ND5XS

Posted by: Louis-Andre on 05 January 2013

Hi everyone, When someone buys a ND5XS ( or similar), should he also buy a NAS, or can he just use his computer? For example, I have a Apple MacPro laptop, can this suffice to story my music downloads? In other words, why do people buy NAS in the first place? Sorry for asking very basic questions. Also, how does Mac Mini compare in features and sound vs Uniti Serve? Louis
Posted on: 05 January 2013 by james n

Louis - it depends what you want to do. You need a UPnP server on either the NAS or the Mac. The advantage of the NAS is that it's on all the time - you need to have your mac book running to serve music. Have you any ripped music at the moment ( ie in iTunes). Another option is the Vortex box, which will rip, serve and store your music. The Unitiserve gives you a plug and play solution but is rather expensive and for UPnP streaming duties, the Vortex box will do the same at a quarter of the cost.

 

James

Posted on: 05 January 2013 by Louis-Andre
So far, i have only listen to cds and LPs, i have never downloaded music, but i plan to do so in the future. I have a Squeezebox Touch with dedicated PSU. If i understand you correctly, a Vortexbox would be a good idea. If i do so, I would then need to improve the dac of my SBT. Do you beleive a nDAC + SBT would be superior to a ND5XS? Out of curiosity, how many devices can we plug into the dac of the ND5XS? I am asking as i would need min 2( one for SBT tonplay Spotify, and one for the Vortexbox?) What software do people use to manage music downloads, etc, when using a Vortexbox? Thanks for any advice
Posted on: 05 January 2013 by Louis-Andre
Another stupid question. Do Vortexbox also stream music, or would i still need a streamer to go with it( such as SBT or ND5XS)? How does Vortexbox +nDac sound vs CD5x/flatcap 2x?
Posted on: 05 January 2013 by mutterback
Best option for the VortexBox would be to use ethernet, then you'd have all the digital ins on the ND5 available. If its on the same network as the ND5, it functions as a UPNP server. Others have also reported you can play - also from the network connection -  MOG and Spotify from it using the plug ins for squeeze server, which is has with it. you might not need your squeezebox any more.
 
VortexBox is actually open source software. www.vortexbox.org You can make your own, or buy a VortexBox "appliance" for ripping and UPNP streaming - which I use and find a real value, as its not much more than a good NAS. Others sell high end VortexBox music servers with SPIF an/or analog outputs as a similar product to the ND5 and NDX.
 
Originally Posted by Louis-Andre:
Another stupid question. Do Vortexbox also stream music, or would i still need a streamer to go with it( such as SBT or ND5XS)? How does Vortexbox +nDac sound vs CD5x/flatcap 2x?
Posted on: 05 January 2013 by DrMark

I am using my Vortexbox in conjunction with the Squeezebox Touch - the music is ripped and stored on the VB (a work in process at this moment) and I wirelessly stream from the VB to the SBT, using the digital out on the SBT into the DAC of my SuperNait.  This allows me to keep the VB in another location in the apartment.  Early uses have been fine so far.

 

Another thing that needs to be mentioned - if you use VB, be sure and back it up, and the external drive that you use for backup can ONLY be used for the VB and not for any other files, so factor that in as an additional "cost" of VB.

Posted on: 05 January 2013 by Iver van de Zand

Dear Louis-Andre,

 

There are various threads over here comparing SBT/nDac versus ND5XS. A big part of the community prefers the SBT/nDAC, though some (myself included) prefer the ND5XS. I think it depends a bit on the rest of your system and how things balance in the end. A demo of both on your system will give you the answer. I can definately recommend a dedicated NAS. It is silent, you can put it away in another room and it is safe. Once installed it is easy to maintain.

 

One important thing to consider, is that I believe the ND5XS has to less digital inputs: 1 Toslink and 2 Coaxial. If - like me - you want to hook up a TV SetTop, Dune BlueRay and Airport Express (all Tosslink), you are immediately in "trouble". The nDac has way more digil inputs

 

Iver