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How do I get the highest quality from iTunes?


32blownhemi

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I use both iTunes and Audirvana for playback.  As far as I can tell, there is zero difference in sound quality with "straight up" playback.  "Straight up" = no sample rate conversion, levels matched, no filters applied, no playback options selected etc.  The players are just reading the 0's and 1's from the music file and sending them to the output device unaltered.  Where I do hear a difference is with the added features that some of these products have way above and beyond iTunes such as automatic (and custom) sample rate conversion, better SRC's like izotope+, all kinds of great filters and sound-shaping features, and various methods to control/hog the sound-path on your computer to prevent other processes from polluting it.  Your mileage will vary.  My point is running iTunes via a USB cable to a pre-amp isn't such a bad thing and it sounds like you got a nice bang-for-the-buck with the $50 plugin.  But, there might be other things to try downstream that offer a bigger bang for the buck such as speaker placement and room layout.

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I use BitPerfect. I like the idea of playing back the songs in their native format, which BitPerfect switches to automatically. With iTunes, you have to choose a sampling rate and leave it fixed at that. Plus, i like iTunes user interface, and with BitPerfect you aren't paying for a new interface and other "equalization" tools you may not want.

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For me amarra hifi is a no brainer. Audionirvana and amara 4 are both great products. Amarra 4 does away with iTunes all together... lets you stream from tidal and play hi res files. Amarra 4 has room correction too. 

The prettiest of the bunch is Room but is serious money. 

Itunes and hifi+ is really hard to beat... hifi plus will only play files iTunes recognizes... so if you download FLAC... just convert them to AIFF and import to iTunes.

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Amarra and Audirvana is good for specific dacs. I read somwhere even if You use USB out the signal passes some filters in a Mac or PC. One of the softwares purpuse is to bypass theese filters. I think the best You can do is to find a usb-dac of your flavour. Mine is R2R-type. R2R deliver, in my opinion, a calm and clean sound. Interesting reading: 


 

 
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On 8/5/2017 at 4:09 AM, 32blownhemi said:

Is there anything better to use than a USB cable?

One of several sources I have, is a laptop connected to an integrated amp. The laptop supports outputs of USB, analog (3.5mm) and HDMI. I tried them all. It took me a while to discover the benefits of using the HDMI. I got an HDMI "audio extractor" from monoprice and the results, for me, were immediately apparent (~$40; pulls HDMI digital from the laptop and delivers analog through RCA). At this point, I cannot imagine using anything but the HDMI. I realize a system of parts is just that--and your results may vary. Others on this forum have used the same extractor with success. My understanding (limited, I'm sure) is that HDMI and USB are different animals--designed to meet different requirements; and, are by no means interchangeable when it comes to carrying audio signals.

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On 2017-08-12 at 6:07 PM, Endo said:

One of several sources I have, is a laptop connected to an integrated amp. The laptop supports outputs of USB, analog (3.5mm) and HDMI. I tried them all. It took me a while to discover the benefits of using the HDMI. I got an HDMI "audio extractor" from monoprice and the results, for me, were immediately apparent (~$40; pulls HDMI digital from the laptop and delivers analog through RCA). At this point, I cannot imagine using anything but the HDMI. I realize a system of parts is just that--and your results may vary. Others on this forum have used the same extractor with success. My understanding (limited, I'm sure) is that HDMI and USB are different animals--designed to meet different requirements; and, are by no means interchangeable when it comes to carrying audio signals.

I' ve tried that and for TV it's OK. Those hdmi extractors are not the best quality. I say less is more. I like USB, depending on DAC input quality, but optic is often safe.  

I've got a mac mini with HDMI to tv-screen with sound through USB to DAC. One trouble is that screen and sound is not in sync and calibration off tv is required. 

 

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