Which option of music

[ChanmanX]

I have a good DAC/reciever but its the source that the problem

i just want best quality...

i currently do everything from my poorly placed iMac which i need it to get to my DAC somehow which is about 30 feet away

( I live with roommates and don't have a good set up)

Either i use a http://www.amazon.com/BlueRigger-Female-Active-Extension-Repeater/dp/B005LJKEXS?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00 (this would probably me by best and cheapest option has long as this has no effect on my music quality )

 

SONOS CONNECT

bluesound 2

or just get a laptop and place that in with my AV RACK and that would be my main source

[esldude]

Those appear to be the same as the Monoprice version:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Monoprice-32-Feet-Female-Extension-Repeater/dp/B004HJDUW0/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1460422656&sr=1-2&keywords=monoprice+usb+extender

 

Here is a 49 ft one.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Monoprice-Female-Extension-Repeater-Compatible/dp/B004PLLA9U/ref=sr_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1460422656&sr=1-3&keywords=monoprice+usb+extender

 

Also available in longer lengths up to 82 feet.

 

Listening over a 32 foot one right now. Has always worked fine even at 192khz rates.

[master]

Borrow a Raspberry Pi (if you can), or $35 is not a huge spend so get it anyways.

 

IMHO, it beats all PCs and laptops as source/transport.

 

I'm not a huge fan of Sonos, Bluesound not much experience, but for a server/streamer apart from the mighty Pi, I'd consider the AURALiC Aries Mini.

 

Chromecast Audio is not for everyone, but its what I use to transport music from my source - a Synology NAS located in another room, I live in a duplex of 2500 sft. CCA > DAC is how I go about it.

 

Lots to consider, but not the Sonos please.

[ChanmanX]

Thanx will take all these into consideration.

 

the Raspberry Pi looks to be a little bit out of my skill set.

 

[master]

Thanx will take all these into consideration.

 

the Raspberry Pi looks to be a little bit out of my skill set.

 

 

Nope, just insert SD card into laptop or PC, burn an image from moOde (has a thread right here on CA), insert into the Pi and you are all set. Will be done in less than 5 mins, 10 mins if you are doing it the first time.

 

MinimServer will be different as you will need to do it via SSH, but that takes less than 5 mins too. But you can leave all that till you are sure how the Pi sounds and works for you with moOde.

 

More info at http://www.computeraudiophile.com/f11-software/moode-audio-player-raspberry-pi-23858/.

[ChanmanX]

The Aries mini actually looks very cool

Master i'll definitely look into the PI

 

But the price of that USB cord is temping and an easy solution

[Melvin]

ChanmanX .. all those mentioned are nice options. I would opt for the inexpensive USB cord for the short term and look into the other more expensive options to see which, if any, meet your needs/wants. FWIW I purchased a Bluesound Node 2 (it arrives today!). I could have easily gone with the Aries Mini but the Bluesound contraption seemed "just right" for me. Let us know what you decide.

[ChanmanX]

ChanmanX .. all those mentioned are nice options. I would opt for the inexpensive USB cord for the short term and look into the other more expensive options to see which, if any, meet your needs/wants. FWIW I purchased a Bluesound Node 2 (it arrives today!). I could have easily gone with the Aries Mini but the Bluesound contraption seemed "just right" for me. Let us know what you decide.

 

All nice options except SONOS right?

= ]

[marksas3]

Something that the OP has not mentioned is what the source files are. Are they FLAC or ALAC files in iTunes? Hi Res downloads? MP3? Spotify or TIDAL?

Not sure why all the knock against Sonos, yes I agree it may not be the absolute highest quality option out there, but when set to not use compression and streaming Tidal HiFi FLAC files to a good DAC, the sound is pretty damn good, not to mention the quality and ease of use of the SONOS software.

My 2 cents.

[ChanmanX]

Im using 90% TIDAL, 10% iTunes library.

[Snowmonkey]

I stream from a Netgear NAS using a reasonably powerful Netgear Nighthawk R7000 WiFi router to a Chromecast Audio 12 metres away and one storey higher. The music quality is better than I used to get using a 1 metre Audioquest USB cable and a Macbook Air.

