A backwards journey to streaming (a personal history)

Background

In  my youth, many years ago, I was a vigorous ‘hi-fi upgrader’—subject to the budgetary constraints imposed by youth. For many years now I’ve remained content with a venerable and reasonably basic Naim system comprising a CDX, NAC72 pre-amp and NAP140 power amp—playing through in-wall B&W Signature 8NT speakers (itself a constraint imposed by refurbishment of a top floor flat). I have for many years had a fairly modest collection of mainly classical CDs.

The slippery slope

About two years ago I bought an Astell & Kearn AK Jr and B&W P7 headphones thinking the combination would be good when travelling. I cut my teeth on ripping CDs and, as I was by then a Mac enthusiast, discovered the XLD ripping software. It was only in December last year that I downloaded my first hi-res music from Qobuz (Karajan/Pavarotti/La Bohème—which I already had on CDs). Since then I have downloaded about five other favourite CDs in hi-res versions from Qobuz and they have lived happily on the AK Jr.

I started to read this forum…and the slope became ever more slippery leading to a visit, in February this year, to my old dealer. He told me he’d last supplied hi-fi equipment to me in 1992 and quizzed me thoroughly about why I thought I wanted a streamer, how I’d ripped my CDs, etc. We talked, I listened…and I succumbed. There is on order a Uniti Nova and QNAP NAS. dBpoweramp was purchased for some more thorough re-ripping, metadata was re-wrangled (Jaikoz) and album art at last properly tamed (Metadatics).

Interim streaming

However, that’s not the end: my backward journey to streaming has continued. I have continued to read this forum, ploughing through obscure numeric references to doubtless heavenly high-end kit. But what’s this “mu-so” thing? Hmm—it could just be the required antidote to delayed streaming pleasure. Another order and the master bedroom now sports a mu-so, feeding happily for the moment from a USB flash drive and, of course, playing Internet Radio. Connection to the network through the much-cursed Devolo plugs seems to work a treat (but, rest assured, the Nova will have a direct Ethernet connection). Headphone-less music before sleep and on waking is a great pleasure and the mu-so sound is more than merely acceptable.

Forgive me for thinking you could be interested in this personal history but this forum has provided much guidance to this lurker and I’m grateful to you. I know that streaming is the way forward for me: it is an absolute boon to select music using the Naim app and to have my CDs split, where appropriate, into individual works (so that I no longer have to remember how to use the Naim remote to programme the tracks to which I wish to listen).

Thank you all for the unknowing guidance you have provided.

Stephen