Hello All, here is what I use, and I am very happy with the setup.
- Mac laptop for my work and general computer needs.
- Mac Mini, slightly older model, but nicely specified, for dedicated music use.
- Standard hard drive connected to Mac Mini to hold my music collection
- iPhone for, well, everything we do with them these days
- PS Audio DAC with Bridge 2
- Roon software, Tidal HIFI subscription
My setup:
the Mac mini is in my home office, hard wired to my home network via Ethernet cable. Hard drive attached, Roon installed on the Mac Mini.
The PS Audio Perfect Wave DAC mk II with Bridge 2, sits on the audio shelf in the living room, connected to home network via Ethernet cable. I really like this DAC a lot. Extremely capable machine, despite showing a little age!
Tidal HIFI is integrated into Roon, along with my music collection. The collection is mostly cd rips in uncompressed AIFF along with a modest collection of high res albums.
control is seamless and simple via my laptop or my iPhone, both running Roon, both on the network connecting wirelessly. This means I can sit in the living room, and control music with a nice interface that is usually close at hand, the iPhone. If I want a more full featured controller or a larger screen, I grab the laptop.
in my home office I have an external monitor that I use with my laptop, when I am sitting at my desk. This monitor has 2 inputs, and I conned the Mac mini to it as well, pushing the input button when I (rarely) have to control the Mac mini. No need for a dedicated display for the mini. I set the timer settings on the Mac mini to restart once a day at 4am. It is always running, music always accessible.
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in your system, I suspect you can achieve a similar setup, presuming you are interested in my method. PS Audio has 3 different DACs that use Bridge 2, and all are worth considering.
your NAS can connect to the network, and Roon on your Mac mini will find it, and supply the music to the DAC's Bridge via Ethernet.
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the results are are excellent sound as well as extremely convenient operation! I cannot stress the latter enough. I am a photographer and very tech savvy individual. Nevertheless, I do not like complicated digital audio setups from a control standpoint. Roon is a game changer, really made things easy and enjoyable from a user interface standpoint. I think that the Mac mini running music exclusively is a plus as well. I don't believe one needs a supercomputer, but rather a decent machine with no other operations taking up any resources. A Mac mini from a couple generations back with a solid state drive is perfect in my opinion.
I hope this is useful! Feel free to contact me if you'd like more info. Good luck! -Mark
- Mac laptop for my work and general computer needs.
- Mac Mini, slightly older model, but nicely specified, for dedicated music use.
- Standard hard drive connected to Mac Mini to hold my music collection
- iPhone for, well, everything we do with them these days
- PS Audio DAC with Bridge 2
- Roon software, Tidal HIFI subscription
My setup:
the Mac mini is in my home office, hard wired to my home network via Ethernet cable. Hard drive attached, Roon installed on the Mac Mini.
The PS Audio Perfect Wave DAC mk II with Bridge 2, sits on the audio shelf in the living room, connected to home network via Ethernet cable. I really like this DAC a lot. Extremely capable machine, despite showing a little age!
Tidal HIFI is integrated into Roon, along with my music collection. The collection is mostly cd rips in uncompressed AIFF along with a modest collection of high res albums.
control is seamless and simple via my laptop or my iPhone, both running Roon, both on the network connecting wirelessly. This means I can sit in the living room, and control music with a nice interface that is usually close at hand, the iPhone. If I want a more full featured controller or a larger screen, I grab the laptop.
in my home office I have an external monitor that I use with my laptop, when I am sitting at my desk. This monitor has 2 inputs, and I conned the Mac mini to it as well, pushing the input button when I (rarely) have to control the Mac mini. No need for a dedicated display for the mini. I set the timer settings on the Mac mini to restart once a day at 4am. It is always running, music always accessible.
------------------
in your system, I suspect you can achieve a similar setup, presuming you are interested in my method. PS Audio has 3 different DACs that use Bridge 2, and all are worth considering.
your NAS can connect to the network, and Roon on your Mac mini will find it, and supply the music to the DAC's Bridge via Ethernet.
--------------
the results are are excellent sound as well as extremely convenient operation! I cannot stress the latter enough. I am a photographer and very tech savvy individual. Nevertheless, I do not like complicated digital audio setups from a control standpoint. Roon is a game changer, really made things easy and enjoyable from a user interface standpoint. I think that the Mac mini running music exclusively is a plus as well. I don't believe one needs a supercomputer, but rather a decent machine with no other operations taking up any resources. A Mac mini from a couple generations back with a solid state drive is perfect in my opinion.
I hope this is useful! Feel free to contact me if you'd like more info. Good luck! -Mark