I just purchased a Bryston BDA-3.14 which has native Qobuz software.
Signed up for Qobuz "Studio" (the highest level) for $149 a year. Well I must say that the SQ of the hi-rez is simply amazing. Familiar albums are new again. Even the Redbook CD ones sound great. The BDA is hardwired ethernet and I've had no problems with dropouts.
Bought a small HP laptop 11" just for this purpose. I have no clue how other systems work, but the BDA is a node on my home network. The laptop is used to login to Bryston (the company) which recognizes the BDA is mine. So, in simple terms, there is no computer in the chain, the only function the laptop serves is to act as a sophisticated remote control for the BDA-3.14 software (ie. stop play skip, create playlists, store files locally if desired). The BDA has 10 inputs, I'm only using one.
Bart
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