At present I have around 1200 CD's which are played on a Cal Audio/Benchmark DAC 1. I am looking for some guidance regarding the potential use of high res streaming or ripping and having a server. I have no idea which option/equipment to pursue or if there is another option to consider. This all started when I recently went to audition speakers with a few CD's but discovered this was the old fashioned way and instead used a "Roon Streamer" I think. Secondly the Cal Audio is about 25+ years old and the DAC 1 is 16 yrs old. Thanks in advance for your responses as I am absolutely confused with the digital path to take.
This all started when I recently went to audition speakers with a few CD's but discovered this was the old fashioned way and instead used a "Roon Streamer" I think.
This is a can of worms. Just because something is newer doesnt mean it is better. Streamers can send a "stream" of digits to a DAC. Sometimes the DAC is built in. A CD player has transport, which reads the pits from the CD, and then sends them as a stream to a Digital Audio Converter in the player to get sound. Streamers can send digital streams that reside on a hard drive or that are transmitted over the internet from dedicated streaming sites in addition to playing a stream from Internet Radio. Some of them can accept transmission from a tablet, phone, or computer wirelessly using technologies such as AirPlay, Bluetooth, or Chromecast. There is no reason that a streamer should sound better playing CDs that have been ripped to a hard drive than what a CD player or CD-DAC combo can produce. In fact many people believe the opposite. Your equipment is ancient, especially for digital, which changes and evolves quickly. A new streamer/DAC will likely beat the pants off of your current equipment because it is newer. Ditto for a current CD-DAC combo. Roon is a Ginormous software program that integrates music stored on a hard drive with music from a streaming service so that it all shows up in one place. It does other funky stuff like suggest new music, tells you what musician overdosed the day the recording was made, etc... Roon started making their own hardware to run their program so you may have been listening to something called a Roon Nucleus.
I am realizing that I sound contradictory when I said something isn't necessarily better because it is newer, and then call the OPs equipment ancient. I meant to say that streaming, the newer technology, is not necessarily better than CD Replay.
The streaming listener has no way of knowing the provenance of a particular recording. Many from the streaming services have been remastered - altered - from the originals. More compression, boosted bass ... if this doesn't bother you, then go ahead and stream away!
I don't think that older CD players and DACs are inferior and take second place to the new stuff! The proliferation of ever more expensive DACs and transports appears to be driven by clever marketing to appeal to the "golden ears" crowd to increase profits.
I just read that the latest version of my original Benchmark DAC 1 is a A+ recommended component. While appreciating the limitation of such "recommended component" lists a newer DAC could be an option. OTOH there is no way I am spending time ripping 1200+ CD's. At present I couldn't store the files anyway which brings me to the idea of a media server if I'm using the term correctly.
There is an evolution going on. It started with a CD Player and will end with streaming. We are far enough along that there are high end solutions for the each end of the spectrum and anywhere in between. Solutions exist at most price points $1,000 -> $100,000. I have 2,000 CDs collecting dust.
So the evolution has been: CD Player, Rip disks (relocate files) to a hard drive, purchase high Rez versions on line, save on a network drive, then stream from internet server service (Qobuz). If asking this question now, I would not waste the time or money on the intermediate steps and just focus on streaming. I spent hundreds of hours ripping disks and on storage. Now the best digital sound comes from Qobuz streaming ($14.99/ month) and other services… most audiophiles prefer Qobuz). If I want to listen to a CD I own, I just stream it from Qobuz.
In general, it is going to cost about the same, say maybe 10% - 15% more for streaming, but it is going to save you a lot of money not pursuing intermediate steps. It will give you access to the world of music… almost anything you can think of and worlds you have not. It is going to be a similar amount of work choosing equipment and making sure it is compatible.
Streaming requires a good Streamer, and DAC (a CD player is a physical transport, a streamer, and DAC in one box). You can use a PC for streaming, but if you want to get to true high end you need a real stand alone streamer, something built from the ground up as a streamer (think Aurender or Auralic). They come with storage and without. I haven’t used my storage for over six months.
What you been doing for 25 years? The Rip Winkle? A few responses here will never get your lost time back. You have to know a destination before you can choose a path. Mostly here you are going to get self serving responses according to personal bias. No one can know what works best for YOU. Start with: do you want to squeeze every last bit of quality ALL the time? Or do you appreciate convenience and access at least a little?
jasonbourne52 The streaming listener has no way of knowing the provenance of a particular recording. Many from the streaming services have been remastered - altered - from the originals. More compression, boosted bass ... if this doesn’t bother you, then go ahead and stream away!
