how to set up mac mini with unitiqute?

Posted by: KenRose on 06 April 2013

Hi everyone,

I'm a 30 year Naim user who is now pretty frustrated and unsure of how to convert to digital.  My longtime Naim dealer closed down, a pretty bad split, after 20 years he started defrauding customers including me.  I mention this because I am without a dealer, and dealers in other cities are not super excited to help me because I didn't purchase my unitiqute from them.

I sold my previous Naim gear with the exception of my Credos and bought a unitiqute with the upgraded boards and software to play hi def files.  I am also a mac user....  I have been streaming my music through my macbook air using eye connect and am VERY tired of the dropouts and the number of times my UQ cannot find the server.  I wish to buy a mac mini and move my iTunes directly to the mini and hardware it to the UQ and go from there.  Not sure how to do this.  Any suggestions would be very much appreciated.

Ken

PS I have started to rip the CD's to iTunes using Apple Lossless.

Posted on: 06 April 2013 by Iver van de Zand

Hi Ken,

 

the MacMini is a very good investment and perfect to maintain, handle and play your library. Your current albums can easily be transferred from you MacPro onto the MacMini.

 

probably the best and most reliable connection between UnitQute and MacMini is a digital SpDif cable. Many here use a cable Wireworld SuperNova 6 which brings superb quality (various threads here). This cable uses the digital mini jacket from the MacMini on one side, and of course the Tosslink optical in on the Qute.

 

does this answer your question ?

 

iver

Posted on: 06 April 2013 by KenRose
Hi Iver,
Thank you for your reply.  So I buy the mac mini and cable, plug it directly into the UQ.  Do I need to use some software to get the music to play or do I just open up iTunes via my laptop and play it from there?
Ken
Originally Posted by Iver van de Zand:

Hi Ken,

 

the MacMini is a very good investment and perfect to maintain, handle and play your library. Your current albums can easily be transferred from you MacPro onto the MacMini.

 

probably the best and most reliable connection between UnitQute and MacMini is a digital SpDif cable. Many here use a cable Wireworld SuperNova 6 which brings superb quality (various threads here). This cable uses the digital mini jacket from the MacMini on one side, and of course the Tosslink optical in on the Qute.

 

does this answer your question ?

 

iver

Posted on: 07 April 2013 by james n

Ken - if you're going to keep streaming then get a wired network if possible to connect your UQ to your router.It'll save you a lot of problems in the future. Secondly ditch eyeconnect. It's rubbish. As you use iTunes try Playback as a UPnP server. It integrates with your iTunes library and will work perfectly with nStream and the Naim network players. Plenty of advice available on the forum to help you get sorted.

 

James

Posted on: 07 April 2013 by badlyread

Agree with James above. I have a Mac Mini connected to a SuperUniti. It is connected via a HiFace SpDif converter (jittery slot loading mac) and wired via a switch to my router. For Upnp I use PlayBack and it has been very reliable.

 

The direct connection to the SU allows me to play Spotify and other things directly from the Mini and iTunes (ALAC) on the very rare occasion that there is a problem witthey ISP. A wired Upnp connection is essential for any HiRes stuff that you want to play. Depending on the size of your library you might consider an external HD (I use a G-Drive Mini) to store the music on. I replaced the internal 320 Gb with a 60 Gb SSD which is plenty to just handle the OS - very easy to do this yourself. 

 

Good luck on your digital quest. 

 

Neil

Posted on: 07 April 2013 by Iver van de Zand
Originally Posted by KenRose:
Hi Iver,
Thank you for your reply.  So I buy the mac mini and cable, plug it directly into the UQ.  Do I need to use some software to get the music to play or do I just open up iTunes via my laptop and play it from there?
Ken
Originally Posted by Iver van de Zand:

Hi Ken,

 

the MacMini is a very good investment and perfect to maintain, handle and play your library. Your current albums can easily be transferred from you MacPro onto the MacMini.

 

probably the best and most reliable connection between UnitQute and MacMini is a digital SpDif cable. Many here use a cable Wireworld SuperNova 6 which brings superb quality (various threads here). This cable uses the digital mini jacket from the MacMini on one side, and of course the Tosslink optical in on the Qute.

 

does this answer your question ?

 

iver

Dear Ken,

 

You can use iTunes itself to play the music. To make life a bit more comfortable, iPad/iPhone users install the free app Remote on it. It will allow you to sit in your chair, scroll through your entire collection and control your playing. Apart from what tablet to choose, my personal experience is that a thing like a tablet opens a complete new era of music experience. You can scroll and "dive" anywhere in your collection, while being comfortably listening.

 

There is some software that helps boosting the performance of iTunes even more. Definately install/buy BitPerfect on the new MacMini. It is a few Euro's and automates sample rate settings for you. If you search the threads on this forum on BitPerfect, you'd find many positive experiences. More expensive is Audirvana. That might be for a later occasion, just get the MacMini running.

