MUSIC SERVER - HOW DO YOU............


I have a all McIntosh system with Tannoy speakers and have decided to go digital. Recently purchased a MDA 1000 to replace my C46. Easily over a 1000 cd collection.

I need a way to store and play. What I want to do is store to a NAS or similar device, sit on the couch with a touch screen of some sort to scan and select my listening pleasure. Can be hard wired or streamed. I use FLAC. Don't care about internet look up of playlist and cover art.

I'm not a computer wiz nor do I want to be. Is there a system that does what I want, seems like from what I read most self built servers require that you spend more time configuring and dealing with online support then listening to music.

What do you suggest? Thanks in advance for your help.
fishcricket
I agree with part of the above posts. If you go w/ a Mac mini as the server it has a toslink out you can use. That will be a simple approach, and I'm 99% sure your Dac accepts toslink. However toslink is not the best sounding connection method.
If you like your DAC, the Empirical Audio suggestion is along the lines you should be looking. There are other competitive USB/Firewire>spdif converters. I recommend BNC(over RCA) coax as the best connection method, optical the worst IME.
For what you've described, I say skip the computer (too broad a device for such a specific application).

You need ReadyNAS + Squeezebox.
http://wiki.slimdevices.com/index.php/SqueezeCenter_on_ReadyNAS
That's the thing, there are many different approaches you can take. Each with pros and cons. That is part of the challenge and yet part of the fun. You get to experiment.
It is not as overwhelming as it may seem!
It is really fun to sit on couch with your ENTIRE collection in your hands. You will rediscover your music, that is the fun part!
Fishcricket: you might like to check out this website. It is a great resource to get you started: www.computeraudiophile.com/faq