DAC vs CD Player for cd playback with computer audio - Help old timer out

I’m an old timer as well. Also, a big fan of Audio Research, for simply performance reasons. My main system is all Audio Research. You can see photos under my User ID. I use an Audio Research Reference CD9 SE as my DAC. It is simply outstanding and actually performs against much more expensive DACs.

While you can use a PC. I would recommend getting a streamer. Even if it is a cheap budget Blue Sound to start with. It will sound better than a PC and avoid the conversion from USB to coax. This will let you get familiar with the world of streaming. 

In todays world streaming can easily provide the same or better sound quality as a CD or vinyl. In my system CD redbook = stored files = streaming (better if higher resolution) = vinyl in sound quality. To get all the way there you will need a very high quality streamer. Like a good Aurender. My rule of thumb is to match the investment level of each component to get the most out of your system. So, phonostage = preamp = amp = DAC = Streamer... roughly. You have to do the research to get the best of class of each. I just say this for longer term thinking.

The service to get is Qobuz. For $14 / month you get access to over 10 million albums with over half a million that are high resolution. This is a game changer and fantastic for us retired folks that have time to explore the world of music and really enjoy it.

Feel free to send me a private message if you want to talk off line. George

Qobuz is so worth the money.   I do a yearly plan and it's the best entertainment money I spend all year.   

I have Qobuz on my PC for convenience and when I travel but I seldom use it.  While the USB connection to my amp sounds OK it doesn't compare with the sound quality of my Bluesound  Vault.   A stand alone streamer is a good purchase. I have an Aurender in my main system, the Vault in system two.  Both are great for what they are in price/ performance  

I value George's advice with respect to upgrades and how to avoid lateral moves.  I think he is spot on with the cost / investment of each component in a system.  

Hi,

It is possible to use the DAC in a CD player for other sources provided the device has digital inputs. I found the manual for the AR CE8 online and it does not mention a digital input.  In my experience, digital inputs on CD players are relatively recent additions.

You can connect several sources to a DAC such as computers, streamers, CD transports and what have you, but you are limited by the various inputs the DAC has.  There will be an input selector knob or switch.

ghdprentice is absolutely right in suggesting getting a dedicated streamer for best results,and using Qobuz.

Your CD player doesn’t have a digital input so cannot be used as a DAC for streaming.  As @ghdprentice mentioned, it’s best to get a dedicated streamer for best sound.  The DAC8 has both AES/EBU an SPDIF inputs (no USB) so you’d need a streamer that has at least one of those outputs and then the CD2 can be plugged into the other and you should be good.  You’ll be very glad you made the effort to start streaming — I’ve never enjoyed audio more with the ability to find incredible new music on almost a daily basis.  Goodonya!

I tried Googling the AR DAC and CDP but didn’t get the info I sought.  If the CDP is from 2092 my guess is that it will not have a digital input to access its DAC.  If it has a USB digital input only it might not be an asynchronous USB.

  A DAC from 2012 is more likely to meet the requirements.  See if it has an asynchronous USB input to work with your PC.  If so then you are good.  If it doesn’t then you could get a streamer that has every digital output in all price ranges and transfer the computer files (I assume that you mean files on a hard drive) to a USB flash drive.  The streamer will then work with commercial streaming services.

  Since you are new to streaming, IMO the DAC is the major determinant of the sound.  Streamers matter but for around 1K you can get something that should pair nicely with the AR DAC.  If you like streaming you can always buy an uber expensive streamer for that last little increase in performance 

@kublakhan Audio Research is excellent. I’m a huge fan. I used to own CD3MkII. 
A word of caution on the older ARC cd players - the Philips transports that old have a high probability of failure - you can find a replacement and swap it yourself if you’re handy; There are other parts in those older CD players that can fail and potentially brick the unit permanently as ARC may not have replacement parts and no one will be able to fix it. 
On ARC DACs - keep in mind their USB cards are not linux compatible unless you opt for the latest DAC or confirm the DAC you are buying has an upgraded USB card. This matters if you are using Apple computer or any of the modern streamers and use USB as interface (using computer to stream music is not ideal to begin with). 
This CD9SE has an upgraded USB card. If you look at pictures you will see the sticker Audio Research placed above the usb input https://www.usaudiomart.com/details/650115598-audio-research-dac-9-se/

Alternative solution to your case would be  separate CD Transport, streamer and DAC. Depends on your budget you can get a really nice setup. 
 

Kublakhan WELCoMe Back . Where have you been? I am glad to see you back. So many changes happen since you left.

I used to own a PS Audio Directstream DAC MK1 to play streamed music from an Innuos Zenith Mk3: it is a great DAC, but I noticed that over time, I could get some listening fatigue. At one point, my old Micromega CDF1 CD player gave out - I was only using it very sparingly with most of my listening being done through the DSD MK1 DAC. After some shopping around for a new CD player, I was intrigue by the Marantz SACD 30n: it was both a CD player and a DAC accepting USB input, and was doing a DSD conversion (which I found much smoother than PCM when properly implemented) using the Marantz Musical Mastering (MMM) digital-to-analog converter as a lesser version than the one available on their Reference SACD and CD Player SA-10. To this day, I have not found one single PCM implementation that did not cause me listening fatigue (be it DAC chips, R2R, Chord pulse-array). To my surprise, after some serious listening, I found that the Marantz SACD 30n provided me with more details, more natural tones, and warmer/richer medium frequencies than the DSD MK1 DAC, so much so that I sold the DSD MK1 DAC and replaced it permanently with the Marantz 30n.

I warmly recommend the Marantz SACD 30n.

Note: I listen almost exclusively to Sacred Choral chants and listening fatigue can come very quickly if the high frequencies (sibilance) are too present. I am now retired, bought my Marantz 30n back in March 2022 (Capitalsound.ca for CAD$3,800), and do not plan to upgrade my sound system any time soon.

To utilize your existing setup without breaking the bank, buy a WiiM Pro or a Bo6 if money is tight. 
 

Download Plexamp on your phone or tablet. 
 

Download the Plex server to your computer. 
 

Add your music libraries to the Plex server. 
 

Sync everything up and enjoy. 
 

Your total cost about $150 for the WiiM Pro $50 or so for the other unit. 
 

The Plex software is free although there is an upgrade path with more features. 
 

Is it as super duper as the $2500 units? Probably not.
Will it get you started and familiar with the process at a minimal cost? Oh yes. 

Thanks everybody!  Lots to investigate.  Here I go again!