Dedicated Music server vs Mac mini on a Devialet via Ethernet (AIR) connection

Thanks for your input Steve, but I believe the Devialet works best when the Mac is connected directly via ethernet. And use wifi for Tidal.
Otherwise ethernet is probably overloaded when functioning both as download(TIDAL) and upstreaming (DAC).
So the router is only connected via wifi. Would there still be gains with a LPS on the router?

The only way to substantially improve sound is to get a better DAC. Any upstream changes are just band aids because any noise or distortion or jitter or other issues are ALL coming from your DAC. If the DAC is well designed it will be well isolated from any contamination from digital incoming signals, clock timing and power supply noise.

Think about it - the DAC design goal is high fidelity of the source signal
- so a well designed DAC should remove all extraneous noise or contamination that is not the audio signal. A poorly designed DAC will be sensitive to which input is used and possibly even the type of cable.

Blaming mac mini or cabling or power supply for DAC inadequacies is misplaced logic. The DAC has a job to do and a key design requirement: to accurately reproduce the source signal without any extraneous factors influencing the sound.

Part of the problem of multifunction devices is that the complexity multiplies the possibility for errors in design of hardware or firmware and signal contamination from shared power supply. A dedicated device has simpler goals and is likely to perform better.

FWIW - Mac/PC and pro tools is how most music is produced these days...so a computer core running roon and feeding a dedicated DAC is an excellent way to enjoy multiple digital formats.

You should not be "overloading" your ethernet unless you have multiple devices that are gaming and streaming HD video simultaneously - two channel audio is not a bandwidth hog.

For example, my wifi speed and download speed from my internet provider are both around 150 Mbps and two channel audio uses only 1% of this bandwidth.

shadorne,  I'm using Roon to send files from my iMac via ethernet over home wiring to an Ayre QX-5 Twenty DAC.  The SQ is excellent, especially with downloaded DSD files.  I've wondered if it might be better to store the files on my Mac Mini and connect it directly to the QX-5 via an ethernet cable.  As I understand your post, the answer is no, given the QX-5 is processing received files to analog, it that correct?

db 

Just a couple notes:

if your Ethernet DAC is anything like a Merging Technoloies DAC, jitter is not an issue. That’s probably the biggest advantage of Ethernet DACs. 

The other thing, a 24/192 file uses (I believe) about 2000 kbps (2Mbps).  The cheapest routers today push 100 Mbps, and frankly, anything even remotely modern is pushing 1 Gbps. Even a 2010 Mac Mini has a 100 Mbps Ethernet Socket. To put it in perspective, Merging Tech can play DSD256 *multichannel* to multiple DACs from one NAS.  

Bottom line, don’t worry about bandwidth. 

@dbphd  

I would expect the sound quality to be the same via the iMac or the Mac Mini if configured the same.