MAC Mini vs Streamer - newbie question

Mac Mini, Audirvana with a hard drive and Hugo. All you need. AV plays FLAC fine. Simple and very effective digital system.

If you go the streaming route, you don't need a DAC. The ND5xs will do the job by itself, picking up the FLAC files from your existing nas. 

I don't think you can use a Mac mini with a nas.

Buying a home computer only to use it to stream files is hardly simple. Furthermore, I doubt you will notice any improvement with a Mac Mini. What is simple is that which you already have.

Streaming is a very small task indeed. You'll probably find watches can do it soon.

You will likely get a better result with a quality DAC. In particular it may expose any limitations of the analague section of the DAC in your current streamer. The analogue A in DAC so to speak. Always best to audition and decide for yourself. Good luck.

+1. The ND5 XS has a pretty good DAC inside, better in fact, than the one inside my Supernait 1.

I will add on another answer.  Different than all the above.  Which are all different (I'm also unsure if anyone actually answered the question.

I use a mac mini.  For fun I put a sonos in between that and my dac and feel there was a drop-off.  So I would bag the sonos (Though some love the wired for sound modified sonos)

I would say the ND5 xs is a waste of money.  You can stream from your NAS to the mac mini, but you will need to pick one of the UPNP programs available.  Which to me is too complicated  You can just move your music from your NAS to the mac mini (you can by an external USB HD if you have a large library)  iTunes does not play FLAC but just download Audirvana or something.  Then run a USB or optical cable from the mini to a DAC (say the Hugo, which I suspect is a much better DAC than what is in the ND5 XS) and I suspect the Hugo/mini combo is less than the ND5 XS.

Hey thanks for that.

In truth I want to upgrade both my source and my amps, and - rightly or wrongly - perceive that cost savings can be realised on the streaming source (without necessarily compromising SQ) by going 'cheaper' transport + quality DAC (such as Mac Mini or ND5XS, plus Hugo) instead of quality streamer (such as NDX or NDS). I was hoping to get away with just adding a DAC to the Sonos Connect but advice received indicates this may be compromising SQ too much for my proposed amps. Anyway, in this fashion I hope to release more funds from my budget for the amp - perhaps allowing me to get a 252/300 instead of a 282/250.2 and thus maximising SQ from my budget that way.

I do want the user friendliness of only storing my music in one place hence want any solution to operate from my NAS which I will keep for existing Sonos duties. 

So I am definitely interested in the Mac Mini option now that it is possible for it to see my NAS (not sure I can be bothered to rip AND copy each time I buy a cd).

It's a little bit more nuanced than that which is to say that iTunes can play any valid content on a mounted drive or share, be that a DAS or NAS device. What doesn't work is if you use a 3rd party player like Audirvana, which needs to process local files when used in iTunes integration mode. 

Well I have a certain budget, and could get say NDX, 282, 250.2 with it. However I am aware that quite a few people here have Mac Mini front end feeding high-end amps, and some have apparently ditched their NDS/555 for a Hugo - so at least anecdotally it seems possible to save money on the source without compromising SQ thus releasing funds for the amp. If so I could maybe reach a 252/300 (with a bit extra added to my budget) but yes I agree the difference in £££s spent between source and amp on that configuration is drastic, so only interested in this if it is indeed balanced in SQ terms if not in £££.

yes of course I have to audition gear before buying it. But this is asking for advice on whether my proposed configuration is worth exploring for home demo purposes or if it is obviously unbalanced in SQ terms.

Steve makes an excellent point about simplicity and reliability. 

My suggestion is predicated on my firm belief that the simplest, shortest and quietest path from source to DAC is best both in terms of sound quality and reliability when using a computer. With that in mind if you decide to try or get a Mac Mini I would:

- Dedicate it to music only and leave it on 24/7. They don't consume much power.

- Transcode your FLAC library to ALAC or AIFF. Using XLD that can be as simple as a single drag and drop.

- Copy the files to the iTunes library on the Mini. Download the iOS Remote App and point an iOS device at the iTunes library.

- Setup a share on your NAS and point something like Carbon Copy Cloner or Chronosync at your NAS on a frequency reflecting how often your library changes. Now you have 2 copies of the library.

- Point your Sonos to either the Mini or the NAS so you'll have easy access and the ability to aggregate locally stored and internet streamed content in to Sonos playlists.

- When you get a new CD either rip it directly on the Mini or if you use another computer share the Mini's 'Automatically add to iTunes' folder so you can drop the files on to it for an automatic import in to the iTunes library on your Mini when it's finished ripping on your main computer.

This way you don't have to worry about UPNP, and you'll have a rip once, automatic import in to your library and a backup copy of your library on the NAS.

Once you have it all setup you can tinker with things like BitPerfect, Audirvana etc. if you like.