ipod -VS - Mac-Mini

Well, for one thing with the Mac Mini you can use an external USB DAC. In general, this will give you better sound quality than the iPod. The iPod is convenient because it's very compact compared to the Mac Mini and a DAC. The Mac Mini doesn't necessarily need a monitor, but it would sure help. An iBook may be a better option.

There are also specific recommendations for how to rip your CDs. The Wavelength Audio web site is a good place to start for this information.

I agree with Budrew. If you intend to use this as a source for your main system, I would go with an iBook and a USB DAC. This will be light years ahead of the iPod sonically. Plus you can use an external hard drive to rip too, that will give you much larger capacity than the iPod. However, if you are looking for a portable device that you can hook up to your system on occasion, then the iPod is a tremendous value for money.

You can also just get a USB/Firewire device to get either a digital or optical out of your computer and then line that into an external DAC component (probably better quality and cost than an integrated computer usb/dac device).

Also you can just buy an Airport Express and get the optical out cable to go into a DAC, this way the computer does not even need to be near the stereo. The Mini will be the best price and can come with an 80GB drive you can swap or add to ...I have all my music lossless so if you plan to compress then going with a cheaper integrated usb/dac might be fine. You can check out my system ...I think it is similar to what you are looking at.