arthur

I posted this over at audiocircle, but this is probably a mor appropriate forum: I've been using Seagate external firewire HDD without any problems for a while. Recently, i bought a second hard drive as backup. I went all out and got a Glyph gtp50. It's quite loud, but since it's in a closed off cabinet, the noise is not an issue. Since Glyph is pro grade, i decided to use it as my main HDD and use the Seagate as backup. The one problem that i encountered is that, unlike the Seagate, the Glyph does not go to sleep when i put the Mac Mini to sleep. The manufacturer told me that it's because the "put hard disk to sleep when possible" box was not checked. However, even after i checked it (despite the fact that I'm running a SSD inside the Mac mini), the HDD keeps sounding like it's on - fan roaring and light shining... even after i turn the computer fully off. I've been told OWC does the same. This seems quite wasteful to me in terms of drive longevity and energy consumption. How are the rest of you dealing with this?

I am keeping an eye out for a

How about the eastern Electric MiniMax with a HiFace? Has it been compared to any of the dacs listed above? It looks interesting, especially considering it's ability to switch between solid state and tube.

Thank you for the suggestions - I've tried them with no positive results. Even some of my neighbors are up in arms because even their cordless phones are getting problems. Can't run a wire due to a fireplace in the way. The only thing I'm waiting for is a response from FCC - but considering their indifference thus far, I'm at the mercy of audiogon. Although, I keep wavering on my decision since vast majority of the time it works flawlessly. It's really a battle between common sence vs anal retentiveness - which I guess is at the heart of this "hobby" But, I don't want to hijack this thread, what I wanted to get at was that Airport Express is a great, seamlessly integrated product with bit perfect but jittery sound. If you don't prioritize the video part of Apple TV, I would stay clear of it's upconverting digital output.

Airport Express on it's own sounds like a $70 Kenwood CD player. I have been using an airport express seamlessly with an Empirical Pace Car for past few years. Connected to my Scott Nixon TubeDAC+, the sound is the closest thing I've heard to vinyl in my system... that is until we lost the ability to use wireless devices in the whole neighborhood because of a shady radio station nearby. It's so frustrating switching back to CDs, records, and a wired computer setup

Hi<br /> <br /> I am new to this forum... i mostly lurk at audiocircle.com under the same name.<br /> <br /> I purchased the Pace Car a few months ago right when it came out. I was skeptical at first, since i had never dealt with Empirical Audio before and i usually don't purchase things that have not been out and tested for a while. However, Steve at Empirical promised a 'money back guarantee' so i took the plunge. <br /> <br /> The unit is well built and the sound has exceeded my expectations. I wrote a review of it at <br /> http://www.audiocircle.com/circles/index.php?topic=47245.0<br /> <br /> I had not mentioned built quality in my review, so i'll address it here. It's a sturdy little black box that is easy to tuck away and forget about. All of the connectors appear to be of good quality and the box sits on very soft feet. The only negative i can think of is the back plate seems to have been initially cut for different connectors, but it's not visible from the front and all of the connectors are bolted down in a secure fashion. I'm assuming that this flaw has already been fixed on the newer units.<br /> <br /> Steve tunes each unit to your Airport Express and luckily mine matches the optical output of my DVD player when i play CD's. I wish it could decode the DVD audio signal too. Other than that i'm quite happy with my purchase.