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CD Players, Digital Music & Servers Aurender, dCs, Esoteric, Lumin. |
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#11
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Looks like Apple is set to announce a new Mac Mini (along with the iPad mini) this week.
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#12
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Yeah I am waiting for the new Mini.. hopefully with a good graphics that I can use for HTPC use. I am still happy with the old 2010 Mini for dedicated music playback but I am tempted to get a new QC Mini server for music
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#13
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Looks like dedicated Mac mini is back on the wish list... How about windows running JRiver, dedicated to music? Any thoughts on this?
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#14
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By using a windows machine you can also use only the very best (sonically) components (i.e. sotm sound card, better USB chipset, etc...). This should provide better sound than any Mac solution. Although I don't run it, I've been impressed by my friend's JRiver iPad app. If I had to do it over, I would save $5k, skip my S10, and go this route. Aesthetically, they make very slick aliminum component looking cases too.
Last edited by mdkim; 10-27-2012 at 08:56 PM. |
#15
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There shouldn't be any difference in the USB, the type of connection you make, sync or async will make a bigger difference. As long as your player loads the track into memory and you have free CPU cycles (i.e. your not loading your CPU down with other things) its going to make no difference. All players should buffer the stream but players like Pure Music (channel D) will preload the track into memory. |
#16
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Quote:
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#17
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A sound card is just one of the many components. A better USB chipset along with an inline SATA power noise filter are things you will not find in a Mac. Naturally an asynchronous USB DAC is assumed. Of course you may think that high end dedicated music servers, all of which use the above in some manner, are simply marketing hype and only pretty packaging but I assure you they do sound better than a Mac. I have used my MBP to illustrate this point to several friends of mine. I suppose YMMV. |
#18
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Quote:
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#19
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I compared the Aurender to my MBA running PureMusic and I thought the S10 was ahead.
But I think a dedicated Mini QC with AudirvanaPlus and a good USB SPDIF would come very close if not exceeding it now This was one of the reasons why I didn't end up with the Aurender. It's a great package and if you aren't into tweaking computers, it's a better choice. But computer audio is changing at a fast pace and it's inevitable that it will get better. I also wanted support for USB DSD which wasn't available on the S10. Have they included it yet?
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#20
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I agree that DSD playback via a laptop running through a DSD capable DAC should sound superior to my Aurender unit. What's more, it is the future. And yes, components are changing rapidly. That is why I believe a CAPS type server makes the most sense. It uses the most current parts and is upgradeable as all it is is a PC in a pretty case. I would advocate a Mac but you can't just open one up to swap out the USB chip when a better one comes along. Probably every six months . |
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