Old man wants to play audio from PC to 2 ch rig

george daniel

Okay guys ,please educate me on this one,,talk to me like I am a child.I am vaguely familar with the squeezebox thingy's

What I want to do is to take audio from the internet and play it thru my system here are the PC spec's

HP Pavillion

I don't wanna re-invent the wheel here,,so lets keep it simple please and thanks.

Polkersince85

Your sound card should have an sound out jack. Mini stereo plug to RCA plug patch cord should do it. Plug it straight into the preamp.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00024VU5I/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_2?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B00004Z5CP&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1D9AW7PFE8R1X0KJQJ4V

This will work or check with Ratshack

george daniel

Thanks--exactly what I'm talking about--I'll give it a try.

Echosphere

George,

That is exactly how my stereo is set up!

From a MacMini directly to my Mark Levinson amp. Pretty good sound!

For a step up you might like this cable:
http://signalcable.com/analogmini.html

Face

If you're looking for hi-fi, you need a M2Tech HiFace USB to SPDIF interface, then connect the digital coax to your DAC.

doctorcilantro

I'll second the HiFace as the easiest device (transport) if you are using an external DAC. It comes in two versions: USB>BNC and USB>RCA.

Or next upgrade path, would be to grab a USB DAC like a Proton, EMU 0404, Maverick D1, etc. for example. These 3 can do at least 96kHz over USB (EMU can do 192kHz).

I'd get away from the onboard sound as the first step.

thsmith

George, the Roku is a nice unit and will stream internet Radio with PC off.

http://soundbridge.roku.com/soundbridge/index.php

SOmething else to consider is the Western Digital TV (WDTV) device. I have the original which will not stream from PC but has 2 USB ports, I have a portable 500g HDD. They do have a new device that will stream from PC but I have no expereince with it.

I will play FLAC files too and many other formats.

On3s&Z3r0s

Some PC's and laptops have a Toslink or mini-Toslink output. This is a fiber optic connection that can run directly into an outboard DAC or to a modern 2-channel or multi channel receiver. If you have a Toslink output then you don't need a USB to S/PDIF converter (or a USB DAC, which you will also pay a premium for), and you can spend that money on something that will make your system sound better instead! A lot of the HP Pavilions do have mini-Toslink output, so I'd check the manual and online for information about your particular model.

If you send a digital signal to a DAC or receiver with a decoder I can just about guarantee that it will sound better than letting your computer create the analog signal, which is what you are doing with the headphone to RCA splitter. But, that said, it won't be a night and day difference unless you have really good and revealing downstream equipment (i.e. amp and speakers).

The Roku Soundbridge was definitely cool while they were making them. Not sure why they stopped.

drselect

George, what did you try? and how did it work?

eeagle

Squeezebox is mentioned in the initial post.

If you are already running a wireless network the Logitech Squeezebox system puts your whole music collection, as well as any streaming audio literally at your finger tips....including album art, album/track titles, genre etc. The albums/music can be stored where ever you have hard drive space, on either an internal or external drive. Forget compressed mp3 audio if you take sound quality seriously, and use a lossless audio format like .flac No more hunting for an album, just do a quick search using the remote for what you are in the mood for and touch play.

I would recommend the Duet as a start:

And if you are truly serious about your music go the audiophile route with the Logitech Transporter which is on my buy list:

george daniel

drselect wrote: »

George, what did you try? and how did it work?

I picked up a USB to RCA adaptor-- it's decent enough,, not the quality of CD or Vinyl playbaqck though.