it’s good enough to make the average laptop sound like proper hi-fi. Simply plug your computer into the USB connection on one end, connect your hi-fi using the analogue outputs on the other, and the small but solid HRT handles the digital -to-analogue conversion. And it does so in serious style. Playing The Far Road from The Road soundtrack, the sound is precise and fluid. The leading edges of notes are terrifically well-defined, but they degrade with organic subtlety and realism. Detail and dynamics are exceptional, revealing every nuance in the haunting recording. It’s simply a perfectly balanced, bold and beautiful delivery, and for a DAC costing just £140, that’s an incredible feat.

The Music Streamer II was capable of great subtlety in playing music. It impressed most with its freedom from digital grit. This DAC is a real smoothie, yet one that doesn’t overcompensate for brightness by smothering the sound in cotton wool. Music is heard relaxed and flowing, with precious little grain to intrude.

Don’t underestimate the viral aspect of these Streamers. From personal experience, we found it difficult not to spread the word. Look at it this way; many of us know people who use laptops to serve their music these days. If you have one of these, you will put it in your pocket and take it over to them. They will, in turn, get one and do the same to their friends. And so on until you end up breaking Facebook. So you too can become the Avon Lady of hi-fi.

HRT has succeeded in building a product that will please audiophiles with a focus stretching far beyond the audiophile industry. Serious music lovers and philes should investigate the HRT Streamer+, as it was clearly designed to get through to the music, rather than get around it for gimmick or effect.

Holy cow! This thing sounds so good I might even stop hating music-via-computer!

Thanks a million for turning me onto this. I literally listen to Internet radio at least 40 hours a week, and the Music Streamer has made it far more enjoyable already.

Sonically superior, the Music Streamer simply elevates computer audio out of the noise floor.