If you want world class sound, keep any pc/Mac/music server out of the room. Put your server in another room and get a good dac with a network card in it.
Also, you don’t need a music server/renderer to get music off a nas. If you have a good dac with a network card, use a Mac mini running Roon from another room. Roon’s Interface and SQ is so superior to other mentioned above. IMO the next best would be auralic’s DS Lightning interface.
Any good quality 1G switch will work. I have never had a switch deliver invalid data. If you can hear a difference between switches, the routers, wall plates, Ethernet ports from each device would be called into question.
I actually had a vendor tell me that they only used a specific hard drive because they could hear a difference. When I told him I worked for Seagate that made the hard drive he was using he backed off since disk drives change constantly and the drive he was buying today might be different from what he buys tomorrow.
Also, you don’t need a music server/renderer to get music off a nas. If you have a good dac with a network card, use a Mac mini running Roon from another room. Roon’s Interface and SQ is so superior to other mentioned above. IMO the next best would be auralic’s DS Lightning interface.
Any good quality 1G switch will work. I have never had a switch deliver invalid data. If you can hear a difference between switches, the routers, wall plates, Ethernet ports from each device would be called into question.
I actually had a vendor tell me that they only used a specific hard drive because they could hear a difference. When I told him I worked for Seagate that made the hard drive he was using he backed off since disk drives change constantly and the drive he was buying today might be different from what he buys tomorrow.