High quality digital audio - source and playback?

[BeeTL]

I will likely never be a vinyl guy and I've just gotten rid of nearly all of my CDs, most acquired in the 90s.

Recently I've been enjoying FM & streaming traditional jazz and I generally listen to alt rock from the late 80s through today.

I had Sirius for a while and also listen to Pandora, but my Blackberry doesn't stream Spotify.

So...I'd like to gather a few files for "critical listening" at multiple locations and I'm curious about where to source them and what to play them on.

Is there a better portable and affordable playback device than an iPod?

Any thoughts on where to purchase higher quality digital source material?

Thanks!

[Face]

High quality digital is not going to happen for cheaper than an iPod.

[BeeTL]

High quality digital is not going to happen for cheaper than an iPod.

Doesn't have to be an iPod (I'd prefer it wasn't), and it could cost a little more, too.

Portability is the key, but it doesn't need to be micro.

Assume I have nothing today, not even an iPod.

[Face]

Laptop with an external DAC.

Or an iPod.

Or a Zune HD.

Both the iPod and Zune can accept lossless files, ALAC and Windows Lossless respectively. Which equate to redbook(cd format), not exactly high res. You would need a laptop for that.

[BeeTL]

Laptop with an external DAC.

Or an iPod.

Or a Zune HD.

Both the iPod and Zune can accept lossless files, ALAC and Windows Lossless respectively. Which equate to redbook(cd format), not exactly high res. You would need a laptop for that.

OK, thanks!

What's a well regarded external DAC?

Something like this Topping unit kills two birds with one stone, yes?

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/show...number=310-316

[smithnc]

Yep, that Topping unit has a DAC and amplification. With that amplifier and your computer you could stream high quality audio.

For a source you might also be interested in something like the squeezebox from logitech. It can play from Internet sources and if you install their (free) media server software you can play files you have on your computer.

http://www.logitech.com/en-us/speake...ueezebox-touch

-Nate

[djkest]

Too bad you got rid of your CDs. They are much higher quality than anything you can stream right now. And much better than FM. :/

A squeezebox is also a possibility, although not portable.

[Pete Schumacher ®]

A PC with an ASUS Xonar sound card with RCA outputs makes a great source, especially when you take the time to remove noise sources from the PC, like HDDs and fans. They come with 24bit, 192KHz as a baseline, with top quality DACs built in, along with 115dB signal to noise ratios.

Personally, I don't understand sending the stream over USB to an external decoder, when the PCI bus has so much less overhead.

[Deward Hastings]

I don't understand sending the stream over USB to an external decoder, when the PCI bus has so much less overhead.

Well . . . you already mentioned noise, and there are a lot of laptops that don't have a PCI bus. I use NAS and a squeezebox so I don't have to have a computer on at all and can access music from any of my machines (one of which does have an ASUS card) when they are on.

[BeeTL]

Too bad you got rid of your CDs. They are much higher quality than anything you can stream right now. And much better than FM. :/

A squeezebox is also a possibility, although not portable.

I kept some CDs, but not many as a percentage of what I had.

I was completely over listening to most of it, and the rest I'm in no big hurry to rip.

That said, I am interested in having the ability to listen a given file at the same quality on multiple systems within the house, and I do have a wireless network.

On that front, how do the iPhone or iPad stack up in terms of audio quality?

Could either really be a "one size fits all" portable solution, or would an external DAC still be required to get reference-level audio?

[donradick]

I kept some CDs, but not many as a percentage of what I had.

I was completely over listening to most of it, and the rest I'm in no big hurry to rip.

That said, I am interested in having the ability to listen a given file at the same quality on multiple systems within the house, and I do have a wireless network.

On that front, how do the iPhone or iPad stack up in terms of audio quality?

Could either really be a "one size fits all" portable solution, or would an external DAC still be required to get reference-level audio?

Only YOU can decide what reference quality sounds like.
I have an antipathy towards Apple, so I rely on this web site:
http://anythingbutipod.com/

The formal reviews are a bit old, but the forums should be fresh info.
On their reco, I bought a Sansa Clip+, and love it.
If you want HQ audio all over your house, maybe a wireless "pad" would be best for your needs. Other than that, the Toppings with USB/DAC might be a good HQ way to go. Hard to build HQ DA circuits into a $40 portable player.

[NickJ]

A PC with an ASUS Xonar sound card with RCA outputs makes a great source.

This is what I am rocking as well. And I think it sounds pretty great. If you are looking for something portable, Hifiman has portable players with great clean output and great headphone amps. One of them even can be used a DAC for your PC as well. Redwine Audio (and other less expensive companies) will do a retrofit of your iPod to pass out the digital signal to a dac/amp unit. I know one person who has one, and he says it is the best source in his house (and he has some crazy things).

If you decide to go with an external DAC, I have heard that this one of those things where some of the best solutions are actually fairly cheap, and that spending more than a couple of hundred dollars won't net you better performance (if you get the right cheap one). Other than that I can't really provide specifics.

Edit: Just saw this as well, which looks promising:

http://anythingbutipod.com/2012/01/i...ced/#more-5313

[cjd]

Someone asked about FLAC support earlier, and I made the same recommendation then.

Check out Archos - they have a range of media players (I'd stick with the Android stuff) with a focus on sound quality and media support, and you can pick a size that suits you. I've had an A101 for over a year now and it's still working well, albeit slightly dated hardware-wise on the Android side. Had a bunch of movies on it last vacation and used it for that, plus the music.

C