Someone please 'splain me

Let me guess at what you're envisioning. With the new and fast USB ports you've installed in your laptop, you can connect your new hard drive to the laptop and connect the laptop to the wireless adaptor you mentioned in an earlier post. The wireless would let your laptop communicate with your network.

To answer your question about the AX directly, yes, that would do what you want. Like the SB, the AX has a built-in DAC, which you will bypass. The SB also has its own user interface, which you don't need. The SB and the AX, like the USB/SPDIF converter you were thinking of buying, convert data into the SPDIF format--the only function you need.

If you use the AX, you'll go wireless from the laptop to the AX. If I'm not mistaken, the AX only performs its music function when it is serving as a wireless receiver for iTunes. (It has an ethernet port, but that is for use when the AX is serving as a wireless base station. And it has a USB port, but that is for connecting to a printer, with the AX serving as a wireless printer connection.)

Be as concerned about the cable from AX or SB to DAC as you would a cable from any transport to your DAC--but, then again, your wife will be listening from downstairs. If you go with the AX, I don't think "thin" will be the issue with a plastic Toslink. It will be more like extension and resolution. But there are some very reasonable glass Toslinks, like Sonicwave.

Shazaam! You've cracked through my thick skull, and now I understand. Hopefully, by the end of next week, I'll have all of the pieces and be up and running.
Thank you all again for the input. My wife also thanks you!
Howard

Thanks again to all of you for the help. Ckorody, you've been indispensable in so generously responding to my questions both here and privately.

I put iTunes on the computer in our upstairs bedroom so I could avoid having the unwanted computer noise in the listening room. I put a 300GB hard drive on the same system, and the Squeezebox sits in the listening room. The wireless arrangement between the two works perfectly. We have about 400+ CD's loaded onto the hard drive, and even with the SB DAC the sound is decent. Tomorrow, however, we will be picking up our CDP, which is having a digital input installed, and we'll run a digital cable between the SB and our DAC, which sounds dramatically better than that of the SB...as it should, considering the price difference.

Nothing like having the convenience of the hard drive. We end up listening to CD's that might not otherwise find themselves into the rotation. This is a lot of fun, and my wife is thrilled at the ease of using this setup.

Thank you all again.
Howard
P.S.--It should be noted that if you are using the SB with a PC, you can rip to an external hard drive VIA iTunes, using the iTunes editing software, etc., but as far as I understand, you can NOT 'drive' from iTunes. In other words, you must use the SB remote OR Slim Server in order to control the playback, not iTunes. If anyone knows differently, please say so.

Hi Boa2,

I was hoping that you could provide what your experiences were after using your CD player's DAC with the SqueezeBox? I have a Cary 303/200 that accepts digital in for use with its built in DAC and was thinking of doing something more or less like you did.

Also, do you regret using iTunes?

Portugal11,
Thus far, it is difficult to say as to whether I prefer the SB -> DAC, or the player by itself. They definitely sound different, but both are superb. The bottom line for me is the convenience, and the enthusiasm I have for the Random Mix. The surprise of that next song makes listening a lot of fun, and we have the music running all day.

The SB reads the free download software from Slim Devices, known as Slim Server. It's their version of iTunes, if you will. So, I do use iTunes to import from hard disc into my music library--on an external hard drive--but to affect any changes in the playback, I have to 'drive' with the Slim Server, the layout of which I happen to prefer to iTunes. In addition, I can dial up songs or re-program the playback by using either the SB remote, or at the computer where the external hard drive is connected.

Let me know if I've answered (or not answered) your questions.
Howard