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Zune output vs. CD output

Hey everyone.

I have been putting together a small but nice little bookshelf system in my living room consisting of a pair of paradigm atom v5s, NAD 325bee integrated, MC Z2 speaker wire, M1000i rca interconnects, and I just picked up a 1m audioquest copperhead 1/8" to RCA interconnect.

I was about to invest in a NAD c542 CD player... then I was laying in bed and thought... wait, why? 99% of my music is on MP3, M4P, or lossless FLAC. I hardly have any CDs... and those that I do have were just burned from MP3s.

So I idealized buying a new Zune instead. With this, I can dock it next to my stereo system connected with the copperhead cable. Any new music I get I can just wi-fi it across the house and have it ready to play on the Zune. That sounds much more fitting for me than a CD player.

So, ok, here is the dillema... I want excellent audio. Lets say I had a 1st generation rip into a lossless FLAC or even a 320 constant bit rate MP3 and sent it over to my docked Zune for playback. How would this sound in comparison to actually playing the CD back on a dedicated CD player (most likely the NAD C542)?

BTW, with this test I am assuming a near-perfect CD rip from my Pioneer DVD-RW drive. It is a quality drive... so I am assuming that wouldn't be an issue. Oh ya, and the CD player would be hooked up via MC M1000i cable.

K, I appreciate any feedback. Thanks audiophiles.
djembeplay
kthomas
911 posts
 
Lossless encoding would sound nearly identical, and my guess would be that, on a second system of modest proportions, 320kb/sec encoding would sound great. And you'd have a lot of fun with it. Don't see how you could go wrong.
djembeplay OP
179 posts
 
Cool, thanks for the input.

So does running sound out of a 1/8" mini into 2 RCAs yield any loss in comparison to running straight RCA to RCA? Let's assume I used identical RCA cables for each and a quality 1/8" mini plug.
dancetracks
7 posts
 
I don't see how the little Zune is going to have enough output current to really drive the integrated amp well enough. If you could compare the two you would find the CD output to sound better... if you are looking for convenience then go the Zune route. I would get both, but that's just me.
kthomas
911 posts
 
I didn't read carefully enough - I read docked, and I assumed a docking mechanism similar to the plethora you see for iPods. The little 1/8" mini plug is far from ideal, I'm sure, as a connector. Still, with lossless recordings, my guess would be that the fun and convenience would outweight any perceived "performance" issues on a system of the type you describe.

Do you have a music server set up anywhere? You say that you have most of your music collection ripped - there are many ways to feed systems from a music server, either local or remotely. Lots of fun!
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