2. digital
  3. 174025-96382

Improvement of MacBook Air for Streaming Tidal

OK, admittedly I am a bit ignorant on streaming digital. My analogue gear and knowhow is up to par, but digital...not quite. When not listening to vinyl, for ease of use I usually stream Tidal via my MacBook Air to a DAC (Hegel HD30), then to a preamp(Aric Audio Motherlode) then to amp(Coda Model 16) to speakers(TAD CE1’s). I like how easy it is to navigate my Tidal account and library via the MacBook, but I am also smart enough(I believe) to know that I am losing a lot of the fidelity having to use the USB port out of my laptop.

I ask my audio brethren, what are reasonably priced solutions to raise my digital methodologies so that I get the most out of Tidal?

 

I thank you in advance for your assistance!

laaudionut
jim204
881 posts
 

What I would say is you really need a streamer, purpose built for streaming digital audio and that is all it does so the processor is not taken up with other tasks that a PC has. If you heard a good streamer hooked up to your system you would hear a night and day difference. Get a good dealer who has three or four streamers in your price range and have a good listen. The only good PCs for streaming are ones purpose built for the task and believe me those are worth more than a first streamer.

Hope you get some more positive answers from some of the crowd here. Good luck, Jim.

laaudionut OP
293 posts
 

Jim,

 

I appreciate the advice and am looking into it. Ridiculous question #2- Where does the streamer fit into my current configuration? Is Tidal still controlled by my MacBook? I ask because I look at these streamers and see no screen or platform that allows me to view Tidal. Yes, I am that digitally dense...

fuzztone's avatar
fuzztone
5,648 posts
 

Best starter network player sans DAC is the iFi Zen. You control it with anything on your network. A smart phone is less cumbersome and less noisy than the laptop. If you want bigger use a tablet. Use the laptop for editing not serious listening. BubbleUPnP does Tidal.

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