 

The moment you have bought your music, of course you have to transfer the MacBook Pro albums onto your MacMini. This is probably an easy copy-exercise, thoug I don not knwo how much music you have. In case of doubt/trouble, have a look at the website iLounge and look for the help section. Plenty of well-summarized guides for everything related to iTunes.

 

Lots of guys over here use the MacMini as streamer. However they store the actual data on a separate harddisk or even NAS (Network Attached Storage = like an external harddisk that is connected to your network). This is very handy since you might bounce into a capacity problem on the MacMini. Again, tons of info here on the forum on which drive or NAS to buy. Good news is, that you do not have to buy anything in the beginning: just start with your MacMini. You can add a NAS at any moment later on.

 

Good luck,

Iver

Posted on: 13 April 2013 by KenRose
Hi Iver,
sorry for the late response, thank you for your post to me.
1.  ipad/iphone remote - I'm assuming this is an app for iTunes or N-Stream?
2.  Buy BitPerfect, install on MacMini and it will automatically work with iTunes?  I'm assuming this will only be making the new imports better, not the existing ones.
3.  Transferring from macbook air to MacMini shouldn't be hard, I will get applecare to walk me through.
Will be buying the MacMini tomorrow
Ken
 
Originally Posted by Iver van de Zand:
Originally Posted by KenRose:
Hi Iver,
Thank you for your reply.  So I buy the mac mini and cable, plug it directly into the UQ.  Do I need to use some software to get the music to play or do I just open up iTunes via my laptop and play it from there?
Ken
Originally Posted by Iver van de Zand:

Hi Ken,

 

the MacMini is a very good investment and perfect to maintain, handle and play your library. Your current albums can easily be transferred from you MacPro onto the MacMini.

 

probably the best and most reliable connection between UnitQute and MacMini is a digital SpDif cable. Many here use a cable Wireworld SuperNova 6 which brings superb quality (various threads here). This cable uses the digital mini jacket from the MacMini on one side, and of course the Tosslink optical in on the Qute.

 

does this answer your question ?

 

iver

Dear Ken,

 

You can use iTunes itself to play the music. To make life a bit more comfortable, iPad/iPhone users install the free app Remote on it. It will allow you to sit in your chair, scroll through your entire collection and control your playing. Apart from what tablet to choose, my personal experience is that a thing like a tablet opens a complete new era of music experience. You can scroll and "dive" anywhere in your collection, while being comfortably listening.

 

There is some software that helps boosting the performance of iTunes even more. Definately install/buy BitPerfect on the new MacMini. It is a few Euro's and automates sample rate settings for you. If you search the threads on this forum on BitPerfect, you'd find many positive experiences. More expensive is Audirvana. That might be for a later occasion, just get the MacMini running.

 

The moment you have bought your music, of course you have to transfer the MacBook Pro albums onto your MacMini. This is probably an easy copy-exercise, thoug I don not knwo how much music you have. In case of doubt/trouble, have a look at the website iLounge and look for the help section. Plenty of well-summarized guides for everything related to iTunes.

 

Lots of guys over here use the MacMini as streamer. However they store the actual data on a separate harddisk or even NAS (Network Attached Storage = like an external harddisk that is connected to your network). This is very handy since you might bounce into a capacity problem on the MacMini. Again, tons of info here on the forum on which drive or NAS to buy. Good news is, that you do not have to buy anything in the beginning: just start with your MacMini. You can add a NAS at any moment later on.

 

Good luck,

Iver

Posted on: 13 April 2013 by KenRose
Hi James,
Thanks for your reply.  I will download Playback and get rid of Eyeconnect tomorrow.  You suggest plugging the MacMini directly into router.  How come?  For a router I use a time capsule.  Are you an apple user?
Ken
Originally Posted by james n:

Ken - if you're going to keep streaming then get a wired network if possible to connect your UQ to your router.It'll save you a lot of problems in the future. Secondly ditch eyeconnect. It's rubbish. As you use iTunes try Playback as a UPnP server. It integrates with your iTunes library and will work perfectly with nStream and the Naim network players. Plenty of advice available on the forum to help you get sorted.

 

James

Posted on: 13 April 2013 by KenRose
Hi Neil,
Thanks for your response.  I have the upgraded boards on my UQ, I believe it allows me to stream ALAC.  In Canada we cannot get Spotify.  Do use iTunes to play your music directly when wired?
Ken
Originally Posted by badlyread:

Agree with James above. I have a Mac Mini connected to a SuperUniti. It is connected via a HiFace SpDif converter (jittery slot loading mac) and wired via a switch to my router. For Upnp I use PlayBack and it has been very reliable.

 

The direct connection to the SU allows me to play Spotify and other things directly from the Mini and iTunes (ALAC) on the very rare occasion that there is a problem witthey ISP. A wired Upnp connection is essential for any HiRes stuff that you want to play. Depending on the size of your library you might consider an external HD (I use a G-Drive Mini) to store the music on. I replaced the internal 320 Gb with a 60 Gb SSD which is plenty to just handle the OS - very easy to do this yourself. 

 

Good luck on your digital quest. 

