How to get music from your pc to your amp

[admin_exported]

I want to be able to play my music from a PC on my hi-fi what's the best way of doing this? I'm yet to buy a new PC should I be looking for a PC that has a optical out? Then connect to a external DCA.

I'm completely lost any help will be appreciated

Cheers

 

[Gerrardasnails]

stokes2608:
I want to be able to play my music from a PC on my hi-fi what's the best way of doing this? I'm yet to buy a new PC should I be looking for a PC that has a optical out? Then connect to a external DCA.

I'm completely lost any help will be appreciated

Cheers

If you bought an external DAC with USB connectivity, you could keep your pc and would not need digital optical. You then just needto use analogue cables from DAC to amp.

 

[idc]

Here is a write up I made earlier -

Step 1 - Music Manager for your PC.

Firstly you need a music manager for your computer. This is the programme that will import CDs and download music for you, create the music files, sort them and play them. The most well known programme is itunes. You can download it for free. Apple then hopes you go to their online store and purchase downloads from there. Itunes is a bit restrictive particularly with using an mp3 player, you can only use the ipod. (if you are a computer buff there are ways round this, but I will keep it simple) If you have a Windows PC then you have a music manager already installed, Windows Media Player. This will also allow downloading (but not directly from the Apple download store). There are other music managers such as Songbird, Foobar and Media Monkey. Google them and see if you find one more presentable and easier to use than another. Simplest would be WMP or itunes.

Step 2 - Downloading music.

I have mentioned compatibility issues with downloading tracks off the internet. There are loads of different music files available - mp3, AAC, WMA, Apple Lossless, Vorbis etc etc. Different music files have different bit rates. Generally speaking the higher the bit rate the better the quality of sound. Apart from a few high end online music shops the majority of downloads are under 300kbps. To give you a comparison, a CD imported losslessly can have a bit rate of 450 to over 1000kbps. You need to decide how important sound quality is over the space needed to store files. The bigger the file to more space you need. Once you have decided your music manager then you are guided as to what type of file you can download. I use itunes and have download music from their store and the Amazon and eMusic online stores. With Window Media Player you can also download from Amazon and I presume the others (except itunes) without difficulty.

There are file converters to change the type of file to get round compatibility issues. But that gets complicated again.

The actual downloading of music involves setting up an account with an online store such as itunes or Amazon and then following the instructions to click on tracks. The tracks will automatically download into your music manager.

Step 3 - Storing Music Files.

You say you do not have enough memory on your PC. You can buy extra memory from £50 up and for example 80gb will store my 350 CDs and various downloads, though not all are at the highest lossless bit rates. The cheapest memory is hard drives which connect to your PC with a USB cable. You can also get Network Hard Drives, which wirelessly connect to your PC via your router and Network Assisted Storage NAS which can be run independently of the PC. I will not go into any more detail yet as it gets really confusing.

Step 4 - Playing your music files.

There are various ways to connect a PC to an amplifier. The simplest is a minjack in the headphone out put of the PC to phono cable where the phonos connect onto a spare phono input on your amp. This connection is not the best as the digital to analogue signal conversion is done by the PCs soundcard, which is usually not the greatest. The best way to connect a PC to an amp is with a digital to analogue converter or DAC. There are loads of DACs on the market and popular ones on the forum are from Beresford, Dacmagic, V-DAC and Firestone. They range from about £150 to £250. You connect the DAC to the PC with a digital coax or optical or USB cable. What outputs your PC has and what inputs your DAC has will determine which is best. USB is becoming the most common for use with a PC as all PCs have USB out. The DAC then connects to the amp with phono cables. The DAC bypasses the PCs soundcard. When you connect a DAC it usually has a file which it installs itself onto the PC and away you go. Press play on your music manager and beautiful music is magically taken from the music file on your hard drive by the music manager, digitally sent to the DAC which the sends an analogue signal to your amp, which drives the speakers.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for your replies so does a USB give the same quality as a digital coax or optical

Cheers

 

[Anonymous]

You can just run a cable from your PC to your amp without bothering about a DAC, though it won't be the best quality.

