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How do you listen to Digital Files?

SineWave

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Oct 3, 2020
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I have the below 10ish year old Cambridge Audio Dac Magic 6 streamer, but may want to replace it some day soon, so starting to get some ideas.

I only use it to listen to internet radio (10% of the time) and files I ripped from my CD collection (90% of the time) that the player access through my NAS.
What I like about it is that I can control everything right on the unit and it has a display where I can see what song is playing as well as search for songs.

Seems most streamers do not have any displays and hardly any controls on the unit, unless the streamer is integrated with an amp (which mine is not).
It looks like even Cambridge is getting away from having one with displays and instead coming out with no-display ones like the not-yet-released model shown below mine.

So for the ones without displays, how are they controlled?
What do you use? a laptop? What do most people use?


1679354478390.png


1679355476181.png
 

Bumpy

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Aug 2, 2022
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I have the below 10ish year old Cambridge Audio Dac Magic 6 streamer, but may want to replace it some day soon, so starting to get some ideas.

I only use it to listen to internet radio (10% of the time) and files I ripped from my CD collection (90% of the time) that the player access through my NAS.
What I like about it is that I can control everything right on the unit and it has a display where I can see what song is playing as well as search for songs.

Seems most streamers do not have any displays and hardly any controls on the unit, unless the streamer is integrated with an amp (which mine is not).
It looks like even Cambridge is getting away from having one with displays and instead coming out with no-display ones like the not-yet-released model shown below mine.

So for the ones without displays, how are they controlled?
What do you use? a laptop? What do most people use?


View attachment 273467

View attachment 273477
I use a tablet to control my Wiim Pro that feeds a Topping D90se. I like browse the album art and read bios while listening to Tidal sourced music.
 

staticV3

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Joined
Aug 29, 2019
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The current trend is for the network receiver to be a simple, "dumb" endpoint, which you cast your music to and control from your phone, tablet, laptop, PC.

Reason is that those devices already have mature user interfaces and control schemes, so why rebuild an inferior version of that just to put inside the streamer?

Though to be fair, that strategy is aimed squarely at the Spotify, AirPlay, Tidal crowd, so may not be suited to your NAS setup unless you add a UI like Roon to it.
 
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Chrispy

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Variety of devices (laptop, pad, phone, avr) and thumb drives. Mostly my own files, but use spotify and pandora on occasion. No dedicated streamer box, tho.
 

forkboy1965

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Mar 18, 2023
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Perhaps it’s old school of me, but I bought an iMac. My cd collection is burned to it, so I can listen via their music app. I also use it for Qobuz duty. Lots of folks I know who prefer a computer will buy Apple Mini or an Intel Nuc(sp?).
 

jeffbook

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May 21, 2019
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Location
Columbus, Ohio
I ripped my entire CD collection via dBPowerAmp and my Oppo 105 for SACED ripping to a SSD that is installed in a Beelink miniS computer that runs Windows 11. I use Foobar2000 as the player to feed a DAC and onto a miniDSP setup conected to a Nord multichannel amp powering a LXmini speaker system. No computer noise from the Beelink. This works well for me
 

HewinFM

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Apr 17, 2021
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Montreal, Canada
I use foobar2000 v2 which finally has dark mode :) I stream off my NAS. For portable I use PowerAmp on Android for local files, and Plex for stuff I haven't transferred yet. One great feature of Plex is it will let you transcode to OPUS over cellular to save data and switch back to lossless when you get back on Wi-Fi.

In the house it's a mix of Chromecasts and Sonos. I'm interested in trying the Wiim Pro, or maybe PiCorePlayer but Raspberry Pis are still hard to come by.
 

BlackTalon

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Tidal and ripped CDs through a desktop computer into a Topping-Shenzhenaudio EX-5 DAC/ HPA
Tidal controlled via phones, tablets and computers to two Bluenodes -- one into an Emotiva receiver and one straight into a Purifi amp.
Tidal controlled via phones, tablets and computers via a WiiM into an Oppo --->preamp --->'he-man' amp
CDs played on an Oppo --->preamp --->'he-man' amp
 

theREALdotnet

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Mar 11, 2022
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I’m using a Mac mini (headless) that runs music players such as Audirvana, Music and Roon. It also runs DLBC for all of them and has two USB DACs connected to it, for L+R and two subs. I control it using an iPad Pro. Sources are local/NAS, Qobuz and Apple Music.
 

