Not gonna convert my FLAC files to ALAC; what's my best server/computer option?

[Mike Rubin]

I am sure the answer to this question is buried somewhere in this massive forum, but I did not see anyone asking my specific question. If I missed the question being addressed elsewhere, my apologies for bad search skills.

 

I have more than a terrabyte of FLAC files that, until now, have been loaded, with various degrees of redundancy, on (1) a NAS controlled by a PC, a Mac, two Android tablets, and an iPhone; and (2) two Olive servers (one an original Opus, unmodified, and the other a Redwine modified Musica upgraded to a 750gb hard drive). The Musica, which stored 450gb of FLAC, just suffered a massive hard drive crash. Now I have found it nearly impossible to find a replacement 750gb 2.5 inch IDE drive and, more to the point, Redwine may no longer have the ability to reflash the drive and board ROM to recognize a drive of that size. (The Olive natively does not work with drives that large.) As a result, I have concluded the Musica is irreparable. (If you're interested, you can have it for a lot less than I paid for it, "as is.") The NAS is connected by ethernet to my router and the Olives have been connected via ethernet to a wireless bridge in another room that has a strong G signal but a very weak N one.

 

To replace the Musica, I am thinking of something that can control or access all of my FLAC files. (At present, the only way I do that is with my Android and iPhone devices via UPnP/DLNA.) Since I have more than a TB of FLAC now, I think I realistically ought to get something that can address a 2tb drive and is not limited to smaller ones. I see two realistic options: (1) a device like the Olives that either (a) includes an internal drive and permits a non-proprietary-format backup or (b) can access both primary and backup drives via two USB or Firewire ports, OR (2) a computer-based server, whether Mac or PC. So far, my assessment of choices aligns perfectly with what other posters here see as realistic.

 

My preliminary investigations indicate that the new Wyred4Sound Music Server might fit the bill because it functions much like the Olive did and provides an i2s connection to my W4S DAC, but it may not be able to address 2 tb internally or, failing that, permit external drives to be both the source of the primary and redundant libraries. I haven't seen anything similar that has internal storage in the 2tb range or multiple USB/Firewire ports, but I admit I've only researched this since yesterday, so maybe I do need to hit the books.

 

Unless there's another audio server component product that fits the 2tb library bill, I realistically am looking at a small computer to act as a server and to be installed in the space in my audio cabinet where the Musica now resides. I worked at Apple for a dozen years, so am a bit of a fanboy, but I consciously chose FLAC as my file system to avoid being tied down to a niche alternative lossless format. I am willing to consider a Mini, but, realistically, it would take the rest of my life to convert all my FLAC to ALAC and, thus far, I am not entirely satisfied with FLAC file management on the Mac. I have Pure Music and, while it purports to support FLAC natively, the file management requirements seemed quite kludgy to me when I last tried using FLAC with it. (I have not tried accessing FLAC with Pure Music since before the last update, so I'll be interested in knowing if it is easier now.) Almost all of the Mini postings I've read on this forum are from owners who use ALAC rather than FLAC, but I'd be very interested in knowing if any of you manage a FLAC library effectively on a Mini.

 

If I were to use a small-form PC in lieu of a Mini, I'd want to find an alternative that sounds as good as the Mini in a decent system. I haven't begun that research and am hoping that others here might point me in the right direction if it's not feasible to manage FLAC on a Mini without a lot of workarounds or kludges. Care to point me in the right direction?

 

Thanks for any input you can offer.

 

EDIT: Forgot to mention that the system will need to be headless. It will reside in an audio cabinet that makes using a laptop impractical (not enough space between shelves to open it) and the closest HDTV would be a 15-foot HDMI cable run. So, headless, controlled by VNC or a web interface on a tablet, would be good, I think.

 

[firedog]

If I understood your requirements, it sounds like one of the Sonore servers would fit the bill. I believe they have internal HD storage of up to 3 TB; and you can back them up to any USB HD.

 

Headless, fanless, and certainly controllable by Anrdroid or Apple phone or tablet.

 

If it doesn't exactly fit your requirements, ask them. They will custom make you one.

 

[joelha]

Why would it take the "rest of my life" to convert your FLAC files to ALAC?

 

I did it, very reluctantly as all of my other computers are Windows PC's, and I'm glad I did.

 

DbPoweramp will convert your entire collection at one time in about a day or two (depending on the speed of your computer).

