I imagine there are threads that address my questions, so please feel free to point me in the right direction.
I finally am abandoning my analog system. This makes me very much a computer audiophile newbie. I have just purchased, and am now waiting for delivery of, a new Windows laptop w/ largish SSD and an exaSound e12 DAC. This unit has one input, that being USB. This solution appears to me to be the most budget friendly, and yet will yield a considerable improvement in SQ, not to mention native DSD capability. I am wondering:
-- If I still wish to get an FM radio signal to my amps I suppose I have the option of adding a high quality passive preamp downstream of the e12. Is this the equivalent of turning gold into lead?
-- My daughter is back from college as of earlier this week. She will want to plug her iPhone into the system to play all her tunes. Can I route that signal through my laptop and thus through the e12? These will only be mp3 files.
-- I know nothing about NAS devices. The modem and router are in the back office. I have no interest in running an Ethernet cable from the office at the back of the house to the listening room near the front of the house. There is a wireless signal to the listening room, but I am reluctant to access Flac or DSD files wirelessly. May I tether an external hard drive, (solid state or otherwise) directly to the laptop via USB and access files from this hard drive?
I thank you.