that's more or less exactly what I was planning on. however, the brick seems a bit much to put between an inexpensive computer and the amp. what about a headroom product like the total bithead (headphone amp) instead? it would at least improve on the built-in mac mini soundcard, right? - and what about (for the sake of the argument) going into a receiver that has USB (like the outlaw rr2150) - would this not make the brick unnecessary and allow you to use the built-in DAC?
New setup with computer as source??
Hi All. I have spent the last few days reading up on how to implement a computer-based system (have been keeping an eye on the actual topic of PC-Audio for quite a while now, only now looking into applying it).
I currently have a Shanling CD-T100 tube CD player feeding an Electrocompaniet ECI-3 integrated amp, which powers my Revel Ultima Gem loudspeakers. Any form of upgrade to my equipment (ie. mods to the amp/cdp) are not available in my country and new equipment is extremely expensive. That, along with the convenience factor are leading me toward setting up a system with a computer as a source. In that regard I have a few questions:
- I plan to get a Mac Mini for storing the songs and running the software. This will be dedicated to the system. From what I have seen read, the simplest method to get the music from computer--->amp is using a USB DAC. I am thus considering a Wavelength Brick DAC. Do you think there will be any degradation in the sound using this setup in comparison to my current setup?
- Alternatively I need to get something like a SB and a separate DAC, such as the Benchmark or other DAC. These are a lot more expensive (especially locally) so may be cost-prohibitive. Is there any other reasons to go for such a setup other than a) being wireless or in a different room from the source data; and b) flexibility of choosing your own DAC?
Any other tips or advice will be greatly appreciated!
X
I currently have a Shanling CD-T100 tube CD player feeding an Electrocompaniet ECI-3 integrated amp, which powers my Revel Ultima Gem loudspeakers. Any form of upgrade to my equipment (ie. mods to the amp/cdp) are not available in my country and new equipment is extremely expensive. That, along with the convenience factor are leading me toward setting up a system with a computer as a source. In that regard I have a few questions:
- I plan to get a Mac Mini for storing the songs and running the software. This will be dedicated to the system. From what I have seen read, the simplest method to get the music from computer--->amp is using a USB DAC. I am thus considering a Wavelength Brick DAC. Do you think there will be any degradation in the sound using this setup in comparison to my current setup?
- Alternatively I need to get something like a SB and a separate DAC, such as the Benchmark or other DAC. These are a lot more expensive (especially locally) so may be cost-prohibitive. Is there any other reasons to go for such a setup other than a) being wireless or in a different room from the source data; and b) flexibility of choosing your own DAC?
Any other tips or advice will be greatly appreciated!
X