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Wireless for the Keyboard, Not the Computer?


I use a wireless router to access the internet on my Sony VAIO laptop which I can then move around the house. This Sony laptop usually lives on my desktop, where it is hooked up to an external video monitor, and has USB out to connect it to a desktop audio system which consists of Behringer amps, an EQ and ATC monitors.

My desk is also in my listening room with my main 2 channel system.

I spend a lot of time sitting at my desk - where I can work, surf the web, watch the news etc - AND listen to the ATCs which sound very good.

But sometimes I am really tempted to DISconnect the laptop, move across the room to the sofa, and connect the USB output directly to my main rig through an Audio Research DAC, in order to listen through the main speakers. In theory, this is easy to do, but in practice, it is a bit of a pain, and I miss the larger video monitor when working directly from the laptop.

This dilemma has me thinking.....

* What if all of my audio files were ripped and stored not to my Sony laptop, but to a larger desktop computer?
* Where the larger, desktop computer could be a) optimized for audio and b) hard wired to both the desktop and the main system's DACs at all times?
* This way, to move across the room and sit on the sofa while listening to my big rig, I could use a wireless KEYBOARD?
* And a VGA splitter box to hard wire a second, full size video monitor?


This way, it seems I could get rid of the laptop, but still move around the room by simply picking up the wireless keyboard? Use a bigger video monitor...and also improve the audio quality?

A smaller point, but I would also like to ditch the laptops as they are always breaking.

Advice on this or any other PC configurations greatly appreciated and thank you.

But please please please, dont say: "just get a Mac"?!



cwlondon
cwlondon OP
1,210 posts
 
Sarcher30

I am very intrigued to see your comment:

"I personally dont like macs at all"

as it seems over 50% of replies to any PC audio related thread end in:

"GET A MAC".

Why dont you like Macs? I have resisted switching to a Mac, but I suppose if a Mac Mini could handle:

EAC
Foobar and
Internet Explorer

it would handle most of my needs for this particular machine.

But still wish there was a reasonably priced Windows machine that was similarly quiet.
Thank you.
gmood1
1,251 posts
 
The newer Dells are pretty darn quiet. I use mine with Blue tooth keyboard and mouse. I also have a remote for the PC. I was using it in the room just fine. As the hard drives started piling up, I decided to move it to a closet in the hallway just around the corner from my Plasma. All connections come through the wall.

I have all my movies and music stored to HDs.
So now I watch TV,record TV,play movies, listen too music and surf the net from the couch with the keyboard and mouse.
gmood1
1,251 posts
 
I also wonder if you could use something like one of these DMA2200 which requires no wires at all from the PC. Just hook this to your other monitor/Dac and been done with it.
cwlondon OP
1,210 posts
 
Re Dells are pretty darn quiet

I understand that the physical noise of the computer - like a fan in a power amp - would be an irritating distraction from any high end device.

However, I thought the PC audio geeks argued that normal PCs were electrically noisy devices, and therefore no where near dedicated transports which is why you needed to spend thousands on their tweaks etc etc.

So of course a physically quiet device is a good thing which products like the Sweetwater Creation Stations seem to address.

But I am also hoping to get the "quietest" least jittery audio signal from my USB port to an external DAC.
gmood1
1,251 posts
 
From my understanding jitter through USB and Toslink are two totally separate things.

Doesn't the jitter from USB have more to do with how the end device or USB Dac deciphers the signal changing it eventually over to I2S?

Or by using a clock in the end device to control the information being sent from the PC or Mac?

I see your point if you're planning to use the spdif output directly from the PC itself. USB seems to be not as touchy in this area from what I've read and experienced so far.

Also if your Dac has galvanic isolation from the PC's USB port. Electrical interference from what I gather shouldn't be a major problem if the USB port is functioning properly.
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