iPod as a source 80 gig model, lossless


Have any of you tried using an iPod with lossless cds ripped as a format as a source for your home high end system? Is it a non-starter, listenable, pretty good, enjoyable, or fantastic?

I'm used to cd players in the $2k to $3k range, currently Cary 308T. Stiff competition I know. Perhaps absurd. Or perhaps not?

You tell me.

I'd sure love to have that convenience of choosing a different album with the same ease as changing the volume!

Art
artmaltman

Showing 2 responses by bluecirclehead

FWIW, I purchased an Apple TV and it beat my Arcam CD92 senseless.

I was willing to trade-off sound quality for the convenience of Apple TV's GUI, but I was gladly surprised. So this may be an option for you.

The convenience of playlists can never be overstated. My system is a Blue Circle NSCS and Von Schweikert VR2s.
Hi Art,
The DAC is in the Apple TV (should be a Wolfson, like the ipod and newer Arcams). There are 2 choice: playback from the apple tv internal hard-drive or streaming. I use the Apple tv internal hard-drive, with my music ripped in apple lossless.

The apple TV does have a toslink (optical), but I don't have an external dac.

I can't hear any difference between streamed lossless and the playback from the hard-drive in the apple tv, but I know that the streaming can be tweaked to sound pretty good (some driver swapping, etc...)

Whatever doesn't fit in the Apple TV's HD, I stream from my computer. BTW, Apple Lossless is a very good format size-wise (about 300MB per CD, average).

Hope this helps.