USB DAC from Airport Express instead of optical?

[slowth]

I've read many many threads on streaming itunes out to a DAC via the optical output and somehow it causes jitter or drop in sound quality(SQ) cos of the non clocking or something?

I bought a USB DAC recently so can I connect via the usb port on the airport express instead? USB should pose no problem to SQ because it's digitally perfect transmission am I right to say that?

Also, If I still wanted to use Airport express as a print server can I plug a say, 4 USB port into the Airport express and connect my printer and USB DAC to it? I'm quite a noob so I hope this ain't some dumb dumb question heh..

thanks loads!!

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

The USB on the express only works for network printing, the USB on the extreme works for printing or hard drive - no USB sound support with them. I can't get a hub to work on the extreme to allow hard drive and printing at the same time so far either - it seems to be one or the other.

I have had no complaints using optical out to a DAC from my mac, but never tried it with my express.

 

[krmathis]

The USB out on the AirPort Express are for network printing only. You won't get any digital audio signal from it.
I have been using optical out (to external DAC) from one of my AirPort Express' for more than a year. Very pleased with the stability and sound quality. To my ears no audible difference to the optical out on my computer.

 

[Wavelength]

Slowth,

The ironic thing is that the audio controller on the AE is USB. They use the PCM2706 to output both SPDIF and Audio data. The basic unit looks something like this:

802.11 <==> ARM Processor <==> USB Host Controller --> Port A Printer, Port B PCM2706

So you can see that it would take almost nothing to change the code and get the USB port to stream audio.

Belivie me I have screamed to Apple many times that this would be a great thing. I have even looked at hacking the code a few times.

I did at one point yank off the audio board and hacked off the "B" end of a USB cable and soldered the wires to the header used by the audio board and did get that too work just fine. It's a pain in the a&)*(*&((* but it worked great. Not as good as the computer connected USB connection but very good at that.

Thanks
Gordon

 

[slowth]

haha wow!

but i'm not so handy with my hands and I don't think i'd bother to tear an AE apart haha.. I'd just live with using the optical line out haha. But yeah.. wow..cool cool.