Apple Airport options/Limitations

[Opusover21]

Can I check the below is correct...

 

1. Airport Express - You can use an Airport Express which is limited to 16/44.1 no more.

2. Airport Extreme has no effect on the audio at all. You can stream 32 bit / 768 kHz if you want but only through USB. There is no firewire or digital output?

3. Apple timeport has the same connections as the Airport Extreme - but with hard-drive built in, auto back-up for leopard and above but doesnt work on my 10.4 Tiger

 

Ideally I want an Extreme + with USB, and Unlimited optical Out...And and wireless Firewire wouldnt go a miss..!

 

[watchnerd]

I thought the USB out on the Airport Extreme could only be used to attach file and print services.

 

Can you stream data over it? I'd never heard of that feature.

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

The USB interface has been very limited by Apple. I believe it's locked down to printers.

 

[Opusover21]

Yes just found it out that its limited to an external hard drive (which was its intention but I cant get it to work yet!) and a USB printer..

 

I got the express and the extreme last night. It was worth a try.. just also found out that the HagUSB device is also limited to 16/44 so wireless with the express is goig to be as good at least...might have to consider good old fashioned wires again!

 

[cfmsp]

 

 

Did you consider the Apple TV instead of Airport Express?

 

The optical out of the Apple TV is superior to that of the Airport Express.

 

Apple TV can function as wireless client (i/e like an AE), and recently, also as a 'repeater' for routing to an Airport Express. NOTE: This last feature is mostly only useful if you're using the Apple TV as the music server interface (via monitor) rather than iTunes.

 

Important note: music files do NOT need to reside on the Apple TV to use it.

To recap, there are two basic configurations:

1) use Apple TV for AirTunes (wireless streaming) support (in the same manner as an AE, altho with much higher quality, albeit in a smaller, hotter, less convenient package), and...

2) use Apple TV as your total music server.

 

the second configuration NOW has the option (with new version of Apple TV software) to route music via Airtunes to an Airport Express (e.g., for streaming on to secondary rig).

 

My music files are on a very large USB drive connected to Airport Extreme. My setup for high-convenience, but stlll high-quality playback is via iTunes - directing the output TO the Apple TV and then on to the DAC via Toslink. You might experience the odd 'artifact' due to wireless streaming (but these can be diminished easily once you understand the nature of their cause).

 

Once I bought an Apple TV (to go with an Extreme) I found little use for my AE except for attaching printer or bedroom system.

 

Good luck,

clay

 

 

 

[watchnerd]

clay, in what was is "the optical out of the Apple TV is superior to that of the Airport Express"?

 

From everything I've read, the Airport Express' optical out is bit perfect.

 

[cfmsp]

 

 

AS I understand it, the jitter of the Airport Express is significantly higher than that of the Apple TV. Steve from Empirical has the measurements, as do others.

 

Whether it is bit-perfect, I can't say. Although I'm not a believer that bit-perfect is the end-all, be-all for digital sound.

 

As we learned as long ago as the original introduction of CD players, being bit-perfect for a 'portion' of the audio chain is a not very useful claim, i.e., it doesn't guarantee good sound quality in-and-of itself.

 

clay

 

[audioengr]

Both AppleTV and AE are bit-perfect, as are all WiFi and networked devices.

 

The jitter is higher on the AE than the Apple TV in stock forms.

 

Neither is as good as a good transport though.

 

Steve N.

Empirical Audio

 

[watchnerd]

Well, Stereophile seems to think the jitter of the AE is nothing to worry about if you're using the digital output:

 

"However, this performance becomes moot when the AE's digital output is used. The grayed-out trace in fig.7 shows a similar spectral analysis of the Musical Fidelity X-DACV3's analog output while it was driven by the AirPort Express via the Monster TosLink cable. The noise floor has dropped by 4–5dB, the word-clock jitter to a respectably low 258ps, which is actually better than the case with the standalone D/A processor driven directly by my PC's S/PDIF output (provided by an RME PCI card)."

 

http://www.stereophile.com/digitalprocessors/505apple/

 

[Opusover21]

Is the apple TV still limited to 14/44.1??

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

My Apple TV outputs everything at 16/44.1.