New Touch. AE Toslink question

[Bonky]

Hi, those of you who have followed my other threads will know that I bought a Touch and was disappointed with it as it didn't seem to match the sonic delivery of the Apple Airport Express unit (which technically is inferior to the Touch)...

... Well I've got a new touch (and saved some money!) and it does seem a little better. Perhaps still a little muffled cf the AE, and I still wonder what I'm doing wrong. Is the internal DAC really up to decoding FLAC files 'on-the-fly'?.

However, I felt better when I stopped comparing the Touch with the AE and started a lengthier comparison with the CD player (Linn mimik + Caiman/Gato). Here the comparison was much more favourable and it was difficult to tell the difference between the two sources.

What's the 'best' music format to send to the Touch from my Mac (wirelessly)?

If anyone cannot afford a Touch, I can heartily recommend Apple's AE.

The AE sounds a little brighter and here's my question:

Would a Toslink cable from AE to Caiman show an improvement over my (good quality) analogue cable?
Does this Toslink cable by-pass the DAC in the AE?

Thanks,

Richard

[chrism]

Hi Richard,

How does internet radio sound through the Touch? I only ask as this takes the PC bit out of the equation. Look for 128 kbps stations like Qfm 94.3 which sound good to me.

Something is wrong if you prefer the AE over the touch with Flac.

Regards

Chris

[Reid Malenfant]

Would a Toslink cable from AE to Caiman show an improvement over my (good quality) analogue cable?
Does this Toslink cable by-pass the DAC in the AE?
I must admit i'm not familiar with the "AE" but the Caiman probably costs about the same as that whole device & it punches well above it's price point ;)

So to answer your question i'm pretty sure that a decent toslink fibre optic cable from the AE to the Caiman will definately give a better quality of sound than the DAC in the AE... The best toslink cables are glass fibre..

As for bypassing it, possibly not, just turn the volume down on the AE audio output (if possible) or disconnect the phono cables ;)

[TCats]

[QUOTE=Reid Malenfant;173635]I must admit i'm not familiar with the "AE" but the Caiman probably costs about the same as that whole device & it punches well above it's price point ;)

An AE costs £81, but from the Apple Refurbish store it is £55 which is the one I bought, to tide me over while my Slimdevices Transporter is undergoing repair.