replacing standard PC (with what?)

[Cable Monkey]

Everything has SMPS technology on it with very few exceptions. They are pretty much everywhere now and not necessarily worse than linear regulation. How is your Pink Faun card powered? I presume it is the USB version?

[Cable Monkey]

You have the basis for best practice already. The benefits of the microRendu is size, convenience, DSD and plug and play capability. But my opinion is if your rig is properly sorted and you are feeding it via the i2S card it will be hard to beat for PCM. I would look at power, certainly powering the i2S card with linear power or maybe an LPS1.2. 

[Cable Monkey]

I have a 1.3 hw MicroRendu/LPS 1 and a single core NUC into an AudioByte Hydra Z and the latter is better.* But despite the insistence that USB is the way to go I want to get away from it. A low powered PC with PCIe riser and i2S card is the direction I am going in. My core (Roon) resides elsewhere on a high powered PC. 

* Clean power is the key to this and is obviously DAC dependent.

The fact is the MicroRendu LPS1 combo is great. Small, convenient and ready to go so it has a place, but it can be bettered if you have the required skills.

[Cable Monkey]

3 hours ago, the_doc735 said:

hi, my direction is microrendu 1.4 (a.k.a. ultrarendu) with sonicorbiter 2.7, + UltraDigital (USB > i2s), + LPSU; fed into LKS 004 DAC. Any good?

It won’t be bad. No doubt it will be excellent but think about all of the cables and PSU’s required to make it all work! Also think about the cost. It gets quite expensive!