There are not only better DACs, there are better Master Clock sources. The MC is the most important part here, even more important than the DAC.
The best solution is ALWAYS to get the Master Clock out of the server, whether it is a Mac Mini, PC or a all-in-one server. The best way to currently accomplish this is to use USB, so you will need either a USB DAC or a USB converter (such as the Off-Ramp 5) and DAC. The USB converter and DAC will ALWAYS sound better than the USB DAC alone. Again, it sounds better because the MASTER CLOCK is powered from an independent power supply. The more you baby the Master Clock, the better your system will sound. There are servers out there that can drive USB output streaming music.
Steve N.
Empirical Audio
The best solution is ALWAYS to get the Master Clock out of the server, whether it is a Mac Mini, PC or a all-in-one server. The best way to currently accomplish this is to use USB, so you will need either a USB DAC or a USB converter (such as the Off-Ramp 5) and DAC. The USB converter and DAC will ALWAYS sound better than the USB DAC alone. Again, it sounds better because the MASTER CLOCK is powered from an independent power supply. The more you baby the Master Clock, the better your system will sound. There are servers out there that can drive USB output streaming music.
Steve N.
Empirical Audio