Chordette Gem and Macbook?

[admin_exported]

Hi,
My music collection is purely MP3 (min 320kbps) stored on my Macbook Pro 15" running Leopard, and I've got a pair of Audioengine A5s on Atacama Nexus stands (which are also hooked up to my TV)...I'm reading on the forums that Leopard now incorporates A2DP for wireless streaming...can anyone confirm:
a. if I invest in the Gem, will I be able to wirelessly stream music from laptop to the speakers?
b. would I be using a sledgehammer to crack a walnut (i.e. is there a cheaper solution?) or should I go for the Gem?
Ta...

 

[John Duncan]

Airport Express and DACMagic.........(£270 total)

Though whether the Chordette is better than the DACMagic sonically hasn't been established.

 

[John Duncan]

And actually, the Airport Express doesn't sound half bad on its own - may be sufficient for your 320k files.

 

[chebby]

JohnDuncan:And actually, the Airport Express doesn't sound half bad on its own - may be sufficient for your 320k files.

The Gem will act purely as an 'external soundcard' and stream all sources of music whether on/via iTunes or not. Is this how the AE works?

The Chordette looks like a nice bit of kit (for Bluetooth users). I hope there is a review soon.

 

[FuzzyinLondon]

I agree with John Duncan. The Airport Express is a top little piece of kit in it's own right. The risk with a good external DAC is that it may reveal the shortcomings of compressed files. To find out, you could try taking your MBP along to a Richer Sounds with an optical lead (mini-optical at one end) to try out the DAC Magic and see if it would do more harm than good.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks John...but what happens if I don't want to be restricted to playing music from iTunes?

 

[chebby]

cue tumbleweed blowing through a deserted thread.

I don't think the AE fans will thank you for that question. LOL

 

[John Duncan]

chebby:cue tumbleweed blowing through a deserted thread.

I don't think the AE fans will thank you for that question. LOL

Then you buy Airfoil for $25 (which, if you can afford the Chordette........)

 

[John Duncan]

chebby:JohnDuncan:And actually, the Airport Express doesn't sound half bad on its own - may be sufficient for your 320k files.

The Gem will act purely as an 'external soundcard' and stream all sources of music whether on/via iTunes or not. Is this how the AE works?

The Chordette looks like a nice bit of kit (for Bluetooth users). I hope there is a review soon.

Review here

 

[chebby]

JohnDuncan:chebby:cue tumbleweed blowing through a deserted thread.

I don't think the AE fans will thank you for that question. LOL

Then you buy Airfoil for $25 (which, if you can afford the Chordette........)

The one box solution looks more elegant (if it lives up to Chord's usual quality) than DAC + Airport Express + 3rd party software.

 

[Anonymous]

FuzzyinLondon:The risk with a good external DAC is that it may reveal the shortcomings of compressed files. To find out, you could try taking your MBP along to a Richer Sounds with an optical lead (mini-optical at one end) to try out the DAC Magic and see if it would do more harm than good.

Do you mean the short-comings as in there is less data? I find my DAC makes even a 128 sound veryÿagreeable.ÿ

 

[chebby]

Thanks for the link John.

 

[John Duncan]

chebby:JohnDuncan:chebby:cue tumbleweed blowing through a deserted thread.

I don't think the AE fans will thank you for that question. LOL

Then you buy Airfoil for $25 (which, if you can afford the Chordette........)

The one box solution looks more elegant (if it lives up to Chord's usual quality) than DAC + Airport Express + 3rd party software.

Yes it does, though I am so not convinced by bluetooth (my phone cannot control my Mac via bluetooth through one brick wall and twelve feet). And AE + DACMagic + TPS = 285 quid, which may to some seem more elegant still.

 

[chebby]

Maybe Chord will bring out an 802.11g/n compatible Gem as well.

Someone should. The AE has too little competition (excepting Squeezeboxes) right now.

 

[John Duncan]

Well I think that there's plenty of competition, it just ends up on computing forums rather than hifi forums - witness Gerrard's media centre extender which cost him less than a squeezebox, there are various others (mostly by networking manufacturers rather than hifi ones) which, once fed into a DAC, should be just as good as an AE, squeezebox et al.

I'm waiting for a hifi manufacturer to do one though, along the lines of the Linn DSes, the Transporter, the Naim HDX etc etc, but without the word "thousands" in the price tag.

 

[chebby]

It is also about time that hifi manufacturers started growing up to this trend and including an optional 'slot' or module for plug in DACs in their amps. (yes wireless ones as well) Cambridge Audio springs to mind as a natural.

The board inside a DacMagic could easily be accomodated as a plug-in optional module for a CA amplifier.

Even Rega may catch on in 20 years or so

 

[John Duncan]

Like a phono stage. Genius.

 

[drummerman]

Did you ever get your DacMagic and compare it with your primare player?

 

[John Duncan]

drummerman:Did you ever get your DacMagic and compare it with your primare player?

No, is coming down next week (20th). And the builders finish today (in theory, haven't checked). So report some time after that.

Would have been last week if the same bloke hadn't been bringing my daughter's b'day present (electric guitar).........