 

While I'd be happy to play my FLAC collection on my Mac Mini as easily as I can my ALAC collection, if conversion is your only issue, I don't believe you have much of an issue.

 

And with that file conversion, you'll have many more attractive options.

 

Good luck,

 

Joel

 

[realhifi]

The real question is why are you going direct into your hifi from a computer?

 

Your main focus is on FLAC so far (you have a lot of it now), would like to control it "headless" as you call it, have at least one NAS. Now, if it was ME thinking about this I would be thinking long and hard about finding a way to network this all so that I didn't have to change any files, could play any file I wanted to moving forward and simply and easily find any of my NAS or computers in my house and play back whatever was on them.

 

I honestly think a look at networking options at the hifi end are WELL worth your time in looking up the plus's and minus's

of this type of computer HD playback. Think, on the fly change of file resolutions, playback of anything (including whatever you find to play in a video, etc.) etc, etc.

 

[Mike Rubin]

Thanks, gents for all of these comments. Thus far, you've each advocated an option I've considered. I do have a NAS now and can stream from it to devices connected to my DAC (Squeezebox Touch for quick and dirty and to the now-dead Musica for serious listening), but I think the software options are a bit crude, since I'd have to rip on a computer, move the files to the NAS, have the NAS scan the new files in the database, and then stream to a device in the system. Because the Squeezebox Touch doesn't sound as good as the Musica does (did), I am going to have to buy another client located near the DAC, so I am going to have to add equipment one way or the other if I want something that sounds better than the Touch.

 

With respect to the FLAC conversion, I've converted FLAC to ALAC before and the conversion time was as slow as converting AIFF to FLAC in the first place. With a terrabyte of data, I really do think that even batch conversion is going to take a lot longer than I want to wait and, in the process, it will prevent me from using the same files on the NAS and on the Android devices, since ALAC really only works within a pretty Applecentric environment.

 

Finally, I don't know the Sonore, but, if it's like the Olive and can store the quantities you've mentioned, it ought to be on the list. I'll check it out.

 

Thanks very much for this input. It's exactly what I am after.

 

[4est]

I batch converted over a terabyte of files from ALAC>AIFF and it took about a day to do. It is not that you have to watch it or anything...

 

[Paul R]

I would look at attaching the SQ Touch to a really good DAC, tweaking it a bit, or both. I listened to a SQ Touch against an Olive and a Bryston last week, and by golly, playing through the same DAC, it sounded as good as the Olive and pretty close to the Bryston. (This was through a a Bryston DAC mind, as well as some less expensive DACs.)

 

-Paul

 

 

[Audio_ELF]

I'm probably repeating what other people have already said but here goes...

 

1) pre-built custom designed appliance player: Bryston BDP1 (requires connected USB disks) or Sonore (internal HDD) system come instantly to mind. Both are basically Linux PCs which run headless and controlled via apps on iOS / Android devices or on a separate laptop. The obvious option would be Sonore who can build you an appliance with HDMI Cabled i2s to connect to your Wyred4Sound DAC1. Chris has reviewed both a version of the Sonore player -- http://www.computeraudiophile.com/content/Sonore-Music-Server-Review -- and the Auraliti player -- http://www.computeraudiophile.com/content/Auraliti-PK100-File-Player-Review

 

2) build your own: a good starting point would be Chris' CAPS article -- http://www.computeraudiophile.com/content/Computer-Audiophile-Pocket-Server-CAPS-v20 -- which you could adapt (a different case would be required) to have internal storage or access your NAS. This runs Windows so a USB connection to your DAC is possible. There's no reason an adapted version of the CAPS couldn't also rip CDs.

 

3) Mac Mini: as others have commented, conversion to AIFF (or Apple Lossless) is a start and forget process so shouldn't really be a stumbling block.

 

4) streamer device: this would replace your DAC as well but options form (amongst others) Naim and Linn would communicate direct with your NAS. You'll obviously need a separate computer for ripping (as you would with other options mentioned - only Sonore and MacMini are capable of ripping), though a VortexBox or RipNAS appliance could be used in place of your current NAS.

 

Eloise

 

[Mike Rubin]

Again, great suggestions and food for thought from all of you. Just a few comments:

 

(1) My concerns about (a) the length of time it will take to batch convert a few jillion files probably are misplaced, based on others' experiences, and (b) Applecentricity preventing me from using the Squeezebox also is needless, as Logitech claims one can stream Apple Lossless.