Liya

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Dec 12, 2021
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Mac Mini M2 with Audirvana connected to a dac and controlled by iPhone app. Playing my own library. No streaming services.
Have been using Audirvana since 2013. Never let me down. Always ready. Can't say that about some streamers I've had (Auralic especially).
 

Ricardus

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I just use my laptop through my Focusrite 2i2 into my preamp.
 

Martin

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I use piCorePlayer to play digital files stored on a NAS. It is connected via USB to a Topping DAC that is connected to a Benchmark HPA-4 preamp/headphone amp. I listen via headphones or speakers depending upon my mood. I use iPeng on my iPhone to control piCoreLMS embedded within piCorePlayer. I also own a Raspberry Pi Touch Display that I used to use with Volumio. I plan to eventually set it up with my piCorePlayer.

Martin
 

radix

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I have a raspberry pi hooked up to my Anthem STR preamp and use Volumio. I have an old iPad in Kiosk mode that runs the Volumio interface right there by the stereo, in case I don't want to deal with apps on the phone. I use Roon/Quboz and Spotify. Roon can pull content from my Synology NAS, which also run DLNA so it can be browsed from other devices too.

I don't know how a non-technical person is supposed to do all this stuff. I guess that's why there's a market for expensive streamers.
 
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majingotan

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I use my DAP as the endpoint streamer via Toslink to my DAC since I prefer to electrically isolate my computer to my audio setup.

My DAP also serves as my offline portable source for my IEM

I pretty much control the music directly from Roon Core on my Surface Pro laptop

1679454446520.png
 

DavidMcRoy

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Jul 10, 2018
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Old iPads and iPhones never die: I stream everything from Apple Music on my semi-retired iPad Air 2 with an E1DA 9038D DAC. I can't detect any "significant" difference between Red Book PCM and Hi-Res, leading me to suspect that maybe there isn't any. Supposedly some people can?
45B829D5-CBCD-491C-A985-0297DC3F91F1.jpeg
 
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antcollinet

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Joined
Sep 4, 2021
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Location
UK/Cheshire
I have the below 10ish year old Cambridge Audio Dac Magic 6 streamer, but may want to replace it some day soon, so starting to get some ideas.

I only use it to listen to internet radio (10% of the time) and files I ripped from my CD collection (90% of the time) that the player access through my NAS.
What I like about it is that I can control everything right on the unit and it has a display where I can see what song is playing as well as search for songs.

Seems most streamers do not have any displays and hardly any controls on the unit, unless the streamer is integrated with an amp (which mine is not).
It looks like even Cambridge is getting away from having one with displays and instead coming out with no-display ones like the not-yet-released model shown below mine.

So for the ones without displays, how are they controlled?
What do you use? a laptop? What do most people use?


View attachment 273467

View attachment 273477
Why do you want to change. What is your current solution lacking for you?
 

Dunlavyphile

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I have a Windows laptop connected by USB to my Benchmark DAC. All my FLAC files are on the laptop's SSD and I use MusicBee to stream them. I also stream Qubuz off the laptop.
 

Jagamov

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Jan 29, 2023
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65
Location
Texas
I have a Windows 10 laptop w/ssd and a Macbook Air M1 that I use with Foobar2000 to play all of my CD rip FLACS.

USB -> RME ADI-2 DAC FS or JDS Labs Element III or my Schiit stuff (modi MB2 and Asgard 3)

I'm currently trying out Audirvana on my Mac for the first time. I like it and it seems to work well....just the pricing has me hesitant for some reason.
 

somebodyelse

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Dec 5, 2018
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Most of the Pi based options will work with touchscreen displays of various sizes if you want. Some will work with text mode displays like the one in the Cambridge. Or with no screen with all the control though the phone, tablet or browser. Some degree of diy required with these of course - assembling the purchased bits at the very least.
 

Eyerex

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Feb 20, 2023
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Location
South London
I use a Raspberry Pi with Picoreplayer and 7" screen with a Meridian Explorer 2 DAC and a Yamaha A-S500 amp plus a set of JPW Sonata speakers
 
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