[christopher3393]

I stream from a Netgear NAS using a reasonably powerful Netgear Nighthawk R7000 WiFi router to a Chromecast Audio 12 metres away and one storey higher. The music quality is better than I used to get using a 1 metre Audioquest USB cable and a Macbook Air.

 

Interesting. Can you describe more specifically what you mean by "the music quality is better" or is it just an overall impression? Do you attribute this improvement to anything in particular? Thanks.

[ChanmanX]

I have the [h=1]ASUS RT-N66U Dual-Band Wireless-N900 Gigabit Router[/h]

[ChanmanX]

It's assuring to know there is many many viable options for my problem.

[master]

Something that the OP has not mentioned is what the source files are. Are they FLAC or ALAC files in iTunes? Hi Res downloads? MP3? Spotify or TIDAL?

Not sure why all the knock against Sonos, yes I agree it may not be the absolute highest quality option out there, but when set to not use compression and streaming Tidal HiFi FLAC files to a good DAC, the sound is pretty damn good, not to mention the quality and ease of use of the SONOS software.

My 2 cents.

 

I own a Sonos Play 5 and a couple of Play 1s and a Connect so I know it pretty well. I also have a couple of Raspberry Pi's and 4 Chromecast Audios and they pretty much walk all over the Sonos in every area... and especially SQ, which is everything in music.

 

I stream from a Netgear NAS using a reasonably powerful Netgear Nighthawk R7000 WiFi router to a Chromecast Audio 12 metres away and one storey higher. The music quality is better than I used to get using a 1 metre Audioquest USB cable and a Macbook Air.

 

Interesting. Can you describe more specifically what you mean by "the music quality is better" or is it just an overall impression? Do you attribute this improvement to anything in particular? Thanks.

 

The CCA is an excellent device and yes SQ on it is excellent (especially when used as a transport, though the internal DAC is nothing to be ashamed of). I stream from a NAS (Synology) and also from a Pi and use a Netgear Nighthawk X6 myself. In fact since the addition/discovery of the CCA I've moved everything to wireless > CCA > Toslink > DAC based setup and the improvement has been nothing short of a quantum leap.

[marksas3]

Also, if you feel your iMac is poorly placed, try pulling it out from the wall or toeing it in a bit....sorry couldn't resist.

[marksas3]

I own a Sonos Play 5 and a couple of Play 1s and a Connect so I know it pretty well. I also have a couple of Raspberry Pi's and 4 Chromecast Audios and they pretty much walk all over the Sonos in every area... and especially SQ, which is everything in music.

 

The CCA is an excellent device and yes SQ on it is excellent (especially when used as a transport, though the internal DAC is nothing to be ashamed of). I stream from a NAS (Synology) and also from a Pi and use a Netgear Nighthawk X6 myself. In fact since the addition/discovery of the CCA I've moved everything to wireless > CCA > Toslink > DAC based setup and the improvement has been nothing short of a quantum leap.

 

What gear/speakers is your CCA device connected to? In my own experience, i think the Sonos speakers themselves are pretty nice but are definitely more suited for background listening, parties etc than for critical music listening.

 

I've also achieved higher quality music than the Sonos by streaming over CAT6 from my Mac directly to my Marantz AVR and using a BubbleUpNp on an LG tablet.

[Snowmonkey]

Interesting. Can you describe more specifically what you mean by "the music quality is better" or is it just an overall impression? Do you attribute this improvement to anything in particular? Thanks.

The music sounds "clearer" and richer and the soundstage is noticeably wider and deeper. I assume this has a lot to do with the elimination of the PC and particularly USB from the playback chain.

 

In fact since the addition/discovery of the CCA I've moved everything to wireless > CCA > Toslink > DAC based setup and the improvement has been nothing short of a quantum leap.

 

My experience exactly.

[master]

What gear/speakers is your CCA device connected to? In my own experience, i think the Sonos speakers themselves are pretty nice but are definitely more suited for background listening, parties etc than for critical music listening.

 

I've also achieved higher quality music than the Sonos by streaming over CAT6 from my Mac directly to my Marantz AVR and using a BubbleUpNp on an LG tablet.

