joessportster Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 I want to set up a SIMPLE music server with alot of hard drive space and use it strictly for music, No surfing web, no pics no video, no nothing, Just load WAV Loss Less files on it, connect it to my dac, amp, choose a file and press play I prefer this be a desktop tower type setup as its my understanding the hard drives are more reliable / robust I can buy used dual core towers with small drives for under 100.00 on craigslist, I can get 2 TB drives for around 150.00 I would prefer it internal but have never done an install. although from what ive read it looks pretty straight forward will older processor play music well without skips etc... Suggestions Please ???????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason str Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Any dual core processor will be sufficient. Many towers can hold multiple hard drives so you wont need any space robbing external drives. My smallest tower holds 3 drives my big one 9 but its a EATX server case, you should have at least space for 2 unless its a cheapie or old model. Internal drives hook up just as easy as an external model. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justinsweber Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Joe You don't need a ton of processing power. I think the best budget solution. Is a used orig Apple TV. Swap out the internal drive for a 1TB and call it good. It will give you optical out. The use a an iPhone, monitor or tv. Best of all. You'll have a good front end and can use a remote. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justinsweber Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Older computer will work great. Load a simple red hat Linux for OS and it can use the USB on your DAC. There is a lot if support for this type solution too. If going with full computer route get as much ram as possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joessportster Posted February 25, 2014 Author Share Posted February 25, 2014 Thanks Jason, If the case has a space for a second drive is it safe to assume that all cable connections are there / available, ie... power connector, and mother board connector Also most desk tops haave 3.5 sata drives is this the only info i need worry about when getting the secondary drive ( i realise i want to make sure it has the storage i want Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joessportster Posted February 25, 2014 Author Share Posted February 25, 2014 Older computer will work great. Load a simple red hat Linux for OS and it can use the USB on your DAC. There is a lot if support for this type solution too. If going with full computer route get as much ram as possible. Most of the older cpu, have between 2 and 4 gb of ram, you feel thats low, what advantage is there to more ram ?? I will start looking at the apple tv option thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason str Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Thanks Jason, If the case has a space for a second drive is it safe to assume that all cable connections are there / available, ie... power connector, and mother board connector Also most desk tops haave 3.5 sata drives is this the only info i need worry about when getting the secondary drive ( i realise i want to make sure it has the storage i want Depends, some may have the cable some may not, any local computer store will have your cable if its not already there. If theres a spot for an extra drive the mainboard should have a connection for it, every manufacturer is different. If just adding a drive you won't need to re-install windows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason str Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Older computer will work great. Load a simple red hat Linux for OS and it can use the USB on your DAC. There is a lot if support for this type solution too. If going with full computer route get as much ram as possible. Most of the older cpu, have between 2 and 4 gb of ram, you feel thats low, what advantage is there to more ram ?? I will start looking at the apple tv option thanks 2 GB of memory will be enough. No need to over do it if using it for simple tasks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max2 Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 (edited) Im assuming you're going to be using a TV as a monitor? I did the same thing you're talking about a few years ago. It was an old Tower I built in the 90's. It worked great, even with my "old" but expensive Analog Audio card. You're going to need a better than average sound card or something really good built in the motherboard. Most of them will have a toslink digital hook up, but the one I tried on an upscale Gigabit Mobo had a hiss at idle revealing a crappy noise floor or an issue somewhere. Anyway, my point is, the minimalist approach you are headed now may change once you get things rolling...or maybe not. Check out the Apple Mac mini. You can get a full 1T in storage and 3-4 USB's which are USB3 to plug in as many Ext drives you want. It also comes with 7.1 Audio, I believe and sounds very good for what it is. Its not super cheap, but once you get nickeled and dimed over your bare bones setup, you could just pick one of these up and have a full computer with all your music and no compromises. Oh, it also has HDMI and a digital toslink out for audio and/or video. The wireless Blutooth Keyboard and Mouse make it very handy for Surfing while you listen to your music. Just a thought My bad. No toslink, just HDMI Edited February 25, 2014 by Max2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thaddeus Smith Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Max, you were right the first time. That headphone out port is both analog and digital toslink. