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Airport Express wav file vs CD played thru iTunes

I just bought an Airport Express and have it connected to my Primaluna integrated without using an external DAC (for the time being).

When I stream a wav file from iTunes the sound quality is noticeably worse than the same track played on a CD through iTunes. The wav file sounds compressed and very muffled. I would expect the quality to be equal to the CD. I only did this as a test and don't expect to play CDs through iTunes on my laptop streaming to the AE.

Will an external DAC "correct" this problem? Or is the wav file encoder for iTunes the issue? Or maybe something else entirely?
arm
audioengr
3,282 posts
 
The difference is jitter. The stock AE has very bad jitter compared to a decent CD player or even a computer playing a CD. A reclocker can bring the performance of the AE beyond that of a good transport or CD player. Most audiophiles that are getting stellar results from Squeezebox, Sonos and AE are using a reclocker after it.

If you dont understand jitter, then read these papers:
http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue22/nugent.htm
http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue14/spdif.htm

Steve N.
Empirical Audio
arm OP
2 posts
 
Thanks everyone for the responses.

Steve N, I think you answered my question and the whole issue should be moot once I get an outboard DAC.

Ckoffend, I'm using iTunes for wav file encoding. I had read about others having issues with their encoder so I thought I would put it out there.
edo_musica
113 posts
 
Steve,

I guess I am a bit confused. I interpreted from Arm's first post that he was using the laptop with iTunes to play both the CD and the WAV file -which he compared. So wouldn't the AE's jitter apply to both media types, both are reaching the AE as a Apple lossless stream and then decoded there to analog?

Arm, please clarify if I have how you were playing the CD.

ed
audioengr
3,282 posts
 
ARM - If you believe that a DAC is the solution to eliminate jitter, then you need more experience with DAC's. I get to hear a LOT of DAC's in my profession. They ALL need jitter reduction IMO.

Steve N.
audioengr
3,282 posts
 
Edo_musica - the CD is usually played directly from the laptop to a DAC, not through the AE.
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