want to upgrade my source??

[shinichi]

hi,

right now my main source is a PC

I want to buy a good used CD player which can play mp3 disks because most of my song are mp3 files. I know you may recommend me to use flossless files but I mainly download music from internet so flossless files are hard to find

cables i have had so far are virtual dynamics digital RCA and analog RCA

my budget will be around 4k

when you recommend me the player, can you also give me a good price tag for it? which brand should i consider?

thanks for your time

[aardvark baguette]

Replace your mp3s with the real deal, first. MP3s are teh sukk.

[Dusty Chalk]

I would just get a good outboard DAC for your computer, there's nothing wrong with using your PC as your source.

[Dusty Chalk]

That's under 4k, innit? Shinichi -- does your computer have a digital out, or do you need to get that, too? I wonder how bad a mismatch a M-Audio Transit would be with an Audio Aero Capitole?

Or is there another reason you'd prefer to separate it from your listening rig? Which is fine, just trying to get some details so we can give good advice.

[grawk]

For $4000, buy a cambridge 840c and spend the rest buying the cds you've been stealing.

[Tachikoma]

If I had $4k to spend on my source, I would spend at least a part of it on silencing the computer. Fan noise and hard drive noise annoys me to no end nowadays.

[n_maher]

If I had $4k to spend on my source, I would spend at least a part of it on silencing the computer. Fan noise and hard drive noise annoys me to no end nowadays.

*cough* squeezebox *cough*

Never be in the same room with the computer, it makes life much easier.

[grawk]

airport express and an ipod touch

[guzziguy]

*cough* squeezebox *cough*

Or you can do what a friend of mine did. He found an old abandoned beverage refrigerator and kept his computer in it. It didn't overheat and you couldn't hear the fans.

Never be in the same room with the computer, it makes life much easier.

I guess that the reefer solution qualifies as not being in the same room.

[Tachikoma]

Or you can do what a friend of mine did. He found an old abandoned beverage refrigerator and kept his computer in it. It didn't overheat and you couldn't hear the fans.

Well, you would hear the refrigerator instead.

Never be in the same room with the computer, it makes life much easier.

I wish I had that option =P

[guzziguy]

Well, you would hear the refrigerator instead.

No, the refrigerator was dead and not running. It was just an insulated box, i.e. just a small room in which to put the computer.

[shinichi]

my soundcard also has a digital out

it is the rme HDSP9632. I also bought the extra balance cable for the card too

[shinichi]

well, the AA Prima SE i linked is basically a Capitole Mk II SE without the CD transport (and the pretty Capitole faceplate), and that is a smoking, smoking deal. it would be slightly better than my standard Mk II, in theory (never heard an SE).

i bet the M-Audio would be just fine, as long as it gives a pit perfect output. the Prima DAC would be a great match with the active speakers he seems to want, as it also includes a very nice preamp.

is this DAC better than the bel canto DAC3 or benchmark DAC1?

if i buy this one, then i will connect it to my digital output on my soundcard???.

It seems like my soundcard will degrade the sound of the DAC, RIGHT?

[shinichi]

actually, I want to buy a good CD player which can play MP3 file so i don't need to listen to my PC because i think CD player circuit board will produce better sound than soundcard of PC ??

[morphsci]

If you are not going to play anything better than downloaded MP3's (Almost always low bitrate) then you are wasting your money. They sound like shit so all you're going to end up with is better sounding shit.

[grawk]

yes, cd players aren't going to make mp3s sound better

[Tachikoma]

No, the refrigerator was dead and not running. It was just an insulated box, i.e. just a small room in which to put the computer.

Cool

if i buy this one, then i will connect it to my digital output on my soundcard.

It seems like my soundcard will degrade the sound of the DAC, RIGHT?

You have a decent soundcard there, so it should make for a half-decent transport at least, especially if you use it with an external DAC which has a wordclock output.

That soundcard could be competitive with CD players in the same price range.

If you are not going to play anything better than downloaded MP3's (Almost always low bitrate) then you are wasting your money. They sound like shit so all you're going to end up with is better sounding shit.

MP3s are by no means the end all of music formats but they aren't THAT bad =P But getting a CDP just for MP3s doesn't make any sense at all.

[morphsci]

MP3s are by no means the end all of music formats but they aren't THAT bad ...

Well they do not have to be that bad but ...

.... I know you may recommend me to use flossless files but I mainly download music from internet so flossless files are hard to find

Most of the dreck "available for download on the internet" is that bad. If the expectation is that the music should be free and quality doesn't matter then just download a CDP.

[Dusty Chalk]

No, the refrigerator was dead and not running. It was just an insulated box, i.e. just a small room in which to put the computer.

That sounds like a terrible idea -- you do know that heat is bad for computer's internals, right? Erm... I mean, your friend knows this, right?

[guzziguy]

That sounds like a terrible idea -- you do know that heat is bad for computer's internals, right? Erm... I mean, your friend knows this, right?

Yes, he's a computer nerd's computer nerd. I don't remember if the door was open or not. However, he measured temperatures and heat was never a problem.

Before he went this route, he mounted his motherboard on his wall. That made it easy to access boards, etc. so he could change/hack them. He's the brightest engineer I've ever met.

[Cankin]

how much is the Buffalo DAC(finished built by professional) ?? any estimates??

I know there are wide array of price range, but how about a finished one with USB input and SE output??

[deepak]

*cough* squeezebox *cough*

Never be in the same room with the computer, it makes life much easier.

I don't know how I lived without mine for so long

It did take me a few hours to sort out my hodgepodge of a music directory, but it was worth it.

[aardvark baguette]

is this DAC better than the bel canto DAC3 or benchmark DAC1?

Probably and almost certainly, in that order.

[Icarium]

Edipis you are getting a little bit militant with the Audio Aero gear. I mean what reasoning are you using that the Prima is a better value than the Cambridge 840c?

The ANAGRAM tech that you are so frothy over has a better and more modern implementation in the Cambridge as it has a dac chip that is actually designed for that shit.

Whoo tubed output stage?

The Audio Aero stuff sounds good and is a solid recommendation, but there is other good stuff out there and AA isn't always going to be hands down best in all price brackets.

Don't be the Trose of Audio Aero or even the Jamato.

[JBLoudG20]

He called you out, boy.