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IPOD and an audiophile soundcard

I recently broke down and bought a 40gb ipod when I realized that I could import uncompressed wav files. Any tips and suggestions from fellow audiophiles on getting the most out of it? I am also looking for a high end sound card for my PC...any suggestions? I have a VPI TNT set up and need a nice A/D convertor so that I can "take my vinyl" on the road in the IPOD. I also got a nifty little FM transmitter that sits on top.
ntscdan

Showing 1 response by thomas_eck

thomas_eck
4 posts
 
M-Audio's Audiophile 24/96 is quite good, as is their "Revolution" if you desire a more mainstream card for games, etc. Audiophiles desiring the use of an outboard DAC for their PC should steer clear of any of the SoundBlasters (even the Audigy series) as AC97 compatibility means they upsample your 44.1KHz source to 48KHz before sending it to the SPDIF output. None of the M-Audio/RME boards do this. If you desire an AES/EBU output, go for the RME-Audio Digi96/8 PAD. This is a professional card (i.e. for use with a DAW), but if you want quality, it's a great way to go.

More info (in ascending price order):

M-Audio Revolution 7.1:
http://www.m-audio.com/index.php?do=products.main&ID=0ed0405324041d8025a955aa6ae2db1c

M-Audio Audiophile 2496:
http://www.m-audio.com/index.php?do=products.main&ID=adf95efc30b88aba043fa8b83343bfb8

RME-Audio DIGI24/96PAD:
http://www.rme-audio.com/english/digi96/digi96pa.htm
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