Starting a computer based system

Hi. Welcome to computer audio. I have been diving into it for about six months now and have learned alot - but have much more to learn.

Go to www.computeraudiophile.com and read the FAQ. There is a ton of info on the site and the "owner" of the site is very knowledgeable of both Mac and Windows. I followed his recommendations (plus a few others) to dial in my computer-based system: Windows 7 laptop running JRiver MC 17.

Good luck!

If you are committed to the Apple platform, go here:

http://www.empiricalaudio.com/computer-audio/, as well as the Computeraudiophile web site I recommended earlier.

In short, use Amarra in lieu of iTunes, rip to lossless AIFF codec and use a high quality USB cable or SPDIF on RCA if you Mac accomodates it. The iPad info above is spot on. The DAC Magic is a very high value DAC at the price point. It only does 16/48 on USB, though, if that matters to you.

Full disclosure: I have a DAC Magic for sale on Audiogon with the outboard Pangea PS. I am selling only due to stepping up in the DAC world - see my related post in the digital forum. No issues or complaints with the DAC Magic for what it is.