Digital music players with a Mac Mini

[bakerman]

I've been using a Squeezebox Duet for a few years now as my source and love the ease of use and the variety of functions it offers. I use a separate power supply with it and run it through my WFS DAC2. The sound quality has been very impressive.

Lately though I've been collecting many Hi-Res files that the Duet can't play so earlier this week I decided to finally use my Mac Mini in the system. After hooking up my external HDD and reconfiguring iTunes for use with it, I went on a mission to find a digital music player that worked best for me. Most of these players have a free demo that can be downloaded and used for a set amount of time. I downloaded Amarra Mini, Pure Music, Audirvanna Plus, Decibel, and Fidelia.

I love having the remote control of the Duet. I can put it in my pocket and change music of the fly from wherever I'm at without having to go to the computer to do that. So one thing that I require from a player is the ability to use the Apple Remote app. through either an iPad or, most likely, a pocket-sized iTouch. Another option I wanted was to allow my DAC to play at its highest resolution, or 192/24. I figure if the player has the capabilities why not let it do what it was designed to do. The only players I found with these options were Amarra and Pure Music.

In the end I've decided to go with Pure Music. It does everything I want with the least amount of difficulty. I like the UI of it, and the way it syncs up with iTunes. Amarra put me through great pains with it's separate playlist feature and the way it handles upconversion. There is definitely a learning curve involved between the Mini and the Duet, but I'm very happy with the outcome.

I'm curious to know what other people are using and why. I'm sure that I really need more time with each to fully understand their features and functions but for me Pure Music did everything right without any hassle.

[1KW]

I use pure music as well and agree it works great sitting on top of your itunes library.

[Pider]

Is pure music a Mac only product?

[bakerman]

Originally Posted by Pider

Is pure music a Mac only product?

Yes it is. If you're running Windows I suggest you check out J.River Media Center.

[BuffaloBill]

Have you compared Mac App BitPerfect to Pure Music?

[bakerman]

Originally Posted by BuffaloBill

Have you compared Mac App BitPerfect to Pure Music?

That I haven't. For only five bucks at the app store I might just check it out. The thing is, I really satisfied with PM at the moment.

[BuffaloBill]

Originally Posted by bakerman

That I haven't. For only five bucks at the app store I might just check it out. The thing is, I really satisfied with PM at the moment.

Probably worth your review. Lot of discussion on Computer Audiophile that it is better than the other programs. I need to do some more evaluations myself, thus far I have been unable to hear any difference with any of the various programs over iTunes playing Red Book 16/44.1.

[Pider]

I'm scratching the bald noggin. Why use a Mac Mini? Lots of folks here have one. Are people using it as a dedicated music server? Can you control it using your iPad?

Sorry to be so naive, and I don't want to hijack this thread, so you can ignore this, but I'm just getting into understanding what I need to record, store, and serve up high definition music files. Right now I'm just going from my computer (PC) / iPad / iPhone into an Apple TV 2 using iTunes, and from an iPod directly into my receiver. No HD files at the moment. I plan to get a DAC early next year, so that's why I'm curious.

[bakerman]

Originally Posted by Pider

I'm scratching the bald noggin. Why use a Mac Mini? Lots of folks here have one. Are people using it as a dedicated music server? Can you control it using your iPad?

Sorry to be so naive, and I don't want to hijack this thread, so you can ignore this, but I'm just getting into understanding what I need to record, store, and serve up high definition music files. Right now I'm just going from my computer (PC) / iPad / iPhone into an Apple TV 2 using iTunes, and from an iPod directly into my receiver. No HD files at the moment. I plan to get a DAC early next year, so that's why I'm curious.

It works great as a dedicated server. Use it to store your music or stream from an external drive/NAS device. Set it up to run "headless" and control it with an iPad, iPod Touch, iPhone or with another Apple computer. I love the small footprint of it also. For me it's a great source to use for all my digital files.

I'm not that familiar with the Apple TV so I can't comment on the pros and cons for each. Does the Apple TV play back Hi-Res files? That was one of the biggest factors in setting one up for me. I use an external drive via firewire to play my files and plug it into my DAC via USB. I'm very happy with the outcome and hope to make some minor tweaks to make it even better sounding in the future.

[kfr01]

Originally Posted by bakerman

It works great as a dedicated server. Use it to store your music or stream from an external drive/NAS device. Set it up to run "headless" and control it with an iPad, iPod Touch, iPhone or with another Apple computer. I love the small footprint of it also. For me it's a great source to use for all my digital files.

I'm not that familiar with the Apple TV so I can't comment on the pros and cons for each. Does the Apple TV play back Hi-Res files? That was one of the biggest factors in setting one up for me. I use an external drive via firewire to play my files and plug it into my DAC via USB. I'm very happy with the outcome and hope to make some minor tweaks to make it even better sounding in the future.

+1

I love the mini as a hi-res source.