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  1. You are very welcome. It's always good to know the best settings to enjoy your setup. If you have a quality type system, Airport is very good too but you need to use a quality glass toslink cable.
  2. I've used both versions of the Mac Mini, the G4 and the Intel version. The latter is currently used as a music server with an external Western Digital 500GB hard drive. The new ones will be out shortly and many of us consider using the mini as a video source of sorts. I've run Netflix from the mini and it's pretty good on a 106" home theater. I know it would be much better if I get the new one to replace the Intel 1.6 Core Solo I use now. The reason you should go with an intel mac mini is for the audio optical output. Using a glass toslink cable, I use the Sonicwave is going to be super quality. I have mine going into a Lavry DA-10 DAC and the results are just superb. When you do get your mac mini, remember to go into applications folder and open the audio/midi software and set the output to 24 bit. It makes for a great quality output. You really can't beat this for the money. And IMHO, it works fine for a really high quality audio system or just any combination of solid stuff. www.macrumors.com has a recent story on the new rumored mac minis. They should be excellent not just for audio but for video (High Def).
  3. Dear Tog, Let me put it this way and in a somewhat more serious vein than Tim. Almost all of the vibrations do in fact have an impact on the equipment but stand makers are not doing it in any scientific method to demonstrate it. You can color it somewhat with pointy feet, rubber pucks, sorbothane and such products but until you go the full route, you just won't know. Check into Grand Prix Audio's website if you are curious. But know that going in you may find out it's beyond what you imagined. What happened to me was I got a trial stand, 100% full money back guarantee if not satisfied. Once I put everything on that Grand Prix Monaco rack it was all over. All the scientific measurements meant nothing. But most of the folks in the isolation game aren't doing any of that. I've had equipment come and go along the way since, but that stand, nary a thought of it going. To answer your questions, yes they have vibrations in a recording studio. The vibrations are existent everywhere. It's just the amount and nature of it that we don't know how it affect the equipment. Even midrange amps, and preamps. When an entire system is on such a rack as the Grand Prix Monaco, where every piece is weighed and set up to that corresponding shelf, well that's the answer - when it hits your ears. But it does have a luxury price tag. I think that if you don't whole hog, then sorbothane pucks are the best little bang for the buck. But it's just relatively a small improvement.
  4. You can really hear the difference in a flat system sound and when it's got life when sitting on the Grand Prix Monaco Stand. It's so obvious to hear, you can't believe it. Unlike other products, the designer of the stand used to work on race cars to remove vibration and he left that to try the same concept in audio. He's really an amazing guy. And he's the only person in that arena I've heard that did measurements and also a white paper. So you'd have to try it for yourself. But with a reduced babe bones system and self-powered speakers, maybe the results would be minimal, I have no idea. My system: Intel mac mini - Sonicwave glass toslink - Lavry DA10 - PS Audio GCP-200 Preamp - NHT 500W digital amp - 2.1 speakers. Also have a double modded Sony 777ES SACD player sitting on the top on a special Grand Prix carbon shelf. Would say that most of the vibration products are really coloration as it's not removing the majority so you are merely doing a flavor. At one point I had a system "floating" on the aurios products but this is not in the same league. Not even close. See more for yourself: http://www.grandprixaudio.com/
  5. I have a Grand Prix Monaco rack and its impact on my audio equipment and this is with pieces coming and going is not arguable. I keep an intel core solo mac mini on the bottom rack but it is sitting on top of a PS Audio Premier Power Plant. And an external WD 500GB HDD also sits on the shelf. Not sure if there is any audible improvements with the computer stuff though. But it isn't leaving the shelf either. And the clarity of my system is stunning.
  6. Hopefully the cat won't knock down that odd silver pole with the computer piece hanging off the side. Cuz you know that's inevitable. But really no surprise here. Why not take advantage of the computer aspects to build something into a design you can sell readily? Not my cup of tea as once you start building what you want, the dollars go where you'd like them to, not integrated into one system forever. I do however have a stand that costs about as much as this system: the Grand Prix Monaco. And it's ability to silence vibration does have an audible quality that makes you smile.
