jerry_rig

I have been using a Mac Pro (late 2013) with 3.7 GHz and 20 GB RAM for some time now as a dedicated, headless source. My files are on a 480GB OWC SSD using a firewire-to-Thunderbolt adapter. The Mac Pro feeds a Playback Designs MPD-5 via USB. From my experience, it is MUCH quieter and better sounding than either my MacBook Pro (retina) or my Mac Mini. Given the prices I've seen for some of the dedicated music servers, the cost, at under 3K is quite reasonable, particularly for what you get. Definitely not overkill.

Bump. Price reduced to $300. Thanks. Jerry

Should do very well. Good luck.

I am running A+ 1.5.10 and playing native up to 192 and DSD. I haven't tried up sampling, but don't see the need with my DAC (Playback Designs MPD-5). The Pro tower really is heads and shoulders above the mini in my system. It also trounces my retina Macbook Pro. Output is higher, highs more extended, etc., etc.

I went for the quad core 3.7 Mz 2014 Mac Pro and find it far superior to my mini. Also went for 20GB ram. It is VERY quiet and trouble free. My thinking was I wanted the highest clock speed and few current music apps will benefit from the multithreading capabilities of a 6 - 12 core machine.

I have been playing guitar since age 13 and bass since 17. Been in many bands over the years and thought about a career in music. But chose to get a doctorate in economics and work in finance in NYC. Did that for 30 years and now am semi-retired in SW FL. And I get to sit in on bass (and sing) every Wednesday night with a local guitarist who plays a harp guitar. He has a Michael Hedges vibe. I don't need the money, so I play for free. Having too much fun.

As noted above, it is VERY quiet. I am obsessive about ambient noise and I can not hear it at all, unless I am literally on top of it at 1 foot away.

I have been using the latest Mac Pro since last fall. It is the 3.7GHz quad core with 20 GB RAM and 256GB PCIe flash drive. I run it headless (using my LAN) and have a 480 GB SSD external firewire drive connected via a Thunderbolt to firewire 800 adapter. I run the USB out to my Playback Designs DAC. It sounds much better than my Mac Mini or my Macbook Pro (15 inch retina). Hard to imagine a more stable or better sounding source.

I use Sonore's ISO2DSD app for OS X. It is freeware and works great. I think Ted_b can point you to it. Good luck. Jerry

I have my DSD iso files converted to DSF and they play fine using A+ 1.5.10 through my MPD-5. When loading a song, the display first shows 176.4 and then quickly switches to DSD. I haven't tried to play iso directly, but maybe you should try a few DSF or DFF files first to see if there is something else going on.

I too have been thinking about this. If it makes any sense, the answer is a bottom up, music focused operating system, rather than an app running on OS X (or whatever). It would be scaled way back and all about delivering the best (cleanest) music signal possible with minimal support for anything else.

I was under the impression that the main reason to upgrade is the improvement in sound quality that comes from de-linking from iTunes. Personally, I am happy with iTunes as a library manager while using A+ in integrated mode. And I can play DSD and Flac just fine using A+ 1.5.10. I have been using A+ for over 4 years and would love to help support Damien's efforts. But like many others, I am concerned about the user friendliness and stability of 2.*, so I have stood by waiting. The iOS app would be at least one reason to test the waters. The other, more important factor would be better sound.

I am running A+ 1.5.10 on the current (late 2013) Mac Pro 3.7GHz Quad-Core with 20GB DDR3 RAM (I bought the 12GB base model and added an 8GB OWC module), and the 256GB PCIe flash memory. Music is stored on a 480GB Firewire 800 SSD, connected with a Thunderbolt to Firewire adapter. USB -> Playback Designs MPD-5. I don't know if A+ supports multithreading, so I don't know if more cores will buy you much. Nor do I know if the GPUs are used at all. As is usually the case, more RAM is better. I went for the fastest base processor and use the machine headless and optimized only for music. Running Yosemite as the OS, the machine works very well. It outperforms sonically, and by a wide margin, my Macbook Pro Retina or my Mac Mini. And it is totally silent. I can't imagine you're going to get better performance with a dedicated music server, but hey, anything is possible.

Where do I get these kind of speakers? I am pretty sure those are JBL L-100 "Century" speakers. And I'm sure you know that, although OK in their time, they are not considered the bees knees amongst audio aficionados. Google the youtube Classic Maxell Commercial to hear for yourself.