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Will be getting a music server soon.
Reader Charlie S. wonders what you use for digital music these days? What is your <I>primary</I> digital front end?
Computer-based front-end (24-bit/96KHz output via Layla-3G PCI card from Echo Digital Audio), using FLAC files served from a centralized FreeNAS server. I keep the file-server stocked with FLAC files ripped from my own CDs as well as high-resolution FLAC files from a number of commercial sources (HDtracks, HDTT (High Definition Tape Transfers), Reference Recordings, etc). The sound of the music is outstanding!
A PC. It has an ultra-low distortion (& low noise, etc) (modified) Creative Elite Pro sound card. It has a 2V output so it is my only "preamp" (I don't believe in additional preamps). The channel separation I had noticed compared to another good sound card is also really amazing.
I have been using the Ayre C5xe and a Denon 5910ci for surround. I don't anticipate changing anytime soon. My focus has changed primarily to LP and I only buy a few CDs and those are the releases that are not available on vinyl. Maybe someday, when we can download hi-rez digital music that can equal or surpass LP sound characteristics, then I will buy into it. I have been suckered along to many times with SACD and DVD-A and I always gravitate back to vinyl. I would love to have a medium that doesn't have ticks and pops, but nothing else delivers that analog sound.
Dumped SACD and a universal player to get back into a great dedicated Red Book machine. SACD has turned out to be a marketing ploy for the classical labels now and the fidelity is nowhere near where the format can deliver. Since Blu-Ray will more than likely be the future format of choice for most classical labels, ditching SACD was a no-brainer.
Wadia. Even the new Naim HDX music server only has a claimed frequency response of 10Hz-18kHz. I think music servers are a good idea in principle, especially those that re-read a CD until all, or nearly all, the bits have been harvested, but in practice a good CD player still sounds betterfor now.
Yamaha DVD-S1700 SACD/DVD-Audio player. Nothing digital can touch SACDs. High-rez downloads come close, but they are way more expensive than SACDs at discount. And I like the cases, booklets and feel of a real product. I also download free MP3s at 192kbps or higher but I prefer their sound upsampled to AIFF during burning to CD-R. These CD-Rs from my Yamaha totally blow away the original music files as heard on my computer. I only use the computer to record free music files; for playback, it's my Yamaha SACD/DVD-Audio player. I see no "sonic" need for a music server to the present time.
Soon my main source will be a computer-based music/video server, feeding both a USB benchmark (for audio system)and a A/V Denon amp (for the complementary video system). What if the magazine devotes a column on computer-based servers: tips; latest developments; new PC components available; readers' settings, succes or not stories. Import assistance from the PC magazines of the group!!!
In recent months, my digital front end has very definitely switched from CD player to a PC-based system. I am running the freeware Foobar 2000 player (including the Windows Kernel Mixer bypass) on a laptop. To hold the files, I bought a couple of 350 gigabyte USB hard drives (one for backup - about £60 each) and am connecting to the hi-fi with an external USB DAC. All discs are ripped to the lossless *.wma format and it sounds superb for the money. Video is played with the (again, freeware) VLC Videolan Player, which appears to handle every format imaginable. The DAC is a StyleAudio Carat HD1V, which doubles as a headphone amplifier. At about £130, it is very good value, and was the catalyst for my switch from CD/DVD player to a computer-based setup. You can spend more and get more performance, and it would be more convenient if I had some kind of wi-fi setup, but this is a superb entry-level option.