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Music Server

I am looking for a reliable and easy to use music server with a very good interface software package.  I have about 4,500 CDs, the majority classical, so I am looking for something that does a good job at cataloguing the content.  I currently run a Naim NDS/Uniti server.  I think the software is adequate, but, I have FAR too many bugs and problems keeping it working correctly.  Enough is enough.  I would like something that is much more stable and reliable that is designed to handle a decent sized collection. 

I did some quick research and found the Antipodes server.  It seems to have the ability to run a number of different software packages (comes with Roon pre-loaded) and it has built-in capability to rip CDs, both of which are a big plus, but, I am a bit concerned about whether it might be a bit complicated to use.  I have also taken a quick look at the Aurender servers.  I have a good local dealer who is a computer whiz that carries the Aurender so that is a big plus.  Another big plus would be something that could take what I have already loaded on my QNAP NAS and work with that so I don't have to re-load, edit metadata, etc. all 4,500 CDs again.

Are there any other top end servers that I should be looking at?  Also, any suggestions on a DAC to couple with the server?

Thanks.

larryi

Showing 1 response by parabolic

parabolic
106 posts
 
Lots of good ideas here.  I did something along the lines of what sbank did, and it's quite effective.

I used EAC to rip my entire CD collection to a Qnap NAS as FLAC and stream bit-perfect to my preamp using a Raspberry Pi and HiFiBerry (though there are other DAC boards) running Moode audio player, but Volumio is also highly recommended.  There are others as well, such as OSMC and OpenELEC running Kodi media center.

So, if you want an affordable solution, you could start with a Pi3, HiFiBerry and existing laptop just to experiment.  For about $100 bucks, you might be quite surprised at the results.

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