What are my options? (Mac and iPhone)

[01svtL]

Hi all, first post.  I will preface this by saying I'm a moron when it comes to all of this.  Apparently I've been living under a rock, as I can't even explain what DLNA means.  I'll just say what I'm trying to accomplish and see if you guys can tell me the missing link between what I have and where I'm trying to get to.

 

I'm looking to play FLAC and ALAC files through my main living room home audio system.  It is probably considered mid-fi, possibly low-fi, to most on here.  My current setup so far is an NAD T757 out to a pair of Martin Logan Motion 40 mains and dual subs.  I currently use the Vox app on my iPhone 8s+ to play ALAC and FLAC via the lightning port with headphone to component audio cable.  The sound is already pretty good to me, but I've never heard truly hi-resolution audio played through a real high end system before, so take that for what it's worth.  I also have a 2014 Mac laptop that I could potentially use.  

 

My current issue is I don't want to have to get up and walk over to my phone to change the song or equalizer setting etc.  

 

My first thought is to connect my Mac to either a USB DAC or directly to my AVR via a USB-SPDIF converter, (as I am certain the NAD's DAC is at least better than the iPhone's) and then remotely control playback via my iPhone from my main listening position.  The bit of research I've done would suggest this is possible?   Assuming it is, is it possible to do without the laptop open, up and running?  In other words, could I leave the screen closed so the laptop can stay more compact/hidden and still access and control playback via my iPhone?  Turn the laptop into a server via downloaded software or something?  I was hoping to build a low profile sliding tray into the bottom of my AV cabinet that the laptop could slide into and just be hidden. 

 

I also have my old iPhone 6s that I mainly use to listen to music on my Bluetooth speaker outside, but I could certainly dedicate it to my main system if it makes sense in a way I haven't yet considered.

 

Is there a better way to do this utilizing the components I already have without having to spend more than $2-300 and add too much more to the chain? (cables not included)

 

Alternatively, if they are truly easy to set up and use, for a newbie like me, I would consider something like the Allo Boss Player or maybe even Katana Player.  I guess I could stream files from the Mac if I set it up as the server?  I don't understand hardly any of the Acronyms that people use when talking about the RPi, nor do I have any idea how to code.  (Youtube would help I suppose)

[01svtL]

No help for a newbie?

[kumakuma]

One option would be put your music on the Mac, connect it to a USB DAC, and run JRiver on it. 

 

Possible DACs would be one from iFi or a Dragonfly.

 

You can use your phone to control JRiver using the JRemote app.

 

Not sure whether or not this will work with the laptop screen closed. 

[wgscott]

I wasn't clear if the laptop is Apple.  If so, just open up Terminal and type: 

 

sudo pmset -a lidwake 0 

This will disable the sleep/wake feature when opening or closing the lid. 

To reenable it, type: 

 

sudo pmset -a lidwake 1 

To check the status of the lid wake feature type: 

 

pmset -g 

 

The NAD's DAC on your AVR should be more than adequate.  There may be other limitations to using an AVR, but at least try it with that first, since it will give you an inexpensive baseline.  Your laptop might use optical, so that would be an inexpensive digital hookup.