If you want to go the DAC route then yes, optical outs are good so look for a PC with one. Generally speaking USB is not the best option, though some DACs handle USB input better than others

For PCs my preference would be a macmini as it is still the benchmark, but windows machines should also be good.

 

[hollinnp]

This is another question, sorry, but in a similar vein:

I want to run a multi-room HiFi in our forthcoming new house. Most of my music has been bought from iTunes or ripped from CDs using iTunes. (I used to be a CD, high bit-rate purist but you just can't beat the convenience of electronic files!) Two friends have Sonos systems which I love and I want something similar, probably in four rooms.

The kit I have (thus far) are several pcs and laptops, all fairly low spec, a Buffalo LinkStation NAS with DNLA ability, a Denon AV amp (AVR-2803) and a mid price Mission 5.1 speaker set up. The amp & speakers will need to stay in one of the four rooms above for my home cinema system as well. When we move in I will wire the house up with Cat5 cable as I have an aversion to wireless networks (for no good reason other than old houses and thick walls make for poor reception in places).

Q1. Would the Sonos or the Sqeezebox (for example) option suit me bettter?

Q2. Can I use the Linkstation as the server for my music files, so long as the router is switched on? (This means I won't need a pc/laptop premmanently on).

Q3. Bearing in mind most of my files are around the 192-256 Kb/s mark, is there any point in buying expensive speakers to play it all through? I.e. what would you consider a 'sensible' speaker option for each room?

Many thanks!

 

[nads]

Ok here is the Squeezebox side.

yes you could use the linkstation NAS ( check on the Squeezebox forum but i am sure it will be OK) and you can run the "boxes" music from that. there are portable versions and versions with speakers..... though i think they are stopping the Boom.

so for the best listening room the touch could be attached to the Amp and used or to some powered speakers in another room and a radio could do the kitchen and/or bathroom or even outside. Oh and they can all play the same music or different tunes or net radio.

I understand the sonos will also do this.

 

[Anonymous]

cant u just use an optical out.

I would have thought most computers have a bulit-in optical out these days - certainly anything with an nvidia/amd chipset should have.

 

[Anonymous]

Why would you assume that optical or for that matter co-axial SPDIF is somehow "better" than USB some of the most highly rated estoeric DAC's available are biassed towards USB for very good reasons.

That being said a wired network is probably a good idea. I use wireless at home in the UK (Sonos) and at work in the Middle East (Apples Airport Expresses) Sonos is rock solid reliable Apple suffers occasional glitches but nothing too severe. Benefit of the networked approach and the main driver for me of course was not having to have a PC in the listening/living room. The new Squeezebox Touch looks interesting either or without a sperate DAC and has the advantage (if HD music is important to you) of supporting bit rates and sampling frequencies above to normal CD/redbook 16 bit 44KHz.

Lots of options depends on your priorities and the depth of your pockets. Enjoy oh and yes a NAS drive plugged into your router (which is what I do at home with my Sonos system) means the PC can be switched off. A NAS drive will happily run 24/7 so you can pretty much forget about it.

 

[Anonymous]

I simply run a good quality cable from the headphone jack to the aux input in my stereo amp, as suggested above, and it proves a simple and perfectly adequate solution for casual and back-ground music. It depends on your preferences, cost limits and listening requirements, but this may be the most straight forward route. However, if you haven't yet purchased your laptop or pc, perhaps the sound card and outputs shout be high on your priority list to allow a good quality signal in the first place to feed your amp...in whatever set-up you have...the possibilities in this arena are somewhat endless and baffelling as I'm sure you're becoming aware !! Good luck tho and remember there is no right or wrong solution, just the one that works best for you...enjoy!

