Ipod Dock with direct out?????

"Why does it no longer become portable? You just pull it off the iTransport, plug in your headphones and away you go!"
I realise that - I have a Nano for portable listening at work etc, where sound quality isn't critical.
I suppose you only have to rip everything once if you use the iPod for portable and home listening, but some of the comments above make it sound like a lot of headaches to get it right.
That's why a music server that can rip and burn CD's, store heaps on it's HDD, play various file formats and link wirelessly to your computer sounds so convenient to my not-so-informed mind.
But at the end of the day it comes down to personal choice; I still like CD's at home with their little booklets!

some of the comments above make it sound like a lot of headaches to get it right.

I don't see where it would be any different than the way you load your Nano; obviously for higher quality you would chose Apple Lossless, WAV, etc., which I assume you don't use. No headaches, very straightforward, especially if you use the SYNC option on the iTunes/iPod.

Brian, I think we have our wires crossed. The CD-PC-Ipod chain is the easy bit.
My comments about the "headaches" are more referring to the subsequent use of the iPod as a high grade source by spending $$$ on devices like the Wadia, which it seems isn't even fully compatible with more recent iPods and has questionable build quality (ref Uclaid's comments).
All that said, this isn't an area I know a lot about, but am certainly interested in.

$379 doesn't seem expensive to me considering the overall prices within this hobby. Adding a device such as the iTransport to use use an iPod doesn't come across to me as a "headache", quite the opposite; it allows people to merge their portable with their home stereo, and adding a server type source as well, which appeals to me, the portable part is just a bonus for me. :)

As for build quality, I already addressed that I feel just the opposite as Uclaids, I think it is excellent.

As you probably know, iPod's come in many forms and it seems they all work differently. For me, my iPod and iTransport work together perfectly, others have complaints as documented above. But it appears by Uclaids own admission that he purchased the iTransport "blindly". Before I placed an order I contacted Wadia, several times, and they were more than gracious in addressing my questions. The fact that Uclaids iPod doesn't mate to the iTransport the way he would like may have been addressed before he placed an order, then again maybe he did, I can't say.

Not all products are for all people, but the iTransport is all I hoped from first reading about it and Wadia has been great to deal with.

a. for 379 don't complain about build quality. what do you expect.

b. in evaluating the wadia it seems to me if your looking for a convenient transport for your ipod that will produce near cd quality it's a nice solution.

c. the question for me is how will it sound with a highly resolving system like mine. I know that the msb sounds as good as my lector transport ie indiscernable from cd. the only jitter my lector digicode clock generator has to deal with is that produced by the digital cable. the big question is whether the wadia produces this kind of sound quality