Mac Pro Quad Boot Reference Music Server

Thanks for your reply Chris,<br />

You write: 'Macs have a built-in optical port to connect to a Jadis DAC, but optical is less than ideal.'<br />

I was thinking of a AT&T (ST) optical port as used by Wadia and as far as I can hear the result is excellent.<br />

I've tried the coax connection with Kimber 2020 and it's not as good.<br />

I still don't get why one couldn't connect a Mac directly to a DAC eg Jadis JS1 or Wadia 9? That's what I would do with a Sooloos server thus bypassing the Sooloos DAC.<br />

What do you think?<br />

GM

Ah, the good ole Stick & Twist (ST) connector!<br />

<br />

I can't say I've ever seen an audio card for Mac with an ST output. <br />

<br />

Hello Chris,<br />

I'm probably very dense but I thought that you could bypass a Mac's soundcard ie having a direct connection from the HD to the external DAC. Is that possible?<br />

As for the (glass) ST link, I know Macs don't have it but surely a mod is possible?<br />

Thanks for a great site,<br />

GM

GM,<br />

<br />

What do you think is more important for having a good sound:<br />

- a glass fiber with a ST-connector<br />

- a bit perfect source with a jitter as low as possible.<br />

<br />

I think you better off with a excellent sound card like Lynx or RME and probably even better with a reclocker like dCS upsampler: <br />

http://www.dcsltd.co.uk/<br />

http://thewelltemperedcomputer.com/Intro/SoundQuality.htm<br />

Hello Chris,<br />

I've just looked at http://thewelltemperedcomputer.com/Intro/SoundQuality.htm<br />

That's what I found:<br />

'No sound card<br />

If the audio stream is send to the USB or over Ethernet/Wlan to an external audio device, you don't need a sound card at all.<br />

In case of USB you need a USB DAC.<br />

If the audio is streamed over the network, you need a streaming media player.'<br />

Yeah, 'if (...) you don't need a sound card at all.'<br />

That's exactly what I want to do: get the digital stream into an external DAC bypassing the sound card.<br />

And answering your question: I want both bit perfect output into a DAC AND (in order to achieve it better) an ST connection.<br />

Surely, having both is not mutually exclusive.<br />

So it seems that it is possible to output a bit perfect stream straight from the HD without using the inferior Mac sound card or any sound card.<br />

Do you agree?<br />

Thanks,<br />

GM

Hi GM - I think there is a terminology difference here that is contributing to some misunderstandings. Sometimes it's tough to discuss things with quick forum posts :-) Oh well.<br />

<br />

Exactly, there is no need for an internal soundcard. A traditional soundcard in a PC is just a DAC with a bunch of extra distorting options. A USB DAC or any DAC connected to a computer is really an external soundcard if you fit it into the traditional model. There are very few people on this site who actually use the internal soundcard on their computer. I can think of two :-) Almost everyone uses a digital I/O with a USB, FireWire, Optical S/PDIF, or Lynx HD26 interface. <br />

<br />

So, to accomplish your goal you will need a digital interface with the ST connection. If there is a card made for a computer with this interface you would be all set. I just can't think of any cards with this interface. There may be FierWire external devices that convert into an ST interface.

Hello Chris,<br />

You're absolutely right about a terminology difference leading to some misunderstandings!<br />

So, thinking along the same lines as before, it seems that I can get a bit perfect stream from the existing Mac interface viz USB, Firewire, Optical SPDIF or Ethernet then feed it into my Jadis JS1 Mk3 DAC as long as I can get it modified to accept a USB, Firewire, Optical SPDIF or Ethernet 'signal'.<br />

And probably better still: using an extra interface to reduce jitter eg a rubidium clock (expensive!) or a DCS clock (expensive!) or a Lynx interface... and forget the ST connection.<br />

Have I got it all correct?<br />

Thanks,<br />

GM

Very cool GM! Now we're talking the same language :-)<br />

<br />

I also looked at the input specs for your JS1 Mk3 and it appears to have an AES input. This is ideal. I sugges using a Lynx AES16e card in a Mac. This card has about 20 picoseconds of jitter and offers the ability to use an external clock like a rubidium or dCS if you want. So, the card can connect to your JS1 Mk3 via AES/EBU without any modifications to any equipment. Just purchase a Mac Pro desktop and a Lynx card. Then you're all set!

Hello Chris,<br />

OK, so I should get a MacPro + Lynx card + (touch)screen and connect it to my DAC.<br />

Still if you would clarify a point.<br />

Do I understand correctly that the main function of the Lynx I/O interface/card is to make sure I get as little jitter as possible? And a very high sampling rate?<br />

If I didn't buy one could I connect the Mac to the DAC using the appropriate cable? With worse results?<br />

Thanks,<br />

GM

Hi GM - My reference system includes a Mac Pro desktop and a Lynx AES16e card. I highly recommend this system.<br />

<br />

Yes, the main function of the Lynx card is very high quality digital output. This means, among other things, very low jitter and the capability to output sample rates up to 24/192.<br />

<br />

Without a Lynx card you can use the Mac's built-in optical port with a Mini-toslink to toslink cable. You'd get up to 24/96 resolution and suffer from the usual optical issues. If you go this route you could use a Mac Mini, MacBook, MacBook Pro, or a Mac Pro desktop. They all have built-in optical outputs.

Hey GM. You don't need to spend mega bucks on a good external clock. If you want to clock the Lynx AES16e card, you can do this with a "pacecar" from empirical audio. I suggest you visit their site.. If you don't want to use the Lynx, Empirical has other ways of reducing jitter from a computer.........AB