Audio PC

I built my own Music Server/HTPC and use it for streaming music DSD & PCM and surf the web with the same Windows 10 PC. It has only 8GB of RAM, an Intel i7 Processor (2018 Vintage), and a Fanless Power Supply ( Seasonic X-400 Fanless PSU), and Fanless Heatsink for the i7 CPU. The motherboard is an ASUS Gaming type.

Extremely quiet and as added insurance, I have a solid wire 12AWG/20A AC circuit for the PC & TV while the Audio Rig has a dedicated stranded wire 10AWG/20A.

Hard drives are of the spinning type (1TB, 1TB, & 6TB). It sound good to me. The noise floor is low enough for me.

coincidentally, first time in my main system last night, I hooked up my little hp laptop (HP Pavilion x360: 14m-dy0013dx). It has B&O audio, that helped me make a choice when buying it.

wireless YouTube stream, headphone out jack, adapter to rca, direct to my integrated amp.

I was delightfully surprised how darn good Eva Cassidy sounded

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgBTG_HOvMQ&list=RDSgBTG_HOvMQ&index=1

here is a documentary about that performance

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEqzTlZdfSo

I've seen/heard it before, but never thru my dedicated music system. holy smokes, the signal is better than you realize when played thru a revealing system.

I'm gonna patch that laptop into the Home Theater and see if it beats my current pc in that system. that will tell me something. I went integrated intel sound there many years ago, to avoid fan noise from a dedicated sound card. 

maybe it's about newer and better integrated audio chips!

then, I'll compare that to my Oppo-105 when I move it into that system this weekend.

It is actually shocking how significant the impact of the digital server can be for sound quality.  I used a PC built to the specs of the second iteration of the CAPS server as my first digital server.  I upgraded to an Antipodes DX II and it had a nicely positive impact on the sound quality.  I was considering going up to their latest K50 to get even more when I came across the Taiko Audio Extreme thread and that persuaded me to go whole hog and try that.  I mean "Wow!" what an improvement in sound quality!  

So, IME how the "PC" is built for server duties is every bit as important as the DAC (or possibly more so).  YMMV.

I built a dedicated fanless Intel NUC powered by an Sbooster Mkll PSU for Roon Rock.From NUC to Router i use a Mad Scientist Black Magic LAN cable.Result is amazing!

Avoid any laptop or desktop computer that is inherently noisey. If you have a gaming laptop or laptop, I wouldn't use it for audio.

My Gigabyte Aero 17 is quite noisey. For that, I have an iFi silencer 3.0 that does wonders for it. Although it has a built in GPU, I undervolted the laptop and achieved 30% better performance and silent fans during music playback. 

Fanless laptops or desktop computers are ideal fo audio only applications.