Got my Music Streamer II today...

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Puma Cat, Sep 14, 2010.

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  1. Baron Von Talbot

    Baron Von Talbot Well-Known Member

    Problem is that even if it is free I still can not download cause I need an apple iTunes account for that. Guess what you need a credit card to sign up at the iTunes store. Same fior the app store book store game store etc.
    Otherwise they simply block all incoming orders even for their "free" apps and games and that really sucks. basically 3/4 of all iPhone iPod associated programs are useless unless you are a member.
    Seems as if apple never heard of paypal, that runs the www for me !

    It is really f ed up. apple has a strict agenda like McD's conquering the world and spread the american way of life all over the planet. I doubt that they do that out of ignorance. I mean for years I did register my macs in Cupertino without a credit card, but now I am cut off - this sucks.

    I have no chance getting a credit card even if I wanted. Fact and It is not like you get half a dozen offers by post every other months.
    It is more like applying for a life insurance or something...

    For that most factories that have workers they send overseas are equipped with Credit Cards hey give to them , so that they can book fllghts , rent cars , hotel rooms etc. All that doesn't fly in the US without a credit card.
    Big Brother is watching every move you make every breath you take...The Police :)
    Thank god there still are ways around that in europe still as long as the folks resist. It is getting harder every day, though

    excuse my brabble PUMA C

    I was asking how the name of that app is that runs your iTunes via remote. Does that work only with media monkey and what app it is you use ?
     
  2. Puma Cat

    Puma Cat Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    East Bay, CA
    Baron,
    It's called Apple Remote.
     
  3. Puma Cat

    Puma Cat Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    East Bay, CA
    Well, I got my little black MacBook music server up and running again tonight; bought a 320 gig Seagate HD at Best Buy for $59 and slapped it in, installed Mac OSX, and I'm off and running again. Having the music on an external HD certainly expedited things.

    Speaking of Best Buy, I sure got the impression that Best Buy is about to be on it's last legs....reminds me of CompUSA before they bit the dust.
     
  4. SBurke

    SBurke Nostalgia Junkie

    Location:
    Philadelphia, PA
    Why do you think so? I always had the sense that that company was being run much more smartly.
     
  5. Puma Cat

    Puma Cat Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    East Bay, CA
    The look of the place.....not much selection in the way of electronics or computer gear. The selection of 2.5" laptop drives was p*ss-poor. I got one of only two Seagate drives they had. The product shelves had a bare quality that does not appear to bode well, and when you see a vendor trying to sell soda and candy over it's main portfolio of products, that seems to be telling as well. I give 'em a year and a half max.
     
  6. maraisdecygnes

    maraisdecygnes New Member

    Location:
    Princeton/NYC
    It's all my fault actually, I order just about anything with Amazon Prime now, in stock, low price, and get it in 2 days :D last time I was at Best Buy, I had a Motorhead T shirt on and was followed around the store!
     
  7. Baron Von Talbot

    Baron Von Talbot Well-Known Member

    Thanks a lot.
    The remote function was one of the main reasons i bought the iPod Touch.
    Will try to buy a gift card from the apple store via my bank account. Free apps gotten from other web sites didn't load so far. Same with games.
    Guess you get a special code or password from the app store with such a gift card ?
     
  8. TigerMMG

    TigerMMG New Member

    Location:
    NJ
    Using cash does have some benefit in the way you spend money. It is the limiting and hassling effect on your spending habit. You simply cannot spend more money than you have.

    With CC, you can go amok and blow your whole income many times over in one shot. You have to practice restraint with CC... not everyone can do this successfully.

    I don't use ATM, it is redundant and absolute waste of my time. Heck, I hardly use cash either.
     
  9. rstamberg

    rstamberg Senior Member

    Location:
    Riverside, CT
    I'd owned the MusicStreamer+ ($199.) for 11 months and then last Monday it went dead. After I'd performed diagnostic tests and concluded the unit had died and my USB and Stereo-audio cables were fine, I called the Music Direct, where I'd bought the thing last February. They said to call the manufacturer, HRT. Long story short, they were very helpful. I had the option of returning the unit for repair or upgrading it to the new MusicStreamer II+ ($349.) for $249. plus shipping (I got a $100. credit for sending my old unit back for trade). I did the latter. The new unit arrived yesterday.

    the MusicStreamer II+ smokes the earlier version, which wasn't bad at all. There's a real depth to the sound this time 'round that wasn't there before ... almost a faux surround sort of brilliance to the sound. I've been playing iTunes files from my MacBook Pro to my audio set-up in my living room and the sound is stellar. I'm really rather amazed at the dramatic difference. The MusicStreamer II+ is more than just an update ... it's an entirely new experience, a better one. It's more expensive, for sure, but it's actually really worth it.

    I hope this one lasts longer than 11 months, however. My contacts all said it was highly unusual for the unit I had to die when it did. I figure it must've gotten a shock or something 'cause I never even touch it ...
     
