Why you should have a music server

Are you an avid collector of music?

Imagine accessing your music collection with a single remote, or browse the album without leaving your chair. No disk flipping. Visit Create your favorite tunes in seconds, or playlists for your music collection. Your valuable CDs in a safe place to prevent them from scratching stopped.

All this and much more is possible with digital music server. Virtually all modern computers (PCor Mac), plus a cheap hard disk storage is powerful enough to handle, as well as uncompressed music server, the thousands of CDs without quality loss can act.

Building a reference digital audio transport, which can compete with players at all costs!

Other advantages of digital music server

According to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), sales of physical discs have been falling steadily over the past five years, as consumers flock MP3 downloadFiles. There are indications point to the CD era is over, even if it is physical, and vinyl records safe with computer systems for some time to co-exist.

Here's what can be achieved through the creation of a music server:

Turn on a computer connected digital audio transport, will amaze
Stream music to multiple rooms in your house, you move through your music collection in seconds
Create global song listen to songs from around the worldInternet radio stations, online music stores like iTunes or Linn Records Take the digital room correction Digitizing your analog record collection of otherwise independent mechanic bought Play CD transport.

What about sound quality?

can carry up computer-based music as well or better than cut-set, even the most expensive CD transport to a fraction of the cost. This is because you live music as a data file of bits on an accurateHard disk.

Once positioned correctly, your music is not read by the typical error of CDs from scratching surfaces, vibration or non-centric cases discs. The resulting flow of high quality error-free digital output can be translated into an analog signal from digital to analog converter and then amplified.

I generally support design all my products to the latest digital communication products such as the Squeezebox, the Sonos music system or Apple / PC computer shipments directly frombox.

But I think this is just the beginning of the next revolution in digital audio! Once your digital music is stored on a hard drive, it opens unprecedented opportunities. Now you can also do digital room correction and future upgrades are simply a matter of software upgrade.

Before downloading all consider this as a stunt that professional mastering studios have long used computers for their daily work. These professionals know why!

WhatYou need to start

You generally need a receiver with a number of digital inputs in SP / DIF format (look for coaxial or Toslink optical inputs on the back of the amplifier or receiver). The receiver would then translate the digital signals into a stream of music analog sound. Audiophile listeners probably want with a special external digital-analog converter (also known as going "DAC"), which can be on almost any amplifier or connectedAmplifier. Many existing external DAC with USB or Firewire inputs, which is useful if you intend to use the handset as a source of music to come. In addition, you probably want to buy a big external hard drive to store your music. I would recommend doing the planning for the worst - then, back to music often. Better safe than sorry.

Installation Example:

PC / Mac as a source

If you prefer the flexibility of computers and the care settingOne in your listening room, this seems to be a good choice. Simply connect the SP / DIF digital output of computer sound card with high quality digital / analog converter. Your music will be on the computer's internal hard drive or an external USB hard drive or NAS (Network Attached Storage) drive. For playback and library management software, you can choose between Windows Media Player, Media Monkey or Foobar on Windows platforms.

Laptop or MP3Player

Make a USB connection between laptop/MP3 player and a digital / analog converter with USB functionality. Each audio file can be played in high quality on your stereo.

streaming media devices are rapidly gaining popularity because it does not need a computer in your listening room. They look and work as a home audio device that can be connected to a stereo system, as any CD or DVD. Their music and the real serverlocated anywhere in the house so there is no problem with noisy computer fans. Streaming media clients to take your music from remote server is wired or wireless. Any desktop or laptop computer you can set a streaming server.

Some of the protagonists are the Logitech Squeezebox, Transporter and Roku SoundBrige Sonos music system.

Apple Airport Express

If you already have with Apple's iTunes to manage your music collection and wantsTheir music is streamed wirelessly at high quality to your home stereo system, and Apple Airport Express may be an alternative.

This device provides such a thing as a "wireless digital output." Simply connect the optical output with a digital / analog converter for Sonic luck!

How Do You Convert music into 'digital files?

For the music, your first option to purchase individual songs or albums directly to a file in an online store like Apple's iTunes.But beware compressed file formats with data loss.

MP3 quality 320kb / s is not desirable for an audiophile. Another recent high-quality alternative is Linn Records Linn's very own online store also offers versions in the studio real master quality files without copy protection.

need for your existing music library, which can be extracted or 'RIP' your CDs into data files first. All you need is a computer equipped with DVD drives and free software.

Even if the software becomes morefunction as the songs and albums tagging as ripping CDs, it is still a bit 'of a long process, and if maybe take some time to finish.

Luckily, you have to do this only once for each album.

Although Windows Media Player and Apple's iTunes to do the job, the most demanding audiophiles may prefer Exact Audio Copy because it is known to generate bit-accurate results. I strongly recommend to download and use this software for high quality audio extraction.

If you do notwant to do all the work, there is help from professional service firms that will rip your CD collection in just a matter of days.

What file formats and quality levels, general, I recommend you stick with smaller loss of audio formats like WAV, FLAC, WMA Lossless or Apple Lossless.

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