  7. Alex, Much better. Not sure how you are connecting to your system, either from the AE by the analog connection or optical but the latter should produce a great improvement. I had an AE as part of an extended network. Was connecting to my preamp analog and thought the sound was fine. Once I got a DAC and a glass toslink cable (Sonicwave) I learned what I had been missing. Much lower noise floor and just a finer presentation all around. Using the NHT system which is known for its accuracy and clarity, I was really impressed when I had to move an Intel Mac Mini to another room from its music server role in the living room to a den as a day to day machine. Honestly, I can tell you that the AE connected with the Sonicwave optical to the Lavry DA10 DAC sounded as good as the direct connection. Was really amazed by that. Had a few dropouts but made sure to buffer iTunes to large and that ended the dropouts. Anyway, enjoy the music and if you get a chance see if you can get an optical connection from the AE instead of the analog (one to two wire output) connection. You may be really surprised by how much better your system sounds.
  8. Nice setup and seeing a reel to reel is pretty wild but don't know those TAD speakers. Really am skeptical about the 30K massive price tag for a two way speaker. That seems too much and yes, I bet they sound really good.<br /> <br /> They do have a nice size ration and I wouldn't mind hearing them. Just can't see the pricetag. Wonder how much "weight" they deliver. I had a pair of B&W 803 Nautilus that I liked with powerful solid state power like those Pass Labs and liked even more the fuller sound the 802 and 801s in that family could produce. I'm wondering how these TADs would compare. <br /> <br /> Is it even necessary to run Pass Labs monoblocks with those speakers I wonder?<br /> <br /> The Blue-Ray soundtracks sound interesting. Since we won't ever have SACD accepted we do need something and maybe this will be the more widespread improvement at some point. <br /> <br />
  9. Never, not even a fiber cable. Only a glass optical cable although I haven't heard those speakers but if they have optical audio in then it's a waste not to take advantage of the difference in a fiber vs. glass optical cable. I have a secondary set of speakers that I use in a bedroom, the AudioEngine 5s and I only wish they had optical in. If they did I would run a glass tosslink (Sonicwave's very good) from the Apple Airport Express to the speakers. Would agree thought with the idea as the price of entry now for some great flexibility in handling a music library and getting decent sound has never been better. The Intel Mac Mini is a great choice to build your sound system from and a good DAC for a main system doesn't hurt either. I use a Lavry DA10 and connect that to my main system and it's very, very good. BTW, no one is saying you have to surrender your PC. But if you can afford to buy even a used Intel Mac Mini, you have some big advantages. You can set it up as a music server or even dual use with video. You can control it running iTunes from your PC or an iTouch or iPhone (I use the 3G on occasion) with Apple's "Remote" application. The Intel Mac Mini & Lavry DA10 source base competes very well with my Sony SACD 777ES tank which has been modded twice over the years for a lot more money. They sound the same which is amazing. The Sony was originally $3,000 and I paid less but spent about that with two different modifications. Of course it plays SACD which is unmatched but wow, what a great inroad with a mac mini and Lavry DA10 DAC. (Apple also has a refurbished store that does great work for lower prices but no mac mini there right now. Rumor is that a new Mac Mini will be coming out in March fwiw.)
  10. speedy recovery for Steve and the best to his family in this time. Hopefully this is not related to that rare form of pancreatic cancer he beat. Hoping for the best. He's been the biggest factor in turning Apple around and what it is today.
  11. Well with all the firewire and usb DACs it seems that a lot of people think there is a better output using that instead of the optical option. Pretty cool that the G4 powerbook had the optical option. Hadn't realized that when I had one.
  12. Maybe this is obvious but when you are in iTunes go into the Advanced drop down menu and under streaming choose large. Also, if you can keep any metal objects away from the AE that may help. Elevating it a bit where possible shouldn't hurt either. I had some dropouts on rare occasions using two AE in different rooms. Changing to the large streaming option helped. But I don't send the music wireless most recently as I changed my setup just about when iTunes 8 came out. Not sure of that being the issue as described here. I had been using a external HDD with an Intel Core Solo Mac Mini, so a little different there too.
  13. Curious as to why so many look at firewire and usb as being the optimum connection to a quality DAC. Currently using an Intel Mac Mini with the optical out using a Sonicwave glass tosslink to the Lavry DA10. The Lavry is a very solid performer and have recently gone to 24 bit (via audio/midi) with excellent results to an NHT system. As the Lavry has an AES input, not sure if it would be worth the effort. Any comments on this as well is appreciated.
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