Frank Guerrero

A simple principle I use, and look for: I always keep the original packaging. Besides adding (more) legitimacy to the purchase, it also shows a potential buyer that I've cared (valued) the equipment enough to keep it. It goes without saying: it increases the risk of shipment damage.

...dozens and dozens of recommendations (as well as responses asking you for your budget). So, here's my humble try at a response: Your choice of a Decco2 probably ballparks your budget. I was in the very same place last year and I ended up buying the Decco2 and DS4.5 combo thanks to a extremely helpful and knowledgeable Jon Derda of Peachtree. The DS4.5s were designed by an acknowledged speaker designer for Peachtree and these monitors have a sound that belies their price point. Rather than regurgitate what's already been written, reviews are readily available. They have still have the attractive combo Decco2+DS4.5 combo deal on their site (if you haven't taken receipt of your Decco2). --Frank

Chris,<br /> Is there a list I missed of these events? Is there one scheduled for the San Jose area (which I understand has been held at Century Stereo in the past)?<br /> <br /> Thanks!<br /> --Frank

Hi, I'm in San Jose and the closest, biggest dealer to you is Century Stereo. My one, and only, experience with them was outstanding. I wasn't ready to buy anything, and clearly stated it up front (in order not to steal any paying-customer time from Doug Peterson, the salesperson) and he kindly gave me an extremely informative hour-plus tour of the showrooms and listening sessions with gear he felt would (eventually) fit my requirements once (I was ready). Talk about nurturing a customer-to-be! With regards to DACs, you didn't mention your budget, but they have a setup showcasing Peachtree gear right as you walk in - a must-see. --Frank

@ deckeda FYI, you mentioned the G4 mini is limited in what it can run but my MDD I mentioned is older than your mini and it runs OS X 10.5 just fine. Doing so would permit you to use the current version of Pure Music and iTunes if desired. I stand corrected! Just looked it up and, as you stated, the last supported OS X supported G4 Minis is 10.5.8. Somehow, I totally missed that all these years - thanks! That said, the going rate for OS X 10.5 disc is too big of a percentage of a 2011 Mini, so I'll survive without the latest versions of any planer. Thanks!

Some quick, but relative, background before addressing the question directly: I’ve spent the last several weeks re-awakening the (long) dormant audiophile in me. Thanks to discovering Chris and CA recently (along with having long ago sold my vinyl collection and having jumped on the MP3 movement very early on), I made a strategic decision to focus on computer audio to feed my future audiophile habit. So, I did a huge amount of Web scouring to bone up on the latest in hi-rez files, DACs, music servers, etc. And as I’m temporarily budget-constrained, I tried leveraging what I have as well as carefully choosing my near-term purchases. That all said, since budget seems to be your driving factor, I’m going to forego the topic of audio quality between the different generations of Mac Minis. Despite volumes written on the advantages of an Intel-based Mini, which I fully agree with, I chose to stay with my existing first-generation Mac Mini G4, which is the most budget-conscious way for you to go. Forestalling a flurry of responses, yes, there are a number of drawbacks to a G4-based Mini music server (that have been well-covered in CA and elsewhere), including sound quality, limited hardware upgrades (1G max RAM, SSD incompatibility – both of which, to me, are not showstoppers); limited software support (MacOS stuck at 10.4, iTunes stuck at 9.2, some players not supporting G4 Minis, etc). However, the advantages of a G4 Mini are: there's plenty of them available and cheap; it’ll allow you to buy/improve hardware or buy more content; it provides a short-term, cheap and low-risk entry into computer audio and still have an audiophile-level setup. And I'd recommend a high-capacity external HDD for your music (since the G4 Mini HDD options are few and expensive), along with an additional/separate HDD for backup(!). Obviously, and as in my case, once budget constraints disappear, then a whole new load of opportunities appear. --Frank