 

In addition to the Sonos, I've Monitor Audio RX6 FS (mostly used for a HT) and my main rig consists of KEF R300 with Schiit Gungnir Multibit. I also stream to an old pair of JBL monitors, a Sony dock, and also make use of AVRs from Onkyo and Marantz (like I said I've 4 CCAs and stream to multiple rooms).

 

The main rig and where I do the bulk of listening is the KEF R300s and yes even they improved significantly since moving to a Pi + NAS for source and with the addition of a CCA for wireless streaming (I moved the NAS to a different room).

 

Hard to describe (or even believe for folks who have not heard it), but the addition of CCA + Raspberry Pi has raised the SQ by several notches with all of my equipment.

 

DACs are all over the place, from budget ones like SMSL and Schiit to AVR inbuilt DACs, but the main rig uses a Gungnir Multibit, and I also have used Arcam and Rega DACs. Right now though I'd say the Schiit Multibits are the way to go, excellent performance at budget.

[ChanmanX]

The music sounds "clearer" and richer and the soundstage is noticeably wider and deeper. I assume this has a lot to do with the elimination of the PC and particularly USB from the playback chain.

 

 

 

My experience exactly.

 

 

using that 30 USB extender ; which would send better iMAC --> DAC

or BLUESOUND / ARIES --> DAC?

or LAPTOP short USB run --> DAC?

I'm probably more interested in better quality than being convenient

[marksas3]

In addition to the Sonos, I've Monitor Audio RX6 FS (mostly used for a HT) and my main rig consists of KEF R300 with Schiit Gungnir Multibit. I also stream to an old pair of JBL monitors, a Sony dock, and also make use of AVRs from Onkyo and Marantz (like I said I've 4 CCAs and stream to multiple rooms).

 

The main rig and where I do the bulk of listening is the KEF R300s and yes even they improved significantly since moving to a Pi + NAS for source and with the addition of a CCA for wireless streaming (I moved the NAS to a different room).

 

Hard to describe (or even believe for folks who have not heard it), but the addition of CCA + Raspberry Pi has raised the SQ by several notches with all of my equipment.

 

DACs are all over the place, from budget ones like SMSL and Schiit to AVR inbuilt DACs, but the main rig uses a Gungnir Multibit, and I also have used Arcam and Rega DACs. Right now though I'd say the Schiit Multibits are the way to go, excellent performance at budget.

 

....and using what for source files mainly? (on the KEF rig / Schiit setup)

[master]

....and using what for source files mainly? (on the KEF rig / Schiit setup)

 

FLAC rips, 99% at 16/44.1. A few 24/96. Tidal via BubbleUpnP Control Point > CCA. Nothing high res or beyond 24/96.

 

I also stream a lot of lower quality content from the likes of iHeartRadio, Spotify, and many streaming services, but this would constitute background listening or music discovery and not critical listening.

[17629]

I would get a cable from a place like Best Buy and try it first. It can always be returned so there's no risk.

 

If you have a smart phone or tablet, you may be able to use it as a remote. That might be another option for you.

[Rexp]

FLAC rips, 99% at 16/44.1. A few 24/96. Tidal via BubbleUpnP Control Point > CCA. Nothing high res or beyond 24/96.

 

I also stream a lot of lower quality content from the likes of iHeartRadio, Spotify, and many streaming services, but this would constitute background listening or music discovery and not critical listening.

Your approach sounds really interesting, when you say control point are you using an Android device to stream Tidal to CCA? And how does it compare to same FLAC file from your NAS? TIA

[master]

Your approach sounds really interesting, when you say control point are you using an Android device to stream Tidal to CCA? And how does it compare to same FLAC file from your NAS? TIA

 

Yes, BubbleUPnP app on my Moto X. Most of the streaming services have their own apps that also support casting to CCA.

 

Tidal though needs a workaround, detailed here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfygXym0Ypw.

 

SQ is the same, honestly I'm not sure I'd be able to pick in a DBT always. But if I had to choose, I'd pick the local FLAC content over Tidal, entirely subjective, but I find a tad bit more detail in my FLAC rips over Tidal. But its very subtle and only reserved for music I'm extremely familiar with and have heard 100s of times, but its easy to pick the soft cymbals on a Dire Straits album on my rips, have to really look for them on Tidal.