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[aviateur]

Hello JRiver Mates:

I am new to the forum and this is my first post. I am on the verge of purchasing JRiver MC but not for the reasons one might think. In the same spirit of what was once ridiculously claimed by one of the great orators of our time, Ms. Pelosi, prior to the passing of the 2010 Orwellian ‘double speak’ named bill called the ‘Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act’, “We have to purchase JRiver MC to find out what’s in it”.

 Unless I have completely missed the general mark of understanding MC, which I admit is quite possible, it appears it would take a considerable amount of time and arrays of disk storage to import and manage video. So I do not see that happening any time soon in my future.  I will continue to mount one disc at a time into the Blu-ray disc player until I learn more about the MC management of video and assess the feasibility of this approach.

But here is the task at hand. I would like to integrate my music server, a Windows PC, and my audio / video system described below while employig JRiver MC for Windows to manage the serving process. I currently employ Media Jukebox, an outstanding feature-rich tool, to manage my ‘flac’ audio library. Note, I do not purport to understand the intricacies of JRiver MC. Everyone who sees what I have done with the interface is impressed with the style and versatility. The fact that it is freeware makes me wonder in awe about the capabilities within MC, which must be superior levels above and beyond. I suppose I should just make the MC purchase and invest the time to learn as I go forward with the product in hand. Thus is the reason for the opening glib remark.

All of the heavy lifting (importing) required for my music server, which contains 67,000+ songs in ‘flac’ format on a 4TB drive which has a mirror drive for duplicate preservation purposes, has been completed. The challenge before me is to determine how to send the digital output from the music server to my audio system through a wired (CAT5) home network. It is imperative that the DAC solution employ JRiver MC. My local audio dealer who was happy to sell me a $6,000 McIntosh network unit that, incidentally, does not work with JRiver, even though the dealer indicated they had experience installing similar configurations. That turned out to be untrue and a ‘show stopper’. So, this is my mandate; no JRiver interface means it is not a solution. So my quest to find a network-capable DAC that integrates well with JRiver continues.

What are others using or recommending for a DAC solution? I am considering Berkeley Audio Design® Alpha DAC® Series 2 and Alpha USB®. Should one consider Focusrite Rednet and Dante for a home application? Both of these I have stumbled upon through online searches. I just do not have enough knowledge to make an informed decision yet. Any thoughts on this topic would be greatly appreciated
   
This is an inventory list of my audio / video system.

•   McIntosh Amplifier, MC452
•   McIntosh Pre-Amplifier, MX121
•   McIntosh DAC, MediaBridge MB100 (that does not work with JRiver!) which I will return
•   Sonus-Faber Speakers, Olympica II
•   JD Sub-woofer, 112
•   Oppo Blu-Ray Disc Player, BDP-105D
•   ClearAudio Turntable, Concept w/MM cartridge            
•   Vizio Display, M702i-B3

Also, I will probably invest in a 15”-17” Windows touchscreen notebook to run JRiver MC from the sofa once a network DAC is chosen.

Any help or advice given will be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,
Lawrence

[astromo]

Lawrence, good to see you're on the bus.

Condensing your post, and apologies if this sounds a little dense but I'm reflecting for clarity, seems you're after a DAC recommendation to suit your system. By the looks of the $ figures, you're playing at the High HiFi end of town, which is out of my league really. I opted for NAD C 390DD that sticks to simple 2ch stereo and does the DAC'ing and digital Amp'ing in one package - so just bear that in mind.

One of the critical choices I had to make was the hardware interface that digital audio can take out of my built PC. So, there's a whole lot of pro, con, noise / jitter debate, opinion around that alone that I leave you to investigate but you'll be up for considering at least the following:

• USB
• S/PDIF Coax
• S/PDIF Optical
• HDMI

Part of the consideration for the options above is the bit depth, sample rate and channel format of the digital audio you'll be listening to.

I've found that not many mobos come with S/PDIF Coax so that may cut down your options straight off the bat (unless you get yourself a standalone interface and plug it into a mobo header - if it's there).

The next item is the interface that your amp / receiver has as an input.

So, I'd expect that you'll probably get some pointed advice if you come back with what I'd call, an "interface plan", because then a lot of the decisions will be made for you by doing that alone.

All the best .. 

[aviateur]

Astromo, Hi:

Thanks for the informative reply. Regarding the digital path I've chosen for the 'flac' files, it will be through a wired Ethernet environment. Since my original post, I read about the DLNA specification for applicability and then confirmed that the MX121 is DLNA-compliant so this helped to direct my search in this area. So, I pulled the trigger and acquired a loaner DAC, a Linn Akurate DSM, which I connected to my home Ethernet environment. And voilà! I am finally hearing music. The setup was simple and straightforward. So now comes the audition part of the experiment. So far, the Linn DAC produces a fairly natural sound of the recording after conversion. I am also spending time tweaking the MX121 pre-amplifier, the JL 112 sub-woofer, and JRiver Media Center to ensure that I am optimally setting each in an effort to achieve a good listening experience. After all, I believe this is the ultimate reason why we all spend time with this pleasurable endeavor: to enjoy the music. I am sure there are other DAC choices but, for now, the playback through the Linn DAC has not demonstrated any reason to dismiss it. 

I have two instances of JRiver running simultaneously. One is at the main Windows 7 server. The other, a JRiver client, is on a wireless Windows 7 notebook. The Linn Akurate DSM DAC appears in the 'Playing Now' section of JRiver of the client system. So, I am able to use the familiar JRiver views and playlists, which I created some time ago for playback purposes and eliminate the need for a remote, an iPhone, an iPad, or apps with limited displays. Perhaps in time I might change my mind. For now the wireless PC interface meets my needs.

I am currently wrestling with the 'gapless' problem. I have read elsewhere that the size of imbedded cover art may be the culprit. Also, it appears that I will not be able to experience the smooth cross fading that I have come to know and like when playing back in the network environment. Again, thanks for your reply. By the way, I made the JRiver MC20 purchase yesterday.

Cheers,
Lawrence

[TCube]

Hello Lawrence,
You are one of the kind not to be treated lightly with HiFi   (cf. previous pm)
Linn brings back memories about Linn vinyl's production, excellent recording studios and whisky without ice please.
you've jumped from MC Jukebox to MC 20.x  
Rgds
TC

Edit : Linn own test files
 http://www.linnrecords.com/linn-downloads-testfiles.aspx
If you wish to pay for shipping I've got the first two Lp produced by Linn under Linn's label in my basement (The Blue Nile - 1983-1989)
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Blue_Nile
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=F0wkO0aTtec

[aviateur]

Bonjour Henri:

Regarding the Linn Akurate DSM, I have experimented with Linn software called Kazoo and a Windows 7 notebook as the control point. Linn Kazoo use the categorization and playlists built within JRiver MC but, more importantly, provides the elusive 'gapless' playback that everyone desires for track-to-track uninterrupted flow of sound (think Tears for Fears, The Hurting, tracks Mad World and Pale Shelter with no interruption between the two tracks). Incidentally, JRiver operationally functions with the system configuration I am testing but it doesn't provide 'gapless' playback. I have read where JRemote (another JRiver component) and iPad will provide 'gapless' playback but I do not own an iPad ... maybe in time if the need arises.

So far, my test results have indicated that I will probably choose the Linn Akurate DS, not DSM, for my audio system DAC component and renderer. By the way, the DSM version includes a pre-amplifier. For me, this is redundant since that is the main purpose of the McIntosh MX121.I am now exploring the world of DHCP IP addressing and leasing, a topic for the networking section.

Cheers,
Lawrence