 

(2) The primary reason I kept my modded Musica around after getting the Squeezebox is that it sounded much better to my ears, into the same Wyred4Sound DAC-2. Of course, that's what the mods were supposed to accomplish at great cash outlay, so not too much of a surprise there. I can get by with the Squeezebox and will do so until I replace the Musica but that I had better sound quality from the Musica is my primary motivation for replacing it. I haven't looked into Squeezebox mods (in fact, wasn't aware there are any available), but that could be an option, too, since the files in question already are duplicated on the NAS that streams to the Squeezebox.

 

I appreciate the suggestions.

 

 

 

[extracampine]

audioelf - why would you have to adapt the CAPS to have access to a NAS - doesnt it have an ethernet port as a connection on the motherboard?

 

[Mike Rubin]

But mine wants to be connected to the router rather than a computer, perhaps simply because the router's always on and the computer is not.

 

[Audio_ELF]

@extracampnie... Sorry you're right I wasn't clear: I meant it you wanted internal storage you could build something similar to the CAPS in a case with space for a 3.5" drive. Of corse for Using a NAS the "standard" CAPS is fine.

 

Eloise

 

[Paul R]

The primary hardware mod is replacing the wall wart power supply, which made an astonishing difference to me, even using a cheap Pyramid supply from Amazon.

 

The software mods are really fun to play with. And easily erased too, which is a great benefit I think.

 

Here's a few links. I loaded "Soundcheck"'s mods, took 5 minutes, and I really like the difference. It's smoother, and sounds detailed without the harsh edge. It also did something to the soundstage I like, though I have not yet pinned down exactly what that change is.

 

Playing around with scheduling priorities can make huge differences too.

 

Just play with it a bit, and have some fun.

 

Oh yeah, and it does ALAC, FLAC, and AIFF just fine. My library has all three in it right now.

 

-Paul

 

http://soundcheck-audio.blogspot.com/2011/11/touch-toolbox-30.html

 

https://sites.google.com/site/computeraudioorg/squeezebox-touch-tweaks

 

 

[orgel]

Mike Rubin wrote:

 

"Almost all of the Mini postings I've read on this forum are from owners who use ALAC rather than FLAC, but I'd be very interested in knowing if any of you manage a FLAC library effectively on a Mini."

 

I've been using FLAC files on a 2011 Mini running Lion with Pure Music. You're correct that PM's handling of FLAC files is kludgy in that it fools iTunes into thinking the FLAC files are ALAC files, but other than that, I haven't had any problems. All seems well, and I was very pleased at how well PM handled things when I initially dropped a folder containing multiple layers of subfolders onto PM's "Add FLAC or DSD files..." windoid. The folder totaled about 200GB worth of FLAC, and PM imported all the FLAC files therein without a hiccup. Since then, I've been adding FLACs roughly an album's worth at a time and thus far (knock on wood), no issues. I'm up to around 400GB currently.

 

Also, if kludginess remains a concern, I'll second the opinion that it wouldn't take all that long to convert ~1TB of FLAC files to ALAC. Lossless-to-lossless conversions are pretty quick, in my experience.

 

My biggest gripe about PM is the ugliness of its UI. Wish they'd work on that.

 

Prior to switching to Pure Music, I was using Fidelia Advanced, and that handles FLAC files without the kludge factor, but (1) you don't have the convenience of the iTunes database when using the FLACs -- Fidelia's own database is pretty bare bones, and (2) I switched to Pure Music because I reluctantly came to the conclusion that it yielded better SQ than Fidelia (which has a much prettier UI).

 

--David

 

[Mike Rubin]

I haven't ruled out a Mini by any means, since I am trying not to rush into anything and so many of the alternative solutions aren't quite ready for primetime yet (e.g., W4S and Salk units each have their selling points but haven't actually appeared in the marketplace yet). At this point, though, I'm probably leaning towards a Sonore unit because it's fairly similar to the Olive I am replacing, avoids RAID 0, and can play i2s into my W4S DAC, which otherwise would require proprietary drivers to use with a Mac. But, for once, I am taking my time to do some research.

 

[orgel]

The I2S seems like a solid plus, since you've got the W4S DAC. I can certainly relate to finding a better way to connect to a DAC than via USB. That's one reason why that Mytek Digital Stereo192-DSD-DAC is on my short list of imminent purchases. I'd love to see a $1K-$1.5K DAC with Thunderbolt in. Probably be a while [sigh].

 

--David