Jason is correct here, just look how compressed the later release’s are which are usually the streamed and downloaded ones.
Or do as I do, just keep playing your CD’s, and get the the releases that have the least compression from the Dynamic Range website I just linked to above. Cheers George
if you want to continue to play your CDs, and you are trying to decide between a new CD player and a streamer, then don’t get a streamer. If you don’t want to rip your CDs, and are content to listen to the same CDs as streamed over the Internet, get a streamer. At the risk of overstating the obvious, you won’t be able to buy a shiny new streamer AND listen to your CDs without having a way to get the CDs read with some sort of disc spinner
Some great responses/suggestions! I have stayed with the Cal Audio/BenchMark combo because it is a carousel and of course is convenient and sounds great. It was also in a hard wired 6 zone "whole house" system which allowed me to play it from anywhere. This was long before streaming. I since replaced the hard-wire with Sonos but that is not hi res. The CD player is part of my two channel system in my designated music room. I listen to vinyl 95% of the time which also made it easy to age my digital source combine that with golf season when I barely listen to anything! I no longer need a carousel and would consider a player upgrade and/or employing someone to rip my collection and get a server as well. I was always impressed with the Esoteric line of players but don't know how current that product is. I know nothing about servers though.
Ignore the CD vs Streaming debate, it's an age-old "my generation's version is better" conversation. Then you have people now buying up reel to reel players to get a more "reel" experience (sorry for the pun).
Streaming is almost a lifestyle change, I never listen to a full album anymore when streaming, if I want to listen to a full album I usually go to vinyl but when I want to stream music it's usually because I want to jump around and listen to multiple types or artists. I've made playlists for different times of the day or moods, I've also learned a lot about the music I love because of Roon, which is one of the coolest platforms ever for music.
I would say get yourself a Qobuz and Roon subscriptions and a simple streamer like a bluesound node and a new DAC. Use the transport you have and plug that and the streamer into the new DAC and start experimenting.
If you like streaming then you've got it but I would look at it as an addition to what you have and not a replacement.
I have a $500 Audiolab 6000CDT transport and my Hegel 590 has a first class DAC built in. The first CD I ever bought was Ry Cooder's Bop Till You Drop around 1982. I still listen to CDs about 50% of the time I spend with music, which is about 2 hours every evening. Despite what anyone else may say, I can't hear the difference between my CD or vinyl collections. You don't need to break the bank to buy some very respectable equipment and will let you continue enjoying your CD collection. Why go any further than that?
Not listening to a full album at a time was a problem I used to have until I upgraded my streamer to raise the sound quality to CD (I have a very good CD player); nearly vinyl quality. Now exactly the opposite happens, I’ll start listening to something I normally would not like, but just can’t stop listening because it sounds so good.
“Tune Surfing” is the result of unsatisfying sound quality. Typically it has to do with the gestalt of the sound (typically lack of rhythm and pace, possible high noise floor, high frequency hash). My digital end now is just as satisfying as my analog. Start something and I can’t pull away.
bigtwin I have a $500 Audiolab 6000CDT transport and my Hegel 590 has a first class DAC built in. The first CD I ever bought was Ry Cooder’s Bop Till You Drop around 1982. I still listen to CDs about 50% of the time I spend with music, which is about 2 hours every evening. Despite what anyone else may say, I can’t hear the difference between my CD or vinyl collections.
The vinyl was very similar in DR with the earlier CD’s, only the last re-issue got compressed in 2014, and these are usually also the streamed/downable ones.
As usual great stimulating responses from the community. I am not aware of an "appreciable" monetary value associated with CD's. Accordingly, the rip/server route is appealing. I just read about an Aurender A30 which has server/streaming capability along with an Acronova Nimbie for high volume ripping which is also appealing. I was not familiar with either of these until this tread so THANK YOU!
I'm not going to get involved with streaming vs. cd battle, both can sound great. Getting quality streaming more involved than cd, so it requires some work on your part.
Beyond all this, streaming opens you up to a whole new world of music. With cd's I was able to purchase only a fraction of what is available, even with my favorite artists, where I had multiple cd's. And then there is a multitude of artist with great music you've never heard of. It just goes on and on and on! I could never go back to limiting myself to constant rotation of the 2500 cd's I still possess! Streaming is for the music lover, I only wish the artists could derive a larger share of profit.
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