How to configure a PC for outstanding Audio?

I assume HTPC means Home Theater PC? Sorry for being such a novice. Is Windows 7 shipping in PCs now or is it still a Beta?

Thanks for sharing your experiences.

Mark

"While you're at it install Windows 7 RC OS. Looks like MS has knocked a home run with this one! You can build a serious HT/ audio system around this OS!"

GMood1- I understand your enthusiasm, but having used every windows iteration ever issued, I gotta say they have to come a long way to escape the clunky, dreary architecture they seem burdened with.

I used to make fun of the Mac guys, joking that they were like religious zealots. After using OSX for the past year, I don't joke them anymore.

Hi Mark,
right now Windows 7 is in the release candidate stage. This version will be good till this time next year when the final release will be available. From what I've read it will be quite easy to go from the RC to the final cut next June. You can download it for free and use it free for the next year. The 7000 Beta version expires in July, 2009.

Danlib1, I know you and others are Mac fan boys, nothing wrong with it if it fits your needs.

I have only one question..have you tried it? If not you have no idea what you're missing.

Last time I checked Mac doesn't do Blu ray.Not only can I play Blu rays, I can burn data to a 50 GB blu ray disc if I so choose. I've had a friends Mac mini here for evaluation. Notice I still use Windows. lol

I like the vast amount of software and hardware available with Windows. I feel limited when using Mac for my needs.

You should try a dual boot and run Windows 7 for kicks on the Mac. I think you'll be in for a big surprise! ;-)

It runs beautifully and boots faster than pretty much anything out there.

MS has stepped their game up on this one, I wouldn't dismiss them so quickly, they still control 90% of the market for a reason.

I like it so much, I use it on all three of my PCs at home. Networking is a breeze with this OS. My XBox 360 is used as a media extender and was recognized instantly when I added it to the network.

I have my external hard drives wired to the main rig. From there, I share my music and over 200 movies with the other 2 PCs and Xbox on the network.

Mark, you could order a Netbook or PC without an OS, save yourself the money by using the Windows 7 RC.

Mark if you have a display in the room. You can also add a blue tooth keyboard and mouse, controlling everything from your seat.

I use my main PC this way. I can scroll through libraries of music or movies and play them without ever getting off the couch.

Without getting into pointless and age-old Windows vs. PC debates, I just want to say that Gmood1 appears to be correct about Windows 7 being an excellent operating system. I haven't yet tried it, but I am a moderator (under a different screen-name) at a forum for computer enthusiasts and builders, http://www.abxzone.com, and it has garnered widespread praise there and elsewhere on the net, even among confirmed Vista-haters. Which is remarkable for an os that is still in the release candidate stage.

Re dual-booting Windows 7 on a Mac, there are two ways of doing that, virtualization and "boot camp." Each has its advantages and disadvantages. Here is an overview:

http://guides.macrumors.com/Booting_Windows_on_the_Mac

Mark -- Although your question was about sending analog audio directly from a pc to your audio system, I would suggest that you consider outputting digital from the pc, to an external dac. That is what is most commonly done, for several reasons:

-- The digital devices and switching power supply in a computer are potent emi/rfi generators, which figure to pollute analog circuits and outputs in the computer to some degree.

-- A good external dac will most likely provide much better sound quality than the one on a computer sound card or motherboard.

-- You would probably have to connect to flimsy, unreliable 1/8" mini-jacks on the computer.

-- The audio outputs of the computer are likely to have an unspecified output impedance, which I suspect would be highish (perhaps as a cheap means of short circuit protection). That would result in high frequency rolloff in combination with the capacitance of the lengthy cables you are likely to use.

Also, keep in mind that acoustic noise generated by the computer is a key consideration, assuming the computer will be in your listening room. I would expect most standard desktops, and many laptops, to be unsatisfactory in that regard, although those who build their own computers can choose combinations of cases and other components which would probably be quiet enough. A lot of people use the Mac Mini for this kind of purpose, and praise its noise levels among other things. I have no particular knowledge of the noise levels of computers that are physically in htpc cases/form factors, though -- hopefully others will comment.

Regards,
-- Al

In the first line of my previous post, obviously I meant "Windows PC vs. Mac," not "Windows vs. PC."

-- Al