 

Neil

Posted on: 13 April 2013 by Iver van de Zand

Hi Ken

 

Ad. 1 it is an app for iPhone, Ipod or iPad. It is free of charge. Very good interface!

Ad. 2 no, it affects all music in itunes

Ad. 3 good choice. Try to get 8gb of Ram in the MacMini

 

enjoy the weekend,

iver

 

"

Hi Iver,
sorry for the late response, thank you for your post to me.
1.  ipad/iphone remote - I'm assuming this is an app for iTunes or N-Stream?
2.  Buy BitPerfect, install on MacMini and it will automatically work with iTunes?  I'm assuming this will only be making the new imports better, not the existing ones.
3.  Transferring from macbook air to MacMini shouldn't be hard, I will get applecare to walk me through.
Will be buying the MacMini tomorrow
Ken"
Posted on: 13 April 2013 by KenRose
Hi Iver,
I have just purchased BitPerfect and am unsure if I have set it up correctly.  It seems like it just opened and located my music files.  Is that all there is to it or do I open it each time I open iTunes.  How do I know it's running and are there any preferences?
Ken
Originally Posted by Iver van de Zand:

Hi Ken

 

Ad. 1 it is an app for iPhone, Ipod or iPad. It is free of charge. Very good interface!

Ad. 2 no, it affects all music in itunes

Ad. 3 good choice. Try to get 8gb of Ram in the MacMini

 

enjoy the weekend,

iver

 

"

Hi Iver,
sorry for the late response, thank you for your post to me.
1.  ipad/iphone remote - I'm assuming this is an app for iTunes or N-Stream?
2.  Buy BitPerfect, install on MacMini and it will automatically work with iTunes?  I'm assuming this will only be making the new imports better, not the existing ones.
3.  Transferring from macbook air to MacMini shouldn't be hard, I will get applecare to walk me through.
Will be buying the MacMini tomorrow
Ken"
Posted on: 13 April 2013 by Iver van de Zand

Hey Ken,

 

You indeed hardly "notice" BitPerfect is activated, but there should be an additional menu in your iTunes main menu. It has some options fro preferences for BitPerfect etc. ANyway: here is the manual: http://bitperfectsound.blogspot.be/p/manual.html

 

Iver

Posted on: 29 June 2013 by minnow
Hi this a great series of posts - I too am a mac user and all of my music has been ripped via iTunes.  I've tried to move my library to my MyBookLive but nothing works properly from a meta data perspective.  All i can get is album and artist without artwork and in N-stream, all my new music is sitting in something called 'folder' as opposed to the other folders (Album, Artist, etc).  It is driving me completely nuts so I soon going to ditch streaming from my MyBookLive NAS.
 
I would be interested in:
 
Thoughts about using the optical output of the mac mini via a cable like the wireworld vs a usb to S/PDIF converter like the Halide or similar.
 
cheers
 
Originally Posted by Iver van de Zand:

Hi Ken,

 

the MacMini is a very good investment and perfect to maintain, handle and play your library. Your current albums can easily be transferred from you MacPro onto the MacMini.

 

probably the best and most reliable connection between UnitQute and MacMini is a digital SpDif cable. Many here use a cable Wireworld SuperNova 6 which brings superb quality (various threads here). This cable uses the digital mini jacket from the MacMini on one side, and of course the Tosslink optical in on the Qute.

 

does this answer your question ?

 

iver

Posted on: 30 June 2013 by Richheart
Originally Posted by KenRose:
Hi James,
Thanks for your reply.  I will download Playback and get rid of Eyeconnect tomorrow.  You suggest plugging the MacMini directly into router.  How come?  For a router I use a time capsule.  Are you an apple user?
Ken
Originally Posted by james n:

Ken - if you're going to keep streaming then get a wired network if possible to connect your UQ to your router.It'll save you a lot of problems in the future. Secondly ditch eyeconnect. It's rubbish. As you use iTunes try Playback as a UPnP server. It integrates with your iTunes library and will work perfectly with nStream and the Naim network players. Plenty of advice available on the forum to help you get sorted.

 

James

I have a mac mini and uitiqute. I have a high quality toslink cable

http://www.lifatec.com/toslink2.html) and am also connected connected directly via the router.

having used the JRiver Media Center for Mac (I abhor i-tunes and use flac) I then experimented with upnp. No contest imho upnp direct is an improvement on the optical out of the mac. The mac is system limited to 96k so if you use hi-res then upnp is essential. 

So, I started with foobar Server from my PC (wifi to the router, CAT 7 wire to the UQ), realising that this is the way to go, I then tried to see what would give me easiest upnp access to the mac. 

I had already setup my mac to work with my squeezebox touch (bedroom - wifi) using Logitech Media Server for Mac and N-stream simply taps into that - presto - done N-Stream works a charm (iOS preferable to OSX version - the iOS version won't work if the OSX version is active) with the Logitech server on both wav and flac. 


So, short answer:

Router (Cisco E900), with CAT7 cables between both the Mac and the UQ, Logitec Media Server for Mac, iOS N-Stream controller