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MacBook Pro or Mac Mini as music server

Currently have apple extreme server. Also using the Olive Media Olive 4HD and Olive 2.
Thinking of adding either the latest Macbook pro or the mac mini as a music server for my cd collection.
Which of the two would be better suited to my task ?
I'm leaning towards the macbook pro 13" with 2.3 GHZ but then at almost half the price the Macbook min 2.4 is a steel but i wouldhave to add keyboard, a monitor and a mouse so cost would be close to the macbook pro.
Anything else am missing here ?
For the Dac, i plan to use either an I-Nova or a Bel canto designs dac 2.5. An esoteric D-07 is also not far fetch.
Would greatly appreciate some advice as i'm just starting out on this hobby (computer audio) just now.
Thanks guys-
nolitan

Showing 13 responses by nolitan

nolitan OP
865 posts
 
Definitely, the Mac Mini is a go!!! now thinking of the Mach 2 package. The $1495 is a reasonable price, what upgrades can you recommend ? bang for buck ? I'll probably have at most 300-500 songs in that storage. Will their stock 40gig SSd be enough to fit those songs ripped in the highest res ?
Would appreciate some advice. How about the RAM, should the 4 be upgraded to 8 and what benefits does it give ?
Thanks in advance.
nolitan OP
865 posts
 
Thanks for the response.
How about the I-mac unit ?
My local dealer recommends the i-mac over the mac-mini.
Would appreciate your comments! thanks in advance.
nolitan OP
865 posts
 
thanks for all the help replies! mac Mini might be it...
I'm giving it some serious thoughts.
nolitan OP
865 posts
 
Which monitor do you guys use with the Mac mini? I just need 15inches or 13". Any specific output the monitor have to be? Does monitor have to have USB?
nolitan OP
865 posts
 
thanks guys! some clarifications.

Where do i acquire VNC ? how does one do screen sharing ? does this involve software, cables ??
is it worth doing the Mach 2 Mini for $1500 ?

I have an Ipad..

Between Amarra or Puremusic, which route ?
nolitan OP
865 posts
 
Thanks Tgrisham. I downloaded Pocketcloud, will this work as well ?
I think puremusic will be the one for me as amarra is a bit pricey.
are the sonic qualities of either amarra and puremusic "better" than the stock i-tunes ?
Thanks for the replies !
nolitan OP
865 posts
 
Onhwy , The Sound House - thank you for the clarification on the ssd. I see!! Is the stock 40gig of Mach 2 enough? Between adding another 40gig of the ssd and adding 4 g of ram to 8 gig which is a better upgrade?
Is 320gig of external drive enough for about 200 CDs worth ripped in best possible format?

Thanks guys
nolitan OP
865 posts
 
Onhwy61,
the 320gb is good enough for my cd collection. I got about 200 as I also have a vinyl system.
For the Upgraded Mac Mini w/ SSD and max out RAM, what Dac would you recommend to match that performance ?
Are we looking at the Berkeley Dac ? or the Weiss ?

Thanks again.
nolitan OP
865 posts
 
At the end of the day, I'm a bit curious whether computer audio as a source or transport e.g. Mac Mini or the Mach 2 Mini would be better than a $1000 or a $3000 cd player unit connected to a dac ?
if it is, or better that's a big bonus because of the convenience of being able to access it instantly compared to swapping CD's.
For those who have maxxed out computer audio based system, do you feel its as good in the Sound quality to your vinyl rig ?

thanks again for the replies.

cheers
nolitan OP
865 posts
 
Between the amarra and puremusic, i feel the amarra is more fuller sounding, amarra is more lively. Although amarra is placed on macbook pro while the puremusic on a normal macbook.. whats your take ?
nolitan OP
865 posts
 
When setting up the Mac-Mini as headless, do you guys leave it on standbye when not in use ?
At somepoint, especially in initial setting up, is monitor needed ?
Considering that route rather than going w/ a Macbook PRO.
If you are using the MacMini as a server, how does one disable the other functions not useful for music making ?
Also, is it possible to have Amarra and Puresound on the same computer ? Doesn't it conflict w/ each other ?
Thanks again..... its been an interesting thread !
nolitan OP
865 posts
 
Hello Mingles,

I tried this procedure using my IPAD:

This will be the easiest way. When you're done with set up, you can remove the monitor and use your ipad or laptop to remote in and do everything you need. Here are instructions on how to set up screen sharing:

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=Mac/10.6/en/11848.html

but for some odd reason my Ipad can't read or open my Macbook. Do i need some sort of VNC viewer ?

Thanks again for the helpful insights.

My question is, if the Macmini is off, i definitely need to turn in on, correct.After that can the ipad already access it ? do i need to put a mouse or keyboard on the macmini to do some functions, etc ?
nolitan OP
865 posts
 
Thanks for the helpful tip Rbstehno.

So which is better, using pocket cloud or using the VLC on the mac to access a headless mac-mini ?
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