Network Squeezebox vs. Direct connect via Soundcard

[pstove]

I recently purchased a Squeezebox Touch without fully understanding how it worked.

 

Current setup:

- I have a full Ethernet network and a large dedicated media room.

- My Win7 PC is 25'-30' wall distance from the main stereo.

- PC and Squeezebox attached to Ethernet.

- Wadia 16 (coax) & Sqeezebox (optical) to Benchmark DAC1(non-USB)

- DAC1 connected directly to AMP

 

It seems to work/sound great except that I thought that I could also stream directly from the PC running JRiver through the Squeezebox to the DAC1 without really knowing the SBox was in the path. Instead, it appears I can only use Logitechs software and Squeezebox to access FLAC files stored on the PC. I'm just figuring all this out, but is this going to limit my user interface via JRiver and drive me crazy or is it not going to be much of an issue?

 

Solutions:

1. Should I scrap the SBox and connect PC directly to DAC1 via ASUS DX soundcard and Toslink.

2. Return the DAC1 for the USB model +$300.

3. Leave it be and get used to the SBox as the controller.

 

[twelvebears]

Until I recently simplified my system set-up with a NAD M2 (awesome!), I had a very similar arrangement.

 

I had a SB3 connected via a wired network and an iMac. Both were individually connected to my Benchmark DAC1 (also non-USB), the SB3 via coax and the iMac with an optical cable.

 

Personally, from an audio perspective, there wasn't much between them, though the SB3 did definitely have the edge, but then it had been modded and had a dedicated, regulated PSU.

 

The iMac, like most computers, is a bit compromised as a digital 'transport' in that it was a whole bunch of RF noisy gubbins crammed into a small space. If you think how careful audio manufacturers are to keep any source of noise out of harms way, the innards of a typical computer would have them cringing.

 

That said, the Benchmark is remarkably good at jitter rejection, plus of course, using an optical connection breaks any electrical link between the computer and DAC. It's for this reason that personally I favour an optical connection for any computer, rather than either coax OR USB. Hence the reason why I never bothered with a USB version of the Benchmark.

 

So audio wise, I suggest the SB Touch would be a better option than the PC, but if you were going to use the PC, then a soundcard that offers an optical digital output would probably be preferable to an electrical connection as it isolates the two from each other.

 

As for the user experience of using either JRiver or the SB? Well I have always, and still do use iTunes as my music management tool, but find that I use the SqueezeCentre browser nearly all the time to control the SB3 to play music when I'm at the computer, as I like the way the HTML interface makes all the track, album, artist info a clickable link for navigation.

 

Unless you've got to make a rapid decision, I'd suggest just giving each a go and see what fits.