Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater I think I finally found the right solution

I have been looking for a device which will allow me to stream all my music including internet radio to my HT for a long time. I have looked at Sonos and the squeezebox. What I did not like is that my PC would have to be on and the price was a bit steep. Currently If I'm listening to my MP3 collection I just plug my ipod in, but hate having to get up to change my music.
I then looked at many remote controls for ipods, but all of them seem lacking.

I just found this: http://www.audioengineusa.com/aw2_home.php

I guess the device creates a 2.4GHz network. Does anyone have any experience with this product? It would allow me to simply use my ipod and have no need for a remote.

Looks pretty attractive, assuming it works as advertised.

My current set-up, I have both of my computers hooked up to my Denon and to my 65 inch LCD. I play all of my music through Window Media Player 10 (11 limits the MP3's it will play, most of what I downloaded off of Limewire was unplayable on Windows Media Player 11, but 10 plays EVERYTHING!!!). I've ripped just about me entire CD collection to my computer as well (so they play at 900 bps instead of only 128). When comparing the way the computer plays the music as opposed to the DVD/CD player, the Sony wins by a nose. But honestly, it isn't that big of a difference that I'll give up the luxury of just skimming through all 2500+ songs I have on my computer and instead have to get up and change CD's after a few songs. They sound good enough straight off of the computer for me!

I am looking into getting an new Audio Card though that will send the music digitally to the Denon to be decoded with it's DAC's instead of the computers. Then I would assume the sound difference would be little to none! I just changed the vidio card to send the pictures I edit and present to our customers straight to the TV digitally instead of converting them to analog and OH MY GOD do they ever look AWESOME now!!! Best $75 bucks I think I've ever spent!

Micah, if you ripped your CDs at 900bps you would indeed notice a difference(assume that you meant 900Kbps). You didn't mention what format that was, but if it was one of the lossless compressions there'd be absolutely no difference in the digital data as compared to the original CD.

That's what I love about you guys, can't get nothing past ya! Lol

Yeah ripping it in WMA format, lossless. I've noticed when I transfer it over to my MP3 player it automatically shrinks it to 160 kbps though. Anyhow right now it gets converted over to analog by the computer and then sent to the Denon. I've done direct comparisons playing the CD at the same time I'm playing it on the Windows Media Player and switching back and forth between them, and the nod most definately goes to the Sony DVD/CD player. But, if I can send it digitally over to the Denon I'm quite sure it has much better DAC's than my computer has, so then it would sound exactly the same.

Forget the "better DACs" bit, Micah. As Alan and others have pointed out, they've long ago reached a state of technological maturity where the small measurable differences which still exist aren't of audible significance.

Hmmm... Well I wonder what the difference is then? Could it be the single headphone jack out connection doesn't reproduce the signal quite as well or what? Because it isn't even a case of personal preference or anything remotely like that, there is a clear difference in the two signals, no two ways about it. The bass is tighter, hits harder, the surrounds (I play it in 5.1 channel) have more information sent to them, and its altogether a wider soundfield.

And it's not like I prefer the Sony, when I was ripping my collectiom to the computer I was hoping that playing them at 900 kbps would match the CD player in performance. But upon playback it just seemed to be lacking something? So like I said I played both songs at the same time & simply flipped between the two sources on the Denon (so that there was zero lag time between the audio signal, it was immediate back and forth) and there was no comparison, the computer could not match the quality of the Sony, unfortunately, because I was hoping it would.

Could there be another reason? I tried to find the contol pannel for the audio on the computer but didn't really find anything. I wonder if something is not right with it? That would be great if I could achieve the same sonic signal from the computer without having to buy a upgraded sound card!!!

Unclear, although the headphone output might be among other things lower in level. Now, I certainly use the digital output from the USB port of my computer when listening to music sources, but it has nothing to do with the quality of the computer DAC. A cleaner signal results when the output is digital rather than having been converted to analog and subjected to the noisy environment in a computer. The DAC chip in the Xitel HiFi Link which takes the USB output and converts it is a basic quality chip which I'm certain would cost less than a dollar each in manufacturer quantities.

Ah, you send your signal via the USB port eh? So how do you plug it into your receiver then? My Denon doesn't have any USB inputs around back, does your receiver?

No, his Xitel goes from USB to optical.