Computer To Match EMM Labs Pre2 ?

[WhistlingKite]

Hello, I am helping a friend build out his system. He has an EMM Labs Pre2 Stereo Pre-Amp. Friend plays ( Blu-ray Audio, LPs, SACDs ). He says that the rest of the system is at least as high fidelity as the Pre2.

 

Friend wants me to add a computer, of at least as high fidelity as the Pre2, so that he could download and/or stream internet music.

 

Would a Mac mini suffice? I presume it would need approximately ( external HD = thunderbolt, internal HD = 256 Gb solid state, RAM >= 8 Gb ) ?

 

Which (if any) of the C.A.P.S. v3 machines would be appropriate?

 

Would friend need a computer better than a C.A.P.S. v3 Zuma? If so, I could build it, but where is the bottleneck in the Zuma?

 

Are there any pitfalls I should avoid in selecting eSATA or NAS for the C.A.P.S. v3? Apparently he would copy from HRx to hard drive on a different computer, then transfer to C.A.P.S. v3 for audio playback. To me it seems more natural to connect both computers to the NAS.

 

Thank you.

[baddog]

Is he going to use a DAC as well? If not then I would say a CAPS would be overkill for his needs. How computer savvy is he and/or how intuitive does he want it to be? What operating system is he comfortable with, Apple or Windows (or Linux)? Will he be using anything for remote control of the computer, i.e. does he have an iPad or Android device?

 

That pre amp appears to only have analog inputs, so he will need analog outputs from the computer is that is the only component he is adding. What are the other components in his system?

 

And lastly what is his budget?