UNC

I have a Synology 411slim connected to my network via Cat 6 cable. My HP laptop runs JRiver 17. My question is this: Does it matter how my HP laptop retrives media from the NAS? Is there advantage to directly connecting the NAS to the HP laptop via a eSATA cable? Currently it finds the NAS on the network and retrieves data via the Cat 6 ethernet network cables. Any advice would be much appreciated. System: Synology 411slim- HP Laptop Win 7 (JRiver 17) - Cambridge Audio Dacmagic Plus - Rotel RSP 1068 - Rotel RMB 1095 - B&W 703.

New to site/forum. Sorry if I make any posting blunders. Need help/advice on which DAC out there may best suite my system. That is, one that matches my system from both a price and quality perspective. My system: HP Laptop (Windows Vista), JRiver Music Center, Rotel RSP-1080 Pre-amp, Rotel RMB 1095 5 channel amp, Rotel RMB 1090 2 channel amp, Oppo 83SE CD/DVD, Monster Power Conditioner 3500, AudioQuest cables, B&W 703, B&W HTM7, B&W 705 surrounds, B&W ASW750 and Defintitive Technology SuperCube Reference 15 sub. While I like the Berkely Audio Alpha DAC and Ayre QB9, they seem to outmatch my midfi system. I have looked at CA DacMagic Plus, Arcam rDAC, Musicfidelity M1DAC, all of which seem around the similar price range. Any thoughts or suggestions would be great! Thanks, UNC