New Apple TV -- Anyone planning on it?

I received one yesterday and it sounds great when using optical into my DAC with AIFF and Apple Lossless files. The interface is fast and snappy.

I have the 160GB Apple TV going into a Peachtree iDecco and love it.

One of the concerns I have about the new Apple TV is the lack of a hard drive. When I first set it up, I synced a large library and immediately started listening. What I first heard was somewhat disappointing in that it did not quite as sound as good and "full" as my CD player going into the Peachtree (although I would not describe it as sounding bad and it was more the ability to compare against the CD that the difference was readily apparent). However, I then realized that all my music was available streaming before it was actually synced to the hard drive and what I was initially listening to was streaming. After the music was synced to the hard drive, the sound improved and was as good (if not a little better) than using the CD player.

Perhaps the newer Apple TV does a better job of streaming than the older version. It would interesting to know if anyone has had a chance to compare the older version playing off the hard drive to the newer version streaming and if there is a noticable difference.

FYI, the older 160GB can still be purchased from the Apple store under clearance items.

@Ballan,
could you please advice if the new Apple TV support HD audio till 24/96?
I think you have to read your DAC to be sure the stream is transferred correctly at the given sample rate.
Many thanks!

@Granosalis: I don't have any 24/96 content, but I assume that the new Apple TV will work like the previous ATV and AirPort Express (AirTunes & AirPlay) and does not support 24/96. Sorry I can not give more info. I would be interested in knowing the answer, too. I'll keep you posted if I find out anything.

I am a current owner of a 160GB AppleTV (with about 350GB of digital music, almost all in Apple Lossless (M4A) format. I've done very close listening comparisons and can't hear a significant and consistent difference between my AppleTV and my Oppo BDP-83 as a transport. (Neither sound as good as my old Theta David, but then neither require a $400 laser replacement every few years, either.) I highly recommend AppleTV for any audiophile.

I am split on the new one. I love my current 160 GB Apple TV. However, I see two advantages of the new one:
1) Silence - I can hear the current hard drive spinning, which is annoying during late night music listening. The new one would be silent.
2) Higher res Netflix streaming than I currently get with my Wii. (It's my only other streaming device). Also, my Wii audio is only connected to my TV, not my system, so it would give me that.

There are two reasons why I may stick with my current:
1) The loss of having some hard drive storage for those times when my computer is not on.
2) The apparent lack of emphasis on music in the new UI. Music is buried under "Computers," not at the top level.

I believe that things will change soon. There is every indication that the new AppleTV will soon allow apps to run, like all other iOS devices.

Hey Edge22 - you can stream in full resolution from a hard drive on the previous gen Apple TV - it's in the setup. I stream about half my music and it works out just fine.