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max2 Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Max, you were right the first time. That headphone out port is both analog and digital toslink. Ahh hah... thank you TS. Have to say, I plugged the HDMI in and called it good. But Analog out..... I may have to give that a shot just to see if Im missing anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshnich Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Hello Joe, I may actually have an old apple tv at home. I am currently on a plane but will look for it tonight when I get home. Yeah I have too much stuff if I cant remember what I have! Josh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joessportster Posted February 25, 2014 Author Share Posted February 25, 2014 I will keep using my Dac Hooked up Via usb, which bypasses the soundcard. At least that is my understanding of how it works. Currently using my laptop with great results but, my hard drive is basically full and with all the horror stories about external hard drives failing, and Lap top drives failing as well i thought i would look into setting this up on the cheap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mallette Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 (edited) My first media server, 2003, was based on the Via Eden fanless processor and I used it for years before upgrading. I think the Via boxes are the best bang for the buck in media servers. As you don't want video it's irrelevant, but their video performance is mind boggling for a just over palm sized box. The Via Vinyl audio chipset is outstanding. At a bit over 300 bucks ready to load an OS and play, pretty decent value. I'd run Linux...free, and good audio players available. However, you can run Windows 7 or 8 if you wish. As to your question, most any PC will handle audio just fine. Dave Edited February 25, 2014 by Mallette Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justinsweber Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Apple TV does optical out. I think Joe's DAC will handle. Used Gen 1 Apple TVs have HD and allow for great upgrades. More space plus use if external HD. A used Mac mini would be a fantastic option. I ran one from 3 years ago and upgraded to my current. Went SSD internally and external raid. Mac mini had optimal and USB out. Another option would be to go SSD on your existing laptop and mirror it. Then no reloading. And the. Go external. I've looked into Carbonite for backup. Scary idea backing up 1.5tb of media. But should be done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thaddeus Smith Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 (edited) Scary idea backing up 1.5tb of media. But should be done. At that volume, it's probably better to just buy a 2tb drive and duplicate the data, then store it at a friend's house. Update every couple of months, replace the drives every couple of years. even better would be to find someone on a forum like this that needs the same type of backup scenario that is geographically diverse, and then just ship each other's drives back and forth. Edited February 25, 2014 by Thaddeus Smith 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrickdj1 Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 (edited) I hope I understood what the OP is trying to do. I only use digital musci and use MyBook Live Could 3 TB. I can easily see the file on the TV and it stores the music locally and in the cloud if you want that option. this is a very compact option: the small hard drive is aroun 8 in X 2 in. Cost is around $130 and no other gear is need to stream thur the house.http://www.amazon.com/Personal-Cloud-Storage-Share-Photos/dp/B00439GMJ2 Most of my music is also stored in the cloud. So far it has been flawless. Edited February 25, 2014 by derrickdj1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason str Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 If you plan on downloading more stuff maybe its best to get a bigger drive so you don't run out of space. Hard drives are not expensive until it crashes and you lose all your valuables. If you mirror your drives it would be much safer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 My bad. No toslink, just HDMI The analog headphone jack is also an optical out...You can use one of these: http://www.parts-express.com/pyle-pdoc6-mini-toslink-to-toslink-optical-audio-cable-6-ft--310-2274?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=pla Bruce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joessportster Posted February 25, 2014 Author Share Posted February 25, 2014 I hope I understood what the OP is trying to do. I only use digital musci and use MyBook Live Could 3 TB. I can easily see the file on the TV and it stores the music locally and in the cloud if you want that option. this is a very compact option: the small hard drive is aroun 8 in X 2 in. Cost is around $130 and no other gear is need to stream thur the house.http://www.amazon.com/Personal-Cloud-Storage-Share-Photos/dp/B00439GMJ2 Most of my music is also stored in the cloud. So far it has been flawless. Take a look at reviews on amazon, has more bad 365 at 1 star than it has good 340 at 5 stars, that's like 50% favorable, I tend to stay away from devices with these type ratings, I do appreciate the advice link and its a good idea, just looks like has too maany problems for me Im glad you got a good one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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