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Using iPod Classic as music server

I finally decided to organize my music on a "server" using an iPod Classic that I got as a hand-me-down from one of my grandsons. In order to replicate music as accurately as possible I'm ripping CDs using Apples lossless CODEC. My understanding of these formats like FLAC and ALAC is that accuracy of replication is 100% and I'm finding that playback using earphones or good buds at least, seems that that is so.

However, when playing through my system, although good, playback using the iPod is not the same as when the source is the CD player. The information seems complete and obviously better than compressed versions I've heard but resolution and detail in the upper frequencies seems to have been softened.

My ability to compare these two sources is straightforward because I can have the same track playing on both sources and A/B using the source selector on the preamp. Now il get to my question.

First I need to say that the present system performs extremely well for my listening tastes so I'm not questioning the existing components. However, there are at least the 2 new issues of concern; one is the quality of the CD transport in the computer and the other is the quality of the iPod playback. I don't mean to imply that the playback from the iPod is terrible. As a matter of fact, it sounds quite good but a little softer/warmer than I prefer for critical listening.

There must be a reason why dedicated music servers are expensive and I'm assuming it has to do with reproduction quality as with other components in a system. I've never seen one so don't even know the process(es) for downloading music to them but, for several reasons, I want to pursue the use of a digital server of some kind. I'm, therefore, asking for corrections of my assumptions as well as some guidance toward making an intelligent choice.

My present system is: Shanling S-100 CD player, Peachtree Audio Nova as a preamp, Peachtree Audio 220 amp and Martin Logan Odyssey speakers.
128x128broadstone
doggiehowser
672 posts
 
Ah. The one you have isn't the Classic even though they share a similar form factor.

The older model the iPod Gen5 and Gen5.5 (60 and 80GB max respectively) aka iPod Video actually have a pretty decent DAC inside (Wolfson). Guess it was in the old days when the margins were pretty high. The newer ones use a much cheaper (and generally accepted to be worse DAC, Cirrus Logic I think).

You can modify the iPod Video to remove the cheap caps internally and replace them with better quality external caps to improve the sound quality. It's usually called the iMod - which were sold by RedWineAudio.

My iPod Video does work with the Wadia iTransport but in a limited capacity. I'd have to select the songs I want to play first, hit Play, then dock the player. Because once it's docked, the screen becomes "locked" and it displays a Wadia dock connected logo.

You might want to see if this works for you.
broadstone's avatar
broadstone OP
310 posts
 
Thanks, Doggiehowser. My iPod is, indeed, the 60GB model that won't work with the Pure i20 dock so I haven't yet been able to determine if the quality will be acceptable for my listening. I'll go ahead and buy another model iPod which will work with the i20; I can always use the 60 in a dock in another room.

In the meantime, a friend gave me his old first generation Apple TV which I finally got synced with my iTunes library and the sound is quite good. Because I doubt that the iPod / dock combo will be much / if any better, I may abandon the idea of using the iPod in my main listening area altogether. For that decision I need some advice. BTW, I would be interested to know what the bitrate using the Apple TV is when playing music from my iTunes library that has been synced from CD. In other words, is lossless ripping from CD a waste of disk space?

I have the upgraded Pandora One the sound quality from which is only a little better than iTunes downloadable music which is pretty bad. It serves a good purpose, though, in that it allows one to preview specific artists' music before purchasing their albums.
audioengr
3,282 posts
 
The iPod dock will definitely be better. You can also reclock it with Synchro-Mesh to make it even better:

http://www.empiricalaudio.com/products/synchro-mesh

http://www.empiricalaudio.com/news-and-reviews/synchro-mesh

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=106328.0

Power supply and coax cable both make a big difference here.

Steve N.
Empirical Audio
zd542
5,339 posts
 
Steve,

If you have an Off-Ramp, is there any benefit to using the Synchro-Mesh, or does the Off-Ramp reclock just the same?
doggiehowser
672 posts
 
AppleTV IIRC resamples the audio to 48kHz.

If you want to use this route, I'd recommend getting an Airport Express which will send out 44.1kHz

Both will work with Airplay from your iTunes server
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