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Best digital stream player

No matter how expensive any cd player is, it is just do a best guess of what is on the cd. I don't think cd player will be completely gone in a couple years because LP is coming back. But I feel the digital stream player have big advantage over cd player and all audio company will come up with their new digital stream player in the coming years. Digital stream player either use usb or network cable to directly read music file from PC/file server and are slowly adapted by audiophiles.

Digital stream player is still new to lots of people. Which one is the best digital stream player in the market?

1)DCS Scarlatti upsampler
2)PlayBack Designs MPS-5
3)Linn Klimax DS

Or is there any other newcomers better than those three?
yxlei

Showing 5 responses by pubul57

pubul57
3,712 posts
 
On a realted note, is it possible for any traditional transport to be as good as something like the Olive HD feeding a high quality DAC?
pubul57
3,712 posts
 
What do you do when a hard drive in the HDX fails? Are they user replaceable with 3rd-party hard drives?
pubul57
3,712 posts
 
If the idea is that a hard drive is far superior to an optical reader, it would seem to me that the music server concept with, or without an digital out for DACs is the way that all digital sources will go. I like the idea that you can also play a CD with the NAIM without having to store on the drive. Seems like a good format for players in the near future. The idea of using a PC and all the inherent complexities with optimizing the software and drivers, etc is not a direct I would go, but the Olive and NAIM seems like they are on to the right approach for high-end audio. At least they have a back up drive which helps ALOT, should your main drive go bad. But it would be good if replacing a down drive were an easy fix, with a 3rd-party drive that fit the "slot". How much is the NAIM selling for?
pubul57
3,712 posts
 
Do you have any idea how the NAIM would differ from the Olive HD? Seems very similar conceptually. I wonder if this is will be the standard digital source format. It seems to make sense without having to deal with a PC. The more I read about that approach, the more it seems like a hornet's nest. Not a problem for computer savvy folks perhaps, but it is far from simple IMHO. This seems like a plug n play approach with a true piece of dedicated audio equipment.
pubul57
3,712 posts
 
Did you have an opportunity to compare the MAC/Wavelength with the NAIM?
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