Computer music server PC or Apple????

The Mac Mini can be used with a remote control and monitor. It is called Front Row. As far as using the Mini with an outboard DAC, Benchmark told me that a Mini running Toslink into their DAC will sound as good as the USB. That way there would be no need to go with the USB version of their DAC. You could get their DAC without the USB capability and save a couple hundred bucks should you go that way. Also, one of the last issues of The Absolute Sound had many articles on music servers including setting up a PC for the task. I heard a PC using Windows XP with CD's ripped using Exact Audio Copy and an IMac running CD's ripped with Apple Lossless into an outboard USB DAC. In my opinion, the Apple sounded superior with better imaging and tonal color.

I bought a macbook because it has wifi and a monitor already built in. If I'm not ripping its silent and I can turn off the wifi and the monitor will sleep without interrupting the music.

I use the Mini Toslink to my PS Audio DL III and It sounds better than my Primare CD21 as a transport. I like the sexy form factor of the Mac Mini, but the Macbook made more sense to me. To each his own.

My goal was to have the features of a server and the sound of a sub $5K CD Player. While I have not paraded a bunch of CD players through my system to double check, I think I have that. I do wish I would have sprung the extra 250 for a black macbook though.

the setup in my den consists of: totem speakers, definitive technology supercube sub, sony 9000es dvd/cd/sacd, nikko fm tuner, dk design vs-1, adcom gda-700 dac, audio alchemy dti, mac mini, and airport express. i have both the dvp9000es and the airport express hooked up to the dti to cleanup the jitter, and then a digital cable from the dti to the dac.
i have other rooms in the house with airport express units hooked up to receivers in those rooms. i have my macbook control the mac mini running itunes from the other parts of the house (wireless). i'm purchasing an ipod touch that will also allow me to control the mac mini running itunes from anywhere in the house using remote buddy.
once the mac mini is up and running, you don't need the keyboard or mouse any longer. put the mini in the rac with your equipment and use the toslink cable from the mac mini to an external dac or use the cable from the mini with rca terminations hooked up straight into your preamp/receiver.
i use apple's airport express devices (wireless or wired) to distribute music to the whole house. you can tell itunes which speakers you want to play.
i think if you get a good quality external dac with toslink input, you will be happy. i did hookup my digital transmission interface between the mac or airport express and the external dac and the sound was more fluid, more bass, more clean.
there are other options too. also, you need another disk drive to backup the 500gb disk you have. use the internal mac drive for your operating system, and programs, use the 500gb drive for all your data, documents, itunes stuff, etc... and then get another 500gb drive or larger and backup both of these disks to it each night. use time machine with leopard, it does it automatically once you set it up.
don't use a laptop, they get too hot and the heat will damage the laptop after a while. my macbook get really warm after a couple hours usage.
if all you are going to use the mini for is an audio server, you can get an older one, you don't need the core duo intel processor. if you want to run applications on here besides itunes and if you think you will need to win windows (why go backwards), then go for the newer intel models. i have all intel macs and use either parallels or vmware to run linux,solaris, or windows (i have 1 app that needs windows).
if you think you might want to use this server as a whole house central server to run your file/print/itunes/hvac/security system/etc.., go for the macpro or older power mac, these are made for 24x365 servers.
good luck.

Jwmazur - not even close. The DAC-1 USB is a lot better.