joepublic107

From all the comments I've read here re mac vs windows, itunes vs other media players, minimising CPU load etc, etc, it seems like tinkering with a common computer for use as a audiophile source is somewhat of an interim solution, and dedicated music servers optimised for audio and or video will become the high end products adopted by audio equipment manufacturers, I suppose like the Sooloos or Olive players. Appreciate that changing caps, or trying differnt tubes is somewhat similar to tweaking, however that is adapting equipment originally and specifically designed for audiophiles.. Cheers, Tom

Thanks for all your opinions/comments. I live in Hong Kong, and while there has been a growing number of computer based systems present in the HK HiFi show over the years, I would estimate ~20% of the show using CAS as a source, ~20% turntables and the large majority using traditional CD players as the source. The annual exhibition is coming up in August, so I will see if there has been a significant shift to CAS since last year. I wonder what HiFi stores will look like in a few years.. all filled with computers and DAC's instead of CD players? Perhaps proprietary systems like the Sooloos etc.. Oh and I learn't a bit more about this Amarra software. However isn't this just software upsampling, and couldn't it be done in the DAC (similar to upscaling a DVD to HD resolution?). Sorry for my ignorance if this is a silly question. Cheers, Tom

Thanks for all your replies. Some comments and questions.. Re high resolution files, how many high res recordings are available? If I wanted to listen to Lady Gaga for instance (just kidding) is there a high res release of her albums? Re Sweet Spot, I was trying to suggest, is there a point where say at $2,000 (or $7,200 for that matter) whereby the CAS system quite clearly outperforms a traditional CD based system of the same cost? Re Other costs, are items like Ammara software and interconnects esoteric nice to have's or are they really fundamental, without which, the system is significantly downgraded? By that I mean in general for traditional CD based system, even if you have silver interconnects, the difference to the sound is relatively subtle (colouration etc), in a CAS system, do the software and digital cable make a relatively bigger impact on the sonic representation? Mr RealHiFi, I agree $7,200 would be a lot to spend on a traditional player, but then if spending the same on a CAS system; would either system give stunning results? Paul, re the comparison rationale; I was just looking at it from a sonic results point of view. I agree the Mac Mini can do all sorts of other things. Good to learn your setup is better than the equivalent CD based system Jud, re the jitter issue, should the question be: Does a traditional CD player internally handle jitter better than via async USB? I'm not technical enough to answer that, but happy to hear any comparison. Re the player issue, isn't the compter just supposed to send out 1's and 0's in a hopefully bit perfect way, and then the DAC convert that into some analog representation? Does Ammarra somehow help make the 1's and 0's come out better from the computer? Jdebonth: Thanks for that, in the end if I can spend (for instance) $2,000 on the best CAS system (whatever that may be) which sounds as good as the best sounding (not just any overpriced gear) $2,000 traditional CD player, then I should be happy. Arnie, yes would be great to get some A/B comparisons at similar price points. Hope to hear some feedback from anything you can arrange. And along those lines, do you all feel your CAS systems are the best value for money, and confirmed in listening tests as better than if substituted with a similarly priced reference traditional CD player? Lastly regarding development of these DAC's is there any consensus that the price/performace is stabilised, or are we still in early adopter land? Hopefully these are sensible questions, and thanks again for your feedback!

Hello, I am new to this CAS stuff. I would like to get some comparison of the current value of CAS systems with regards to equivalent audiophile/sonic ability. As a case study, for a good(?) CAS system: Mac Mini $700 Weiss DAC202 $6,500 System Cost: US$7,200 Would this system sonically outperform a US$7,200 traditional CD/Optical disc player (while keeping the amp and skprs the same)? Not withstanding that the Mac Mini has more functionality than a CD player, if we are just focusing on the sonic abilities, is a CD player better sonic value for money? Is there such a thing as a sweet spot? For instance would a Mac Mini combined with a Wyred4Sound DAC @ US$1,500, be better than a $2,200 system? If we haven't reached a break-even point regarding cost/sonic ability compared to traditional optical players, is it appropriate to wait until we get to a more cost effective DAC solution? Hope the above makes sense, and thanks for any feedback.