Mac Laptop & Sound Cards

Ckorody,
Is your statement that Macs don't use sound cards universal or particular to laptops? I have a 2 GHz Intel duo core iMac with 1 GB memory.

Rbstehno,
Do you use a computer as a source in your dedicated audio room, and if so what and how? Not sure how this stuff could connect to my vintage Proceed PAV/PDSD preamp/processor.

The idea is intriguing, though.

db

Any idea how much more space a Lossless file takes up compared to an AAC? I have a 320gb external hard drive and will be loading about 5,000 songs and 2,000 photos.

Dbphd - it's universal. The sound card functionality is built-in to each and every Mac regardless of form factor except the servers.

Lossless takes up considerably more space then AAC, but nowhere near as much as WAV or AIFF.

I have about 15,000 songs Apple Lossless songs which is about 1,500 CDs (including extended classical and jazz pieces) on a 400Gb hard drive. It takes up about 335Gb, and I maintain a complete back up on a separate drive. Keep in mind that you never get the full amount of the drive.

Hard to say on pictures since I don't know what size images you shoot, whether you have RAW files, or they are all 800dpi JPGs or what. (It's that whole compression thing again.)

Sounds as though a 350Gb drive will do for a good long while. If you haven't bought one yet, get a 400. Storage is unbelievably inexpensive. A good source is newegg.

Ckorody - Thanks for the helpful info. I'm looking at my notes from an Apple training session about a month ago. I wrote (and remember being told) that the highest resolution is Lossless. I'd thought that was WAV file. However, I asked which setting would potentially give me the best sound (resolution) quality. I was told the following:

MP3 - lowest
AIFF - next lowest
WAV - middle
AAC - 2nd highest
Lossless - highest

If I want the best audiophile quality downloads and burning, what would be my choice? The 'expert' at the Apple Store said AAC is the best compromise between high quality resolution and storage space.

I think I'll check out newegg and look for a 500 gb for backup.

If you are using a Mac (which you are) the best quality and the most flexible format is Apple Lossless. Apple Lossless offers an additional advantage, it deals with metadata very well - the various bits of information about each song.

I think your notes must be a bit scrambled because WAV and AIFF are uncompressed audio - they are as good as Lossless but take more space and do not handle metadata as well. AIFF is the file type you pull off a CD...

Here is the way that most people here do the math. Depending exactly on what you get, a very large drive is under $150. A backup is another $150. Here is an example

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136025

Now let's calculate the value of a 1,000 CDs and add to that the time it is going to take you to rip them. Suddenly the cost of the hard drive is not a significant part of the equation - which makes the difference between Apple Lossless and AAC moot.