New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Which Interconnects Do I Need?

post #1 of 5
11/27/06 at 7:00pm
Thread Starter 
Hey guys, I've been trolling around the forum for quite some time (this forum is a real time killer ) I've organized a little wish list and hopefully with christmas coming up will be able to get my gear. I'm only dipping my toes into the audiophile world so I'm going pretty much as low end as possible. Currently I want to go this route:

MacBook Pro Line Out > DAC in the Box > Little Dot Micro+ > Shure e3c

The more portable route is to replace my MacBook Pro with my iPod.

Only thing I'm not certain about are which sort of interconnects do I need based on the inputs on the DAC and the amp. I know with the iPod I'll be going with the Sik Ram Din out of the lineout i belive, but I was more unsure of the laptop.

I don't have the money to upgrade to closed headphones yet but I will soon, I'm sticking with a more portable rig since I'll be lugging it around campus.

Let me know if you see any problems with my setup as well.

Cheers,
Shade.
Reply
post #2 of 5
11/27/06 at 7:24pm
Mac to Dac: it seem your dac take in both coaxial (75ohms rca - digital) or optical (toslink - digital). and presuming your mac have either/or of the above outputs. so you would need either a Coaxial or Toslink to connect between the Mac and the Dac.

Dac to Amp: It seem the Dac has RCA outputs and the Amp has 1/8th stereo input (mini). So to connect between these two you need a RCAs to mini cable.

that amp has a nice case btw.
Reply
post #3 of 5
11/28/06 at 11:21am
Thread Starter 
The MacBook Pro has Optical Out. I was looking at Toslink cables and they all have square endings and I wasn't sure if that would fit properly into the Optical Out on the side of the MacBook Pro. Would I need a Toslink to Mini plug such as one found on Griffin Technology Xpress Cable?

I was thinking of ordering the Toslink cable from Blue Jeans Cable because I can get a custom length. I'm only looking for a cable of about a foot since it won't need to travel very far. Any other places have custom length toslink cables?
Reply
post #4 of 5
11/30/06 at 7:52am
The Griffin cable would work, but you're probably better off going with a custom order (plus, it's fun). Considering the Mac's digital output is mini S/PDIF and that the TOSLink standard is generally regarded as inferior, you may want to terminate the other end with a regular RCA end to use as coaxial S/PDIF.

I'm sure Blue Jeans could rig up something interesting if you describe your idea... Essentially, it'll be a 1/8" mono to RCA cable. It will probably cost something like $25, or less.
Reply
post #5 of 5
11/30/06 at 12:15pm
Depending on the DAC and amp you plan to use, the iPod may be a viable alternative.

I have a MacBook and 5G iPod. Using the iPod with an AudioLineOut Silk Dock and RSA Hornet amp, the sound quality is good enough that I'm not carrying around a DAC for the MacBook.

The ALO dock makes a difference, enough that it saved me money on a MicroDAC for the MacBook.

As for the digital cable, a mini-toslink to toslink 1 meter cable works well. Here's one I use by Audio-Technica:

(click to view)
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home