 

[Anonymous]

2oldnslow:
Why would you assume that optical or for that matter co-axial SPDIF is somehow "better" than USB some of the most highly rated estoeric DAC's available are biassed towards USB for very good reasons. Optical has zero possibility of interference and is suited to longer runs.

 

[Anonymous]

This has really got me thinking now on how to improve my iTune music from my headphone jack output linked to my Cambridge 640R amp. Which is the most effective route to go...

Upgrade my pc sound card with higher quality output to feed the amp or...

get a DAC connected to my pc with a feed then onto the amp...

My pc only has a headphone jack or USB output so I can't feed a digital signal to my amp so that it can do the converting but I'm sure that if I could the Cambridge DAC onboard would do as good if not better a job than a new PC sound card...am I right about this?

All suggestions appreciated and if at all possible please forward websites or supplies I should be looking into...thanks

 

[PJPro]

For the best possible solution, you should be looking to get the signal out of your computer at the earliest opportunity. Computers are noisy places to be, hence the advantage of using an external DAC.

There is no reason why USB shouldn't provide a quality means of getting the signal out of a computer and into a DAC. However, as experienced by some, you can have issues with noise/ground loops/interference/etc when using USB due to the electrical connection it creates between the computer and the DAC.

Options

You could see if you could audition a CA DACMagic to see if your computer is going to cause you a problem.

You could get a relatively cheap soundcard which provides an optical out.

You buy sonething like this which will convert a USB output from your computer into an optical signal for your DACMagic (or whatever).

Indeed, the M-Audio Transit is a DAC in its own right and can provide an analog signal from the USB input, which you can then feed into an amplifier.

Please note - I haven't actually tried the M-Audio Transit myself....so can't comment on the SQ you can expect. I do seem to remember it was highly recommended by AVI for use with their active speakers.

 

[tj27]

Hi there

i have only read the jist of the question & replies regards pc to amp.

I have just had a change around & basically bought an Nvidia GT240 1gb graphics card with a HDMI output for my Dell tower.

My pc is now in my bedroom, hdmi (15m 1080p) running to my Yam amp feeding the TV downstairs so i can have full use of pc & audio stored on it. The graphics card also is HD sound & can out put 7.1 channels.

Also have the vga out connected to my bedroom tv (card can run 2 monitors) & the original speaker out is connected to my Harmon Kardon sounsticks.

Also bought wireless mouse & keyboard

Have to say its spot on, very good sound in all formats & fantastic picture quality.

Not sure if thats any help but it's what i did!

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks PJ & TJ for your suggestions, and both seem like viable alternatives for me. But the more I think about this, the more I'm thinking that I'll hold off because I have at least 2 long term plans...

...to get a bluray player in the form of the Cambridge 650 to play everything for me including my CD's

...and also to get a media streamer (bit like yours PJ) to partner my 1TB Iomega HDD and link it to my Pana tv. This would obviously do away with the requirement for a direct link from PC to amp which I have at present to play my iTunes.

And frankly, for the purpose my present arrangement is perfectly adequate regarding sound quality and doesn't grate or bother me for casual use. It's not something I listen to when I have time to myself to really sit and enjoy some tunes...for me you can't beat a well produced CD but I do need a better player and for me the CA would be an ideal partner and effective solution to the problem of multiple players etc.

Just found out we have a wee one on the way so these plans may well take a back seat for now but dreams are dreams and I will get round to fulfilling them eventually...then it will be speakers and that's a whole other story !!! Will keep you posted tho...

 

[tj27]

congrats on the news mate

hope all goes well & in time when you get chance you know you got a few options for your setup

 

[PJPro]

Well, the WDTV Live represents a good option as a source if it's co-located with a TV. There are cheaper versions available by WD (without the networking capability). See this one for less than £40.

It would mean that you would have to disconnect your HDD and take it upstairs to drop on new files but, hey, maybe that's not a problem.

Congratulations on the kiddy by the way. It's gonna change your world!

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks guys, and yes I know it will change my world AGAIN !!! I have a 15 year old already so this is the second time round, new wife, new life !!! And at 45 years old !!! Over the moon tho !!!

