How do you listen to your digital files in your stereo?

Ton's of great choices to get the job done
PC-->LMS sends it to a SBTouch via Ethernet-->Emotiva DC-1-->Yamaha RX-V2090 (analog only avr)
Controlled by a re-purposed smart phone

 

Foobar on my laptop into Asus Xonar USB sound card into receiver via RCA

 

Don't feel bad. I don't know what half of the stuff is that is listed here. It is great that there are so many options.

You can get by without using a phone or tablet if there is a computer nearby.
My setup uses an HDMI out from a laptop that is wired to the network to send the video to the tv screen. The laptop is controlled using a wireless keyboard that has a built in touchpad.

Not the greatest picture but you get the idea.

 

Mac Mini HDMI out to Linn Majik DSM Network Music Player.
Controlled using Linn Kazoo through MacBook Pro.

 

Flac/laptop/foobar2000/USB/Schiit multi-bit Bifrost/Fisher 400/Ascend Sierra-1s. I'm looking to upgrade a couple things in my chain but this is great for now.

 

Using a computer is for me quite complicated, having to switch it on everytime i want to listen to music is a showstopper.
+ keyboard control seems (again for me) like a hussle compared with remote control...

 

iPod Classic 160 into an integrated amp's auxiliary.

 

Every year I make a new year's resolution to organize the stored CDs. I never get to it. I also neglected to put catalog info in the tags for the first 500 or so CDs I ripped. Been meaning to add that catalog info to the tags for years. Never get around to it. Just some of the challenges that go with go with doing computer as source instead of spinning the discs.

 

External USB 3.0 hard drive connected to an Intel NUC and output through a Grace M9xx DAC/monitor controller directly to a power amplifier. There is no line stage, no physical media of any kind, and nothing spinning except for a hard drive and some tiny silent fans. Yeah, I know that's not how most people do things around here, but it works.

 

I usually listen to my digital files and needle drops on my computer's sound system. They are all saved to a 3TB external hard drive. Occasionally I will burn them to CD's as digital files or a music CD if I want to listen to them elsewhere. Sometimes I will download what I want to hear onto a USB finger drive and plug it into my car stereos. I have an iPod with about 5k songs on it and most of the time, I plug it into the USB port on my car stereos. Sometimes I will use it with headphones.
Play my digital files through my home stereo system? I don't bother with that. Almost everything I have on digital files were made from physical copies that I have. Why would anyone want to listen to digital files on a home stereo system when you've got the real things?

 

CD, FLAC, WAV, MP3

 

My music is stored on a 2T WD Passport (backed up on another 2T Passport). This is connected via USB to an Asus mini PC with JRiver installed. The Asus is then connected to the USB input on an Oppo 105D. In turn, the OPPO is connected via balanced ICs to my preamp.

 

I have three options. All music held on 2T external hard drive connected to a Mac Mini. From there:

1) Mac Mini running Logitech Media server software > [wireless] > Squeezebox Touch > [optical] > Oppo 105D > [rca cables] > amp. Controlled by iPad mini with iPeng app.

2) Mac Mini running JRiver media center software > [hdmi] or [usb] > Oppo 105D > [rca cables] > amp. Controlled by iPad mini with JRemote app.

3) Mac Mini running Roon software > [hdmi] or [usb] > Oppo 105D > [rca cables] > amp. Controlled by iPad mini with Roon app.

I haven't used option (1) in a while. I only recently got Roon but I can see option (3) becoming the predominant method over time as I get used to the interface.

 

I've only got about 600 CDs, I finally got around to organizing them, took me forever, but it was worth it. I even spun a few of them lol. Probably the first time in years. I ripped them to lossless wav files and flacs years ago.

My vinyl has never been not organized, guess we see where my priorities are lol.

 

1) That's my exact setup for my vintage Marantz Receiver. (music room)
2) Yamaha 5.1 receiver uses AirportExpress w/optical out. (TV room)

Don't really notice a difference between both options....

 

Not 8-Tracks????

 

That's exactly what I do. My collection is large enough now that I use a 500 MB USB harddrive. I'm a little OCD about the possible impact to sound quality by a spinning mechanical drive. I hope terabyte SSDs become affordable soon.

 

I don't listen to digital files on my stereo. I find that my enjoyment of the album (or song) is tied into the mythology of the listening format. Specifically, that there is a band (or their label mates) that is making these individual physical artefacts and sending them through byways to the music listener. I guess that this could be tied in somehow to MP3 or FLACs or whatever. But, it seems that there is no individual attention paid to the music listener by the facilitator with the download method of reception of the album. An illustration of this personal opinion, is that I ordered two albums from Mt. Eerie on vinyl, and had my name handwritten in very charming handwriting by Phil Elverum, I presume as he has no label representation, and not only that, but the packing cardboard inserts were not cardboard but empty record covers for his Live in Japan album which is now a decoration on my den wall. It's like being a part of a secret society, and the romantic (in the broad sense of the term) sense also is imparted through interaction with a record shop (and not just direct sales from artists and labels).
Who was it that said, though, that everything rational is healthy and everything romantic is si ck. I'll concede that that seems somewhat true, too though, so maybe I should stop hearing the music too much through the EQ of my belief system.

 

I have a PC w/ 2 WD 4tb red drives, foobar2k w/ plugins/wasapi, into parasound p5 preamp. Or my oppo 103 via all sorts of portable storage devices and through network.

 

I rarely listen to CDs anymore. All the CDs I own have been ripped and put in storage. I have them all stored (along with my downloads) on a Linux server in my living room, which is connected to my TV, and to my home theater receiver via a spare aux input. I have Kodi installed on that server, so when I'm listening in my living room, I listen straight off my server via Kodi.

I have a mirror of my library on a microSDXC card in my phone, so when I'm out and about, I listen on that; or, if I'm at work, since phones are banned from the production floor, I also have most of my library on another microSCXC card in a cheap, no-name MP3 player that I listen to at work.

 

Windows Tower PC > Ethernet > Marantz AVR using Asset Upnp on my Laptop

 

I realize that everyone has their breaking point but there is no reason to turn off the computer. It also works to stream your library as mp3s to your phone when you are out of the house.

Also works while listening to an IR Everclear reissue on vinyl while catching up on the forum.

 

Raspberry Pi 2B with attached WD 4 TB hard drive and HiFiBerry DAC+ Pro connected to my preamp. Max2Play software including Squeezebox Server.

Controlled by phone or tablet or Windows desktop using Squeeze Ctrl app.

 

Bryston BDP 1 music server with 500GB hard driver using uncompressed FLAC files. Connected to a Bryston BDA 1.

 

Windows PC running Logitech Media Server with 4TB external >

Listening Room: ethernet connected Raspberry Pi with Hifiberry Digi+Pro running Picoreplayer > Dspeaker Anti-Mode used as DAC/DSP/Preamp

Home Theater: ethernet connected Raspberry Pi running Picoreplayer > Yamaha AVR

Portable: wifi connected Logitech Squeezebox Radio