2. pc-audio
  3. 1205110498

It's 2008. Why aren't there better options ?

Apple TV: Great interface, lousy DAC, requires TV to be on.

Transporter: Tiny interface, decent DAC, no TV option.

Airport Express: No interface, requires computer to be on/in same room.

Squeezebox Duet: Nice remote, requires computer.

Sonos: Again with the always-on computer? Nice remote though.

Olive: I can get my own music off my CDs, thanks. Hey I Just saved $3000!

PC/Mac/NAS rigged with wires/routers/DACs/Pace Cars. Seriously?

So where is it? The all in one 2008 wonder machine? In the era of tech convergence, why is it still so tricky to get high quality digital music piped through your speakers?

I don't want to leave my computer and router on. I don't want to turn my TV on every time I want to hear a song...sometimes maybe, but not always. Shouldn't I be able to choose? I don't need a CD player built in. I don't want a big ugly NAS with 6 drive bays.

What I do want is a quality built in DAC with reclocking, a swappable hard drive bay or 2, an on-board monochrome display AND a nice color LCD remote AND the option to navigate via TV. I also want wifi, for PC streaming if needed, internet radio/podcasts, and the ability to buy lossless music some day. Video would be nice too.

All in all, the ulitmate machine will have the iTunes integration and hard drive of Apple TV, the build quality (or better) and wifi of the Transporter, the remote of the Sonos or Duet, in a unit that looks and sounds good, and doesn't rely solely on a TV, a router, or a computer, but can interface with all of them at will.

It can be done, and it can be done for $1000 or less. Whoever does it first will own the market.

Discuss!

Rob
rkny
kirkus
502 posts
 
The last line of your post is why. Would you expect any other "dream component" for a high-quality, enthusiast audio system to cost $1000?

Actually, the Kaleidescape system does most of what you're asking, and they're adding more and more features all the time, which they automatically add to your system when they're available. And oh yeah, it does DVDs and full HD video content as well, with Blu-Ray support on the way. No compression on anything, amazing sound and video quality. Everything it does, it does damn near perfectly.

It's just expensive, that's all. Still too rich for my blood, but I'm looking at the price in the context of a high-end turntable or digital rig . . . other things that typically take years for us to save up the money for.
rdc2000
27 posts
 
You're wrong about Sonos. Computer doesn't always have to be on.

Same with new Squeezebox w/ remote.
rives
953 posts
 
3 more options, though I'm not going to say they are any better/worse thant he above mentioned:
Niveus - I understand it's one of the best for hi-res to those find this important.
Nevo - I'm using this and really love it, but I will admit it has it's share of quirks. I do use a cheap computer, an expensive DAC, and router and leave it on all the time--though I don't have to. It's in a separate room and is accessible via the remote.

I like your basic premise, it's essentially what Solos has, though the current Solos is expensive, stay tuned for falling prices with them. They do have the best user interface. The only area I'm not crazy about is the limitation to do FLAC files only. FLAC is great if you want the whole album, but what if you only want 3 songs off the album--can't do it with FLAC.
regalma1
72 posts
 
Not true about partial albums and FLAC. I do it all the time. I set up EAC to do it. I just pick and choose what I want to rip.

The thing that blows me away about most servers is their ridiculous price and tiny HDDs. How can anyone sell a $10K server with 200 GB of storage and a tiny display. There is a serious lack of imagination here.

Personally I have a laptop, a SqueezeBox, an external DAC and external HDD. It works great. I am planning on getting the remote control from the Duet so I can control it from anywhere I want. The best thing about the laptop is that I have it setup next to my listening position. I can control my music without turning on a TV, or squinting at a tiny screen across the room. While I listen to music I can set up any sort of playlist to listen to next. With a 15" display I have to do very little scrolling. I can see the next 15 or so songs in the playlist at a glance. I can see all the information at once. I couldn't imagine why anyone would settle for less.
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