  10. Puma Cat

    Puma Cat Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    East Bay, CA
    I'm still really happy with my MSII....it's nicely burned in now, and I recently put a Belkin Gold Series USB cable on it, and snapped some ferrite cores on either end. Running Zy Wylde ICs from it to the preamp. Doing extensive A/B with the same content, such as an Audio Wave Blue Note XRCD ripped to lossless or the actual XRCD playing in the Oppo BD83-SE, it is really hard to tell a difference between the two. The Oppo sounds a little better than the MSII, but not so much listeners could tell with statistical signficance in a blinded test. My guess is the ii+ and Pro 'Streamers must sound REALLY good. .
     
  11. Always a good idea with USB cables. Monoprice also makes good (and very inexpensive) gold-plated USB cables with ferrite cores standard.
     
  12. subatomic09

    subatomic09 Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey
    I recommend using a very short USB cable with any USB DAC. I did notice an improvement in soundstage when I switched from a 6 foot cable to a 1 foot with my Musiland Monitor. I was dubious about this when I first read it on various sites, but my experience is that it's true. It has something to do with the way that the data packets are sent to the DAC across USB. A computer is not designed to stream music, even when using ASIO or KS, so a short cable + asynchronous transfer is a must.
     
  13. dgsinner

    dgsinner New Member

    Location:
    Far East
    I got a Music Streamer II + a couple of weeks ago. I love it. I'm very satisfied with it. I didn't get the deal the OP did (I paid US$325 on an eBay BIN), but I'm pleased with the purchase.

    These things do need a couple of days' worth of burn-in though. My first listen filled me with buyer's remorse. It sounded very thin, very tinny...I'd read these need burn-in time, so I ran it near constantly for about two days. Now it sounds great. I can recommend it without hesitation. Just wish it had reverse ADC capability...

    Here it is.

    Dale
     

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  14. Puma Cat

    Puma Cat Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    East Bay, CA
    If i could find a 1 meter Belkin Gold Series USB cable to use, I would. The shortest I was able to find was 6 feet (1.8 meters).
     
  15. Puma Cat

    Puma Cat Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    East Bay, CA
    My Belken Gold Series USB cost me $4.88 from Amazon. I'm amazed when I see ordinary run of the mill USB cables costing $30 at retail outlets. Talk about price gouging.
     
  16. Natt

    Natt Forum Resident

    Location:
    Acton, Canada
    It's rare to find a USB cable that works beyond the spec of 5m. Below that, if the cable is functioning properly I've not heard a sonic difference.
     
  17. LeeS

    LeeS Music Fan

    Location:
    Atlanta
    So true! With my new Mac Mini I've had to buy a few cables and the only way to go is online. Amazon price for a 3 foot cable that converts Firewire 400 device to work on a Firewire 800 port? $6.29. Price at our local Micro Center? $25. Not in inventory at my local Frys and Apple stores. The Apple store is very high priced on its cables, many at $20 and $30.
     
  18. Puma Cat

    Puma Cat Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    East Bay, CA
    Yeah, prices for peripherals at Apple stores are ridiculous, like the "bumper" for the iPhone 4....$30 for 25ยข worth of plastic.
     
  19. The Monoprice gold plated cable I bought was $1.75. The Belkin Gold cable was somewhere around $5.00, similarly priced as yours.
     
  20. TommyTunes

    TommyTunes Senior Member

    I'm using a MS Pro in my second system and I noticed an improvement going from a 6ft Belkin Gold to a .5 meter Kimber Silver USB. The sound became more three dimensional and defined. I don't know it is attributable to the cable quality or the reduced length. Now if only I can find a Firewire 800 cable of the same quality.
     
  21. subatomic09

    subatomic09 Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey
    Monoprice is your friend! :)

    http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10303&cs_id=1030301&p_id=5436&seq=1&format=2

    When I say "short" I mean short. Asynchronous USB transfer helps a lot at minimizing jitter, so cable length isn't as crucial with DACs that use this mode. But at higher sampling rates like 96 and 192 kHz, a very short USB cable will reduce jitter. At 85 cents per 1.5 ft. cable from monoprice, it doesn't hurt to try. :)
     
  22. subatomic09

    subatomic09 Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey
    It's the reduced length. Since USB sends data in packets instead of streaming it, every nanosecond you can shave off the arrival time of that packet to the DAC will help. Especially if you're playing 24/96 WAV files.
     
  23. Puma Cat

    Puma Cat Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    East Bay, CA
    Thanks, Tom, good to know. Did you snap a ferrite core on each end of your Kimber USB cable?
     
  24. Puma Cat

    Puma Cat Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    East Bay, CA
    yes, but does it peform as well as the Belken Gold Series cable? I bought the Belkin based on comments by Neil Gader of TAS on how well this cable performs.

    There is a big difference in the sonic qualities of digital cables. Even optical TOSLINK; my Monster M1000 optical TOSLink cable I use to go from my Airport Express to my ARcam's DAC ripped the arms and legs off the cheap $20 Belkin optical I was using with respect to sound quality. It was jaw-dropping how much better it was.
     
  25. rstamberg

    rstamberg Senior Member

    Location:
    Riverside, CT
    I just switched out my longer USB cable for a one-foot long USB cable. I'll probably get a gold USB cable to replace that one, too. Thanks for the tips. My contact at HRT said Belkin was one of the manufacturers whose cables HRT recommends for use with the MusicStreamer II+ ...
     
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