Hoping this is the right folder - advice for DAC integration for Spotify > Airplay set up

[Cebolla]

Just for your info... If you are using Airplay... You are doing a disservice to the audio.

 

Yes, Airplay is a nice concept but anything wireless is real bad.

 

I too thought Airplay was nice with my Apple TV... but I did the following experiment. Playing Spotify directly from my AVR (Integra DHC 80.3) vs playing Spotify via Apple TV via air play.

 

1. Play Spotify with IPad via AirPlay -- Audio was real bad.

2. Connected Ipad to AVR via USB --> Good

3. Play Spotify via AVR --> Excellent

 

If you are using anything wireless... You are missing out... and understandibly it will sound flat.

Just a simple observation here. You seem to be blaming Airplay for bad audio, when the method that resulted in a problem is when you used the Apple TV for Airplay. So may be its the Apple TV itself that's the problem and not Airplay! Did you test streaming Airplay by any other method? You might have a different opinion if your AVR supported Airplay directly, for example.

[spike9876]

Just a simple observation here. You seem to be blaming Airplay for bad audio, when the method that resulted in a problem is when you used the Apple TV for Airplay. So may be its the Apple TV itself that's the problem and not Airplay! Did you test streaming Airplay by any other method? You might have a different opinion if your AVR supported Airplay directly, for example.

 

Yes, you are right... I only have experience using Airplay with Apple TV. I have not used other devices that support Airplay. But honestly, what best device to use Airplay than to use Apples own Apple TV Well, that was my thinking... but I may be wrong...

[Cebolla]

Well said - I'll just sit on the fence on that one and just say that there are also non-Apple devices that support Airplay;)

[Cebolla]

Well said - I'll just sit on the fence on that one and just say that there are also non-Apple devices that support Airplay;)

How about this:

Myro Control | Myro:Air - AirPlay Streamer.

[spike9876]

Honestly, to me... anything wireless that does not have a hard connection is not good. Airplay is convenient but if you care about audio quality... forget about Airplay

[ajm057]

As I understand the audio device settings on the latest gen Mac Book Pro I recently acquired -- AirPlay to my Zepplin and apple TVs is limited to 44,100 htz 2 ch 16 bit.

Whereas the internal spks and headphone can be set at 96kHz 2ch 24 bit

 

On the advice of my hi-fi store, I recently purchased a Furutech ADL X1 DAC together with my new Grado ps1000 cans and using this DAC I can export at 192Khz and 24 bit into the DAC and get phenomenal reproduction -- much better than when I set the output to 44.1 or other lower frequencies. You can select output frequencies in Mac by opening up the Audio Devices panel (I searched for Adjust Midi Set-up)

 

But, here is the real trick -- I bought and play lossless tracks -- FLAC resampled into AIFF or AIFF from HD Tracks and similar - so its is the combination of the high sample rate in the recording with the high sample rate into the DAC pushed into Cans that gives me the best reproduction I can afford.

 

ajm