The first option might have better control of the "timing" than the other two, and apparently the human brain can detect timing errors fairly easily (what some people characterize as "digital glare" or "digital sound").
Computer, CD transport or Network Player?
I currently have most of my music downloaded on my computer as FLAC files and listen to it through JRiver or Signalyst HQ (audio players for Windows) on my Dell desktop. The sound is amazing but I have a question and it is this:
Which do you find to have the highest sound quality;
1. Redbook CD's directly played in a high quality CD transport?
2. Ripped FLAC or Apple lossless files played through a high quality PC or MAC computer based audio player (such as JRiver or Signalyst for Windows or Vox or Clementine for MAC)?
3. or music (from one's own private CD collection) loaded on a network player?
Using a DAC of course.
Which do you find to have the highest sound quality;
1. Redbook CD's directly played in a high quality CD transport?
2. Ripped FLAC or Apple lossless files played through a high quality PC or MAC computer based audio player (such as JRiver or Signalyst for Windows or Vox or Clementine for MAC)?
3. or music (from one's own private CD collection) loaded on a network player?
Using a DAC of course.