[brunk]

Quote:

I don't really watch many videos to be honest so I cant really see any benefit to using the Oppo. I listen to music all the time and it's my passion and so that's my focus for now. I do have a PS3 for games and the occasional BD and that's enough for video to be honest. Thanks for the suggestion though, all input is appreciated.
Gordon.

Ok I don't understand what you're looking for then. Building/buying a PC AND buying a standalone DAC will cost you virtually the same amount as the Oppo 95, but you will have lower SQ. A PC does video too--do you know what you want and not telling us or something? I can't imagine something better than the Oppo 95 for a dedicated all-in-one music player/DAC with SABRE DAC and sacd/bd/balanced outputs/remote/lower power consumption that doesnt have headaches of a PC when it comes to your only priority you desire--music.
 
EDIT: Please don't tell me you think the Oppo 95 is a glorified BD player...

 

[proton007]

Quote:

I've rebuilt my main rig four times over so I'm capable but lazy. I've got an old laptop with a duff battery but I think I'll press it into service and find a cheap optical DAC to place in-line to the amp. My music files are on external WD drives so they're no problem but my videos are all on internal drives so I'll need to figure out some way to access those. Any ideas?
Gordon.

 
Plug your hdds into a NAS. Since you already have a laptop, you can use it in the living room. Use an external USB DAC-> Amp to play music.
For video it depends on your laptop specs, if it can handle HD video then its the cheapest way to go around this IMO. 
Otherwise a more techy but still cheap solution would be to use something like XBMC on a mini-itx board that meets the specs for HD video, with the same NAS setup.

 

[Solrighal]

Brunk - Of course I'm not going to tell you the Oppo is a glorified BD player. I get it. But I have a wife who marvels at colour TV, an Internet connection that barely beats dial-up & a job that pays just over minimum wage. The Oppo costs a grand! I'm not looking to Fiio because they make small, cute components. I'm looking at Fiio because they can fix one of my problems for 30 bucks! I should have made my budget clear from the off to avoid confusion, that's my mistake. I do appreciate the input but I have around £600 max to spend at the moment.

Proton007 - A NAS might just be the way to go but I don't know much about them. I do like the idea of storing my media in a cupboard though. My laptops running Ubuntu right now and it's too old for Windows 7 so whatever solution I get to that involves the Lapps must take this into account.

Gordon.

 

[brunk]

Quote:

Brunk - Of course I'm not going to tell you the Oppo is a glorified BD player. I get it. But I have a wife who marvels at colour TV, an Internet connection that barely beats dial-up & a job that pays just over minimum wage. The Oppo costs a grand! I'm not looking to Fiio because they make small, cute components. I'm looking at Fiio because they can fix one of my problems for 30 bucks! I should have made my budget clear from the off to avoid confusion, that's my mistake. I do appreciate the input but I have around £600 max to spend at the moment.
Proton007 - A NAS might just be the way to go but I don't know much about them. I do like the idea of storing my media in a cupboard though. My laptops running Ubuntu right now and it's too old for Windows 7 so whatever solution I get to that involves the Lapps must take this into account.
Gordon.

 
If you want a super cheap NAS, use any spare PC parts you can muster together (nothing fancy required) and install FreeNAS. Then I would recommend a Logitech Squeezebox Touch with SPDIF out--and just be done with it. Don't think you can do much better for the $$$
 

 

[proton007]

Quote:

Proton007 - A NAS might just be the way to go but I don't know much about them. I do like the idea of storing my media in a cupboard though. My laptops running Ubuntu right now and it's too old for Windows 7 so whatever solution I get to that involves the Lapps must take this into account.
Gordon.

 
Just get a network storage enclosure, some of them also support external usb drives. Something like a Buffalo Linkstation. You can find tons of info on google.
Whether or not you use your laptop (based on how much processing power you have and what you want to use it for), a NAS still makes sense if you want remote access to data.

 

[deathzero34]

A NAS is a great idea, didn't think of it. You could set it up has a JBod and call it a day
 
NAS come under multiple size, I personally use :
http://www.amazon.ca/Mediasonic-HF2-SU3S2-Smart-Drive-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1340114812&sr=8-2

 

[Solrighal]

Would it be possible to have a NAS physically connected to my amp and be controlled with my iPad?

Gordon.

 

[deathzero34]

No. Think of a NAS like a home for harddrives, but what is actually on the drive need to be decoded by something (IE: a computer). Also a drive is a bunch of zeroes put together. The equipement you are asking would need to read the drive, look for audio compatible files and stream it. but then to control all that process you would need an interface...  and at that point you basicly have a small PC.
 
That probably why there are very few thing that use a harddrive directly.

 

[Solrighal]

Fair point, thanks for the clarification. There is also the Squuezebox option though. It costs a fair bit though.

Gordon.

 

[proton007]

Quote:

Fair point, thanks for the clarification. There is also the Squuezebox option though. It costs a fair bit though.
Gordon.

 
The Squeezebox can work with NAS if I'm not wrong, but it doesn't work with video.
If you didn't have any hardware at all, I could recommend this, but since you have a laptop, you can just give it a try for now. 

 

[Solrighal]

Aye, that's what I'm going to do.

 

[brunk]

Another, cheaper option would be The Apple TV for $99.
 

 

[brunk]

Quote:

Aye, that's what I'm going to do.

So has your solution panned out yet?

 

[Solrighal]

Not yet. Finding the funds has been difficult but I'm working on it.

 

[barbes]

Note also that if you can access your music off your home network, you can run it through your iPad via iTunes and home sharing, then through the iPad camera connector kit and a USB DAC. Put your laptop and music off somewhere and use the iPad as your source.