Apple TV vs Wadia 170i?

I use a MacMini with an external terrabyte drive. I go Lossless out the optical port. I also use it for DVDs, Netflix streaming, Pandora radio, my Time Machine back up of my laptop. It's easy to control iTunes from my laptop or using the Apple remote/TV. Lastly I have Elgato's EyeTV hooked up to an HD antenna (less compression than cable/satellite HD and cheap).

MacMinis were just announced to be in short supply, which could mean updates. Also AppleTV is long overdue for an overhaul into a real piece of equipment.

I also like that the mini holds its value pretty well.

Apple TV/iTouch via an upgraded Genesis Digital Lens into "suitable DAC" is a great little music server.

The new PSAudo Digital Lens should be much better.

IMO,the homogeneous Benchmark DAC1 is "the" most over rated DAC on the planet. See the October issue of TAS.

If you want to listen to your digital files in their native FS, you need to look for another product.

I agree on the Benchmark, it was very bright. I tried it 2 different times just to make sure. I love my Bryston BDA-1 now, after trying many others.

I just wish Apple would make a really cool audiophile class component out of stainless steel or aluminum that had a huge terabyte size hard drive and coax and optical outs.

I have been experimenting with wireless access from my mac mini to a LaCie 1 TB 2big NAS drive in RAID1 (mirrored data - i.e. it has two 1 TB drives) coupled to the latest CISCO Wireless Gigabit router. The audio is stored lossless and I send the audio wireless to an Airport Express with optical out to the Benchmark DAC1.

I needed this kind of storage because I went lossless and I need up to 3,000 CD storage capability with absolute insurance that is backed up.

FWIW this works. Depending on your other gear you may or may not like the DAC1 at all - it is a very flat and transparent device so it won't compensate for any room or other issues in the setup. I think it works better with silk dome tweeters as opposed to metal domes (as Macdad points out the clarity is such that it could be all too bright when coupled with a speaker/room that is leaning towards bright)

Shardone makes a great point about integration. I can't take anything that sounds bright with Maggies and a less than perfect room. I need things that add warmth, that's why I have a lot of Cary gear (SLP98, CAD 500 MB amps) and for some reason the Bryston sounds much warmer to me than any other DAC, including the Berkeley, that I tried.

If you have B & W's, Klipsch Heritage, Eggelstons, or other slightly warm speakers the Benchmark could be the be-all-end-all of components.