Thanks, dufferdan, for sharing your impressions. About the comparison between CD, rip to WAV/burn to CD, and rip to FLAC/play via the Touch, I too find the CD and its copy to be undistinguishable from one another when both are played through the Cambridge Azur. However, the FLAC played through the Touch does sound a tad more three-dimensional to me, with better defined bass. And I, too, noticed a deeper layer of silence (I thought I was imagining this). The difference is subtle, but quite noticeable. So far, I've only compared a couple of recordings this way, though.
I find the same kind of differences between 96/24 VD-Audio played through the Oppo (digital out to the second input on the Cambridge Azur DAC) and the downloaded FLAC version of the same recording played through the Touch -- only in this case the differences are more pronounced and the FLAC/SBT is definitely better sounding in all respects. Mind you, my stereo equipment is classed in the "inexpensive" category (by audiophile standards), so it may not reveal the smallest differences and nuances. But there is no question to my ears that 96/24 through the SBT is the superior listening experience. Well worth the $300. Wireless does not seem to be doing it for me. No problems with glitches or re-buffering, but the sound seems more flat and less involving. I may try connecting through the power lines (I'm not going to string more Ethernet wires through the house), but I think that for now I will stick with USB sticks, though I suppose that may become old fast as my library of 96/24 FLACs increases. Next, I shall try SD cards (which shouldn't be different from USB sticks). Guido F. -- guidof *Front End*: Marantz TT 15S1 Turntable, Virtuoso Wood Cartridge; Cambridge Azur 840C CD Player; Oppo BDP--83 Universal Player; Squeezebox Touch Music File Player (digital out to Cambridge Azur 840C DAC) *Preamps*: Conrad Johnson Motif (Phono); Adcom GFP-750 (Line) *Amps*: Music Reference RM-200 Mk II (Main); Little Tube Mk III (Phones) *Subwoofer Equalizer*: DSpeaker Antimode 8033 *Speakers*: Martin Logan SL3s; REL T1 Subwoofer *Headphones*: AKG K701 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ guidof's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=40448 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=82060 _______________________________________________ Touch mailing list [email protected] http://lists.slimdevices.com/mailman/listinfo/touch
