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Macbook w/ Audirvana vs. CD playback

I just downloaded Audirvana Plus (free 15 day trial) and compared CD's ripped to my MacBook Pro against the same CD's played through my Rotel deck. MacBook Pro w/ Audirvana Plus > Belkin Gold USB cable > Emotiva XDA-2 DAC > AQ King Cobra IC > Rogue amp vs. CD's into Rotel RCD-1072 > MIT coaxial digital cable > Emotiva XDA-2 DAC > AQ King Cobra IC > Rogue amp. My ears are pretty good at hearing subtle differences in the quality of the sound of music, but I cannot hear any significant differences between the two. Is it just me, or do you guys and gals have the same reaction ? I'm curious as to what you think.
adam18
billbartuska
83 posts
 
You can do better than just loading Audirvana Plus onto your Mac. That's kind of like buying a record player with whatever cartridge it comes with. As stated above, there's more to be done to get the most out of computer audio.
zd542
5,339 posts
 
I was just curious. The 1072 is an exceptional CD player. Aside from that, have a look at computeraudiophile.com. Its a great resource for technical and setup info. However, I wouldn't trust them with issues pertaining to sound quality. Its more computer than audiophile.
doggiehowser
672 posts
 
Audirvana Plus is a pretty decent package.

Enabling Integer and Direct/Exclusive mode would improve things significantly if you haven't already done it (assuming Integer is supported by the USB interface on the DAC/converter).

A+ also includes a System Optimizer that will disable Spotlight etc which will minimise the background system processes.
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