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My Computer is Now the Weakest Link

post #1 of 46
1/23/10 at 1:20am
Thread Starter 
I finished the M3/s11 and it all sounds wonderful paired with the G2/s11.

I would like to build a dedicated media server for playing flacs. I see the new Intel chipsets for the Atom processors but wouldn't I still have the same problem with noisy power supplies with a computer?

Are there any DIY audiophile media players out there? How hard of a project is it to start from scratch with something like that? Have to build the software interface as well?
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post #2 of 46
1/23/10 at 1:50am
Decent PCI transport to a DAC and you're set.
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post #3 of 46
1/23/10 at 2:01am
It's sad how that show didn't even last a year and it has impacted the lives of millions and millions of t.v viewers.
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post #4 of 46
1/23/10 at 3:09am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by FallenAngel View Post
Decent PCI transport to a DAC and you're set.
I'm using asio with usb so it is about as good as it's going to get. I can also run KS thru the onboard optical but I dont trust that it isnt resampling.

I tried running the G1 on usb power but the noise floor seemed too high..it was noticeable. I have a Corsair 750 watt power supply so it's not bottom of the line no-name crap, but yet I am getting noise from the usb bus.

I hate asio4all but it works.
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post #5 of 46
1/23/10 at 3:09am
If your Gamma 2 is powered by a Sigma 11 then how is your computer power supply affecting it?
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post #6 of 46
1/23/10 at 3:17am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pepsi View Post
It's sad how that show didn't even last a year and it has impacted the lives of millions and millions of t.v viewers.
Either 4 pages of discussion on the merits of the religious channel got deleted, or there is some crazy inside joke going around that I somehow missed. That's it, no more school, I miss too much on head-fi!
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post #7 of 46
1/23/10 at 3:18am
Thread Starter 
It isnt affecting it now, but when I was running it on usb power it was. That was the reason I built the s11.

I can't believe I'm the only one here whose thought about this.

Even with an Atom powered computer separate from the main computer I could listen to music without burning 190 watts of video cards and monitors on idle. I can make this happen easy enough as building computers from parts is no big deal, but I still will end up with a lower powered version of the same problem.
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post #8 of 46
1/23/10 at 3:23am
Yeah, I don't really follow. You want to build a second computer to save power? Even if you turn off your primary computer whenever you're not using it that still seems like a stretch. The music server still needs a cpu, ram, monitor, and at least one hard drive right? Also, that sounds very inconvenient.
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post #9 of 46
1/23/10 at 3:35am
Thread Starter 
Basically, I am wondering why there isn't a hard core, all out audiophile, DIY media player. We have plenty of amps, DACs etc but not one media player that I know of.

Something designed from the ground up with the attention to detail like we've seen with the other stuff we build. Maybe the Rockbox guys would even get on board and design an interface with all the features that need to be there.
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post #10 of 46
1/23/10 at 3:36am
I agree. There's not a great way around the problem, and we all deal with in one way or another. Trading up to a production CD player might be your best choice.

Are there any DIY audiophile media players out there? Not really. I wish there were more. How hard is it? Well, by the number of available options, apparently not really easy. I like the idea, don't get me wrong. But your looping back into the same problems of power supplies, display screens, navigation, media control mechanism, media control software...

Hey, if you find anything, post it in this thread. I'd love to build one myself.
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post #11 of 46
1/23/10 at 3:56am
This thread is confusing.
EDIT: This thread is less confusing now.

CodeToad, I'm not sure exactly what you mean. It sounds like you want a box you can leave on to listen to music, as I doubt that anyone with a 750W Corsair is encountering issues with simultaneous tasks taxing the CPU and munging up the playback. In other words, I think you want to DIY a digital transport.

If price is no object, my suggestion would be a BeagleBoard or a GumStix. Both run on TI OMAP35xx chips and run Linux. I believe, though I haven't tested, that they are capable of using the USB DAC chips such as the PCM270x (the type used in the γ1). The GumStix is available with an onboard 802.11bg chip which may be worth it for you, and they both output HDMI. As for software, you could write something yourself or just use any of the available open source media players.

If price is an object, a BeagleBoard or a GumStix with enough trimmings for it to be considered a "computer" still cost well over the price of the cheapest NetBook offerings.

EDIT:
If you're worried about supply noise and whatnot, you could tag some isolators onto the USB lines. If you're worried about jitter, you could reclock. As for building a media player from the ground up, a lot of the digital stuff just isn't DIY friendly. When dealing with 5Gbps traces, very special considerations must be taken into the design. Then the soldering... it just isn't feasible for a DIY'er to solder a BGA socket.
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post #12 of 46
1/23/10 at 4:01am
Hm... There are a lot of multimedia players on market now. For example WD TV, or another one with HDD. You can get spdif from optical out. It has USB, flac support and it is noiseless. So what's the problem?
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post #13 of 46
1/23/10 at 4:11am
Currently, I'm drooling over an HP Touchsmart, or an MSI-AE2220 with multitouch screen and digital out, running an ASIO capable software like Albumplayer that supports touchscreen functions.
Albumplayer, plays everything (flac, ape etc) and it's very very cool running it on a touchscreen.
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post #14 of 46
1/23/10 at 4:12am
This reminds me actually. The Lyre Project has had some great success lately with the Mini2440 boards. Probably not audiophile, but one of the more DIY sources done recently.
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post #15 of 46
1/23/10 at 4:16am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by jezz View Post
EDIT:
If you're worried about supply noise and whatnot, you could tag some isolators onto the USB lines. If you're worried about jitter, you could reclock. As for building a media player from the ground up, a lot of the digital stuff just isn't DIY friendly. When dealing with 5Gbps traces, very special considerations must be taken into the design. Then the soldering... it just isn't feasible for a DIY'er to solder a BGA socket.
Yeah, see, that's all the stuff I don't know anything about. I figured someone here did.

I like flac's and digital storage. It's safe to say that it's here to stay. But I don't like being tied to the computer.

My idea of a perfect transport is a box with the dac built in and a remote with a weighty knob or wheel that spins freely and a few function specific buttons and a small screen for display. Then I can kick back *wherever* and control the music whether it be by headphones or speakers. All solid state drives; no fans or spinning, noisy stuff.
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