The Computer Audiophile Suggested Hardware list has been overhauled. Version 2.0 of the C.A.S.H. List contains expanded hardware and software recommendations geared even more toward the computer audiophile. There is no specific checklist or criteria a product must meet to be on the C.A.S.H. List. Great specs don't equal great sound or performance. However, it's clearly in everyone's best interest that these products are 100% worthy of recommendation. Like all articles here on Computer Audiophile the comments section is wide open to every reader in the world to leave an opinion. The list is continuously updated with additions and deletions to make it a great resource for CA readers to research products. The C.A.S.H. List a single data point from one of many sources of information about these and many more products.

Computer audiophiles using Windows 7 based music servers have a plethora of configuration and application choices for music management and playback. A quick look at Wikipedia's list of applications, Windows, OS X and otherwise, can overwhelm anyone. Over the years I've tried more operating systems and applications than I can remember. Many of these have show stopping flaws that rule them out as contenders immediately. Applications that can't play certain file formats or all required sample rates don't receive much attention from me. That was the case over one year ago with J river Media Center 13. I tried to play some of the Reference Recordings HRx 24/176.4 material and had nothing but problems. No doubt the problems could have been worked out, but with so many options available elsewhere I didn't see any reason to spend time with the application. Since this initial underwhelming experience J River has released Media Center version 14. In addition many colleagues in the industry have encouraged me to give it another serious look. One colleague even backed up his suggestion with measurements showing JRMC's playback bit transparency. I started to see the light at CES this year and realized it was finally time take another look at J River Media Center as well as time to get serious about Windows 7.

Over the last several months I've researched different combinations of motherboards, computer cases, audio cards, and accessories that go along with these components. The goal of all this research was to put together a hardware and software music server solution that I would actually use and the Computer Audiophile readers could actually use. I would do the leg work, test & listen to everything, and provide the information for CA readers to put together the exact same music server. This sounds somewhat simple until one considers all the requirements that go into such an audiophile solution. Great sound, great looking, no moving parts, silent, fairly inexpensive, and 100% of the components must be available today. Along the way this server was named the Pocket Server by a colleague who was very surprise at its small size when I pulled it out of my carry-on luggage. The server is a bit larger today than it was at that time but the name hasn't changed. What follows is the story of the Computer Audiophile Pocket Server and all the information required to recreate the $1,500 C.A.P.S solution.

A little over one week ago the Peachtree Audio Nova review was published here on Computer Audiophile. Since that time many CA readers read the review and left honest comments. I've also read and re-read the review and spent quite a while reading every single comment several times. I was initially surprised by the criticism. After a few days I came to the realization that the CA readers were right. The review was in fact rushed and didn't contain much information to make it useful. It clearly did not live up to the CA trademark All The Bits Fit To Print™. Thus, I'm taking full responsibility for a half-assed review and making it up to all the supportive CA readers. Over the last five days I've dedicated time to using the Nova in almost every configuration imaginable. What follows are my impressions from "The Nova Sessions."

The Peachtree Audio Nova is a ton of fun and has a bright future as everyman's high end integrated amplifier, DAC, or preamp. Hence the title of this review, Champagne Supernova. Champagne always involves fun and Supernovae are incredibly luminous. Champagne Supernova is also a reference to the Oasis song of the same name. A seven minute anthem that hit number one on the modern rock charts in the U.S. and has been played at every Oasis concert since it was written. The song has been spinning my NAS hard drives quite a bit lately. Sure the Peachtree integrated amp is called the Nova, but the musicality, enjoyment, and versatility of this piece may warrant the name Supernova.

I'm on Flight 310 to Minneapolis on New Year's Eve as the clock ticks toward 2010. A pair of Ultimate Ears UE11 Pro earphones are sealing my ears from the overbearing ambient noise of the airplane and a little Thelonious Monk coursing through the cables. I spent the last couple days in the San Francisco Bay Area at loudspeaker manufacturer Magico's and CA Symposium sponsor Tim Marutani's facilities. I have so much exciting information to share from this trip that I must begin telling the story from seat 17F aboard a Boeing 737-800 at 30,000 feet. At the Magico facility in Berkeley, less than a block from legendary Fantasy Studios, I spent many hours listening to the new Q5 loudspeakers. There is honestly nothing like the Q available today. At the Marutani Consulting facility I delivered a freshly built Zalman TNN300 highly tweaked silent music server. The server will house what I consider the best digital interface available right now. A Merging Technologies Mykerinos audio card with AES and word clock in and out. In addition to hearing the Q5 and Mykerinos card I visited with Matan Arazi. Matan showed me his finished music server. It's an all-out-assault on state of the art computer based playback that's been in the making for over one year. All three of these products raise the bar to new heights. They contribute to what I consider a new sonic reference.

Here is a quick update about what's happening at Computer Audiophile. My endless effort to find the best sound quality currently available and to write about it here on Computer Audiophile continues this week with a trip across the country. Next week the search for "that" sound moves to Las Vegas and the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show. Somewhere in between these two trips I'll publish my full review of the Peachtree Audio Nova. A very nice integrated amp with a plethora of digital inputs including USB.

The Computer Audiophile CD ripping strategy and methodology article has been one of the most popular writings on the site to date. Some readers have implemented the methodology exactly how it was written while others have put their own spin on it by changing file formats and the number of file copies. Other readers are still searching for a less time consuming way to rip their music collections. Over the last few weeks I've been using a CD ripping approach that's likely to satisfy those who want to get the job done but don't have a couple months of free time to rip 3000 CDs. The approach consists of an automated ripping robot in combination with Get Digital Data's Encode Center and GD3 Tagger software and its GD3 database. The experience was actually enjoyable from beginning to end. I'm willing to bet few if any readers have ever enjoyed ripping CDs.

Thanks to some of the CA readers for mentioning MonkeyTunes recently on the forum. I decided to check it out and I am very impressed. Until now controlling MediaMonkey with an iPhone or iPod Touch using iMonkey was primitive at best. Fortunately the good people at Melloware, who originally developed iMonkey, we also unsatisfied with that application and created MonkeyTunes as a replacement. MonkeyTunes is really nice. It even uses Apple's Remote application as its interface. Why recreate the wheel if one doesn't have to?

Ah, the life of an audio writer. Receive the best components money can buy. Use the components for a couple months. Send aforementioned components back to manufacturer. Hang head low for a week while getting used to the real world again. I'm in the sulking phase right now as the dCS stack is in boxes awaiting pickup. The last several weeks were pure sonic bliss, as evidenced by my Twitter post from 11:22 PM November 12, 2009. "I've never had better sound in my listening room. Ever. I believe I've found a winning combination of components. Articles to follow :~)" It's finally time to spill the beans and let Computer Audiophile readers in on the best sound I've ever heard in my listening room. Here is my review of the dCS Paganini DAC, Paganini Upsampler, and Puccini U-Clock.