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Confused With Options To Obtain BestQuality iTunes

I have been reading a lot these days and still confused on the plethora of options available in hooking up a computer based digital system and the pros and cons to each and every selection. I am quite new in this so please bear with me.

I have friends who stream wireless music(Itunes) via an Apple Airport Express that supported this idea and do know many folks are using this setup in their homes. Others who are into Logitech stuff advocated the Squeezebox Classic and Touch. However, another group who uses top-flight gears in their systems(upper range MBL and Revels) advised that wireless degrades sound quality, and the best option is to hook it all up with wires.

Suggested options to play Itunes in WAV or AIFF format are as follows.

1) iTunes in 1TB/2TB External Hard Drive => Mac Mini/Macbook => DAC (iPad to control music selection)

2) iTunes in 1TB/2TB External Hard Drive => Logitech Squeezebox Classic/Touch => DAC (iPad to control music selection)

3) iTunes in 1TB/2TB External Hard Drive => PC => Apple Airport Express => wireless => DAC (iPad to control music selection)

4) iTunes in 1TB/2TB External Hard Drives => wireless => Apple TV => DAC

Out of the four options above, is it a general consensus that option 1 will yield the best sound reproduction from iTunes followed by option 2? Will options 3 and 4 come close to options 1 and 2? Are there any other alternatives to do all this?

Basically my priority is to use an iPad to control playback from iTunes stored in 1TB/2TB external hard drives WITHOUT using a Mac/PC. Apple Airport Express and Apple TV were said to degrade sound quality. What other cost-efficient options do I have?

An advice would be most appreciated.
ryder
tpy's avatar
tpy
68 posts
 
Thanks Tobias. Apparently sbooth has both a Play and an AyreWave software. I had downloaded Play first but I take it that AyreWave is better, so downloaded that too. I've loaded both with my iTunes playlist and would like to use AyreWave as my primary source for my SqueezeTough, but keep iTunes for my iPod.

What I can't quite figure out is how to tell the Squeezebox to get my music files from AyreWave, or maybe better yet, from both AyreWave and iTunes. From the Logitech site,

I read that you can run multiple folders (right term?) by saving one into the other. So I take it the easiest thing would be to save the AvreWave directory in ITunes as a folder -- which would make it a subdirectory. Is that right?

I'm no sure how to do that. How do I set up SqBox to read music stored in my AyreWave directory -- not sure where to find the AyreWave directory. When I find in my Mac's Finder, and click on it, it opens up but I'm not sure how to enter it into SqBox.

Part of my problem is I fairly recently switch to my Mac from PCs and am still not quite up to speed on it.

Many, many thanks.
jax2
3,031 posts
 
Part of my problem is I fairly recently switch to my Mac from PCs and am still not quite up to speed on it.

Consider yourself lucky you didn't go the opposite way...then you'd really have a steep learning curve!

What I can't quite figure out is how to tell the Squeezebox to get my music files from AyreWave, or maybe better yet, from both AyreWave and iTunes. From the Logitech site,

I read that you can run multiple folders (right term?) by saving one into the other. So I take it the easiest thing would be to save the AvreWave directory in ITunes as a folder -- which would make it a subdirectory. Is that right?

Squeezeserver has a toggle box among the various "Settings" screens (access from lower right corner of the finder window) that dictates it to "Use iTunes". It is under the tab that reads "iTunes" and is the top box. Click that box and direct it to your iTunes folder. In addition to this there is another setting right there under the "Basic Settings" tab that asks you to direct it to the music folder you want it to use. In the case that you were using AyreWave to store some music separately from iTunes you would find that file that that software stores the music in and point it to it. I'm not at all familiar with AyreWave though - isn't it a player of sorts? Anyway, that's how you'd get Squeezeserver to access both libraries. If AyreWave is just accessing your iTunes library anyway, then you don't need to do any of this - just tell Squeezeserver to use iTunes. Squeezeserver will deliver full res to 24/96 via Touch or Transporter. Lower to previously available devices (Duet, SB3, etc)
tobias
1,534 posts
 
4est, thanks for setting me straight on the built-in limit of USB 2.0. Both the Cambridge DACMagic and the USB version of the Apogee Mini-DAC stop at 16/48. This is a limitation of their USB implementation, I take it.
tpy's avatar
tpy
68 posts
 
Jax2 -- Many thanks One question though.. You say "If AyreWave is just accessing your iTunes library anyway, then you don't need to do any of this - just tell Squeezeserver to use iTunes. Squeezeserver will deliver full res to 24/96 via Touch or Transporter."

Wouldn't doing it this way bypass AyreWave, which has my iTunes folder saved into it, and just take it directly from iTunes, without the sonic benefits I'd get from running AyreWave? How would it know to run it through AyreWave this way?

Thanks.
jax2
3,031 posts
 
Tpy - I'm not familiar with AyreWave. If it is a media player then you will be bypassing both iTunes AND Squeezeserver I imagine. If it uses your iTunes library then you'd just point it at the folder and continue using iTunes to catalogue your music. Sorry to add confusion to the mix. I'm not sure how you'd utilize AyreWave to play Squeezebox devices though since they do require Sqeezeserver otherwise. Someone more familiar with the new software would have to say.
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