1. Yes, was certainly running uncompressed .... !
And playing the SAME disc ( ...pressing DO sound different.)
2. Yes, Minerva fed via firewire from the iMac. No esoteric Firewire cable used, though.
The Interconnects were Argento Master Ref, Balanced. The same interconnects were swapped between the CD player and the Minerva.
.... incidentally, I had problems with getting the Minerva recognised using Windows & running Foobar, on the same iMac using Boot camp ( allows Mac & Win OS and a selective startup into either OS. Bootcamp is by Apple ) I would have been a bit wary with Foobar, with the need to ensure ASIO but no such concerns in iTunes running on Mac, so I was genuinely surprised and disappointed at the sound. The (pre-owned) Minerva was on offer at 50% off list, and I was seriously considering a purchase....