Anyway, thanks also for the info and as far as convenience goes, that would be a priority for us as we would all have to have access and it would have to be 'user friendly'...if you know what I mean guys !!! We have a large ground floor apartment with open plan living arrangement with everything conveniently connected (TV acts as 2nd PC monitor) so there wouldn't be any 'up stairs' problems etc.

I like the look of the WD unit and it wouldn't break the bank either so that may be an immediate purchase...again thanks and will be in touch...

 

[Anonymous]

"Optical has zero possibility of interference and is suited to longer runs" Bit of an over simplification I'm afraid as in the world of truly high end computer audio asychronous USB DAC's like the Ayre Acoustics QB9 garner rave reviews.

Back in the real world I can heartily recommend the little M-Audio Transit from personal experience and at around 55 pounds from pro audio/music stores it's a bit of a steal. Providing that is you don't mind a PC in your listening room. Congrats on the nipper though terrific news.

 

[Anonymous]

Optical receivers, the optoelectronic components that convert the light signal back into an electrical signal inside the DAC, introduce a significant amount of jitter into the signal. This degrades sound quality. Coaxial is much better than optical for this reason.

USB audio can have lots of jitter if it is using the synchronous USB audio protocol (most cheap DACs are). Some DACs are using the asynchronous protocol which allows the DAC to clock the audio rather than the PC resulting in far less jitter and allowing true audiophile quality.

There's no space to explain jitter here but it has a significant measurable effect on sound quality - digital signals are degraded by connection types and cable quality! Look it up on Wikipedia for further info.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the suggestions, but just been checking out some things and found the Western Digital 1080i mini media player is now available for less than £40 on-line, this may indeed be the most effective way to go with it hooked up to my 1Tb Iomega HDD and then digitally connected to amp/TV though I see it doesn't use HDMI...thus doing away with the need for an audio link to the pc...and allowing amp to deal with audio conversion !!

Prices are tumbling on media players and I think this is going to be the big thing for audio & video on the domestic front as PC's become integrated into the entertainment set-up for alot of people...I fear that Cambridge Audio's new streamer will be out-dated and out-priced before it even arrives, unless it's very special...hope so !

 

[idc]

Hifi test monkey:
Optical receivers, the optoelectronic components that convert the light signal back into an electrical signal inside the DAC, introduce a significant amount of jitter into the signal. This degrades sound quality. Coaxial is much better than optical for this reason.

USB audio can have lots of jitter if it is using the synchronous USB audio protocol (most cheap DACs are). Some DACs are using the asynchronous protocol which allows the DAC to clock the audio rather than the PC resulting in far less jitter and allowing true audiophile quality.

There's no space to explain jitter here but it has a significant measurable effect on sound quality - digital signals are degraded by connection types and cable quality! Look it up on Wikipedia for further info.

Most DACs are adaptive as opposed to synchronous. Synchronous with buffering and asynch are still the preserve of higher end DACs. The effects and audibility of jitter is still the subject of an ongoing debate as opposed to it does affect sound quality.

 

[Anonymous]

To OP Just get a Squeezebox Touch, connect it to directly your router (wireless or better still powerline ethernet), then RCA that to your amp.

You wont get the jitters...

 

[Anonymous]

2oldnslow:
"Optical has zero possibility of interference and is suited to longer runs" Bit of an over simplification I'm afraid as in the world of truly high end computer audio asychronous USB DAC's like the Ayre Acoustics QB9 garner rave reviews.Bit of a non-sequitur actually.I'm talking about cable and you're talking about reviews of DACs. Not a subtle difference. New glasses perhaps?

 

[Anonymous]

Hifi test monkey:
Optical receivers, the optoelectronic components that convert the light signal back into an electrical signal inside the DAC, introduce a significant amount of jitter into the signal. This degrades sound quality. Coaxial is much better than optical for this reason
Shame tests show this is rubbish.