Senior Member
Location: leicestershire
Posts: 694
I'm John.
MacBook
Hi, I'm not a digital expert but would like to play my MacBook through my hi-fi amp (iTunes etc) it's currently connected via CA740c (which supposely "upsamples") to my amp . It sounds ok, but would the Beresford make a marked difference? Any advice gladly received.
Cheers
John
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Technics 1210/Mike New Bearing/Jelco SA750d/Goldring 2500/Paul Hynes SR5 21/27.
Cambridge Audio 840c CD. Squeezebox Touch. Synology NAS.
Teac A-3440.
Beresford Bushmaster.
Quad II monoblocks....Quad 44/405.....Croft Micro.....Cambridge Audio 840.
Celestion Ditton 66.....KEF Reference One
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I'm WrappingALilacCurtainAroundMyBobby.
Never heard the 740c let alone on its digital inputs, so I can't really comment - but which Beresford are you thinking of - the new Bushmaster?
Alex
Main System: Digital: HP Laptop/M2Tech Hiface/Logitech Media Server/FLAC; Marantz SA7001 KI Signature SACD Player and other digital stuff into Gatorised Beresford Caiman DAC Vinyl: Garrard 401/SME 3009 SII Improved/Sumiko HS/Nagaoka MP-30
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Member
Location: Malvern Hills, UK
Posts: 60
I'm Mike.
Hi Jon - I also use a Macbook (Pro) as my most used front end. I can't comment on a comparison with the 740c, but I can definitely recommend using the Bushmaster. I use the optical output into the dac and it is excellent. I would recommend that you use an alternative to iTunes though. I use Audivarna Plus which integrates with the Tunes library and (IMO) is a significant improvement - it also fixes the iTunes digital volume to 100% so you need to control volume elsewhere.
Mike
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Senior Member
Location: Sheffield
Posts: 2,898
I'm Simon.
If you are using the optical out from the MAC then it's not the best connection to the 740c and a Hiface (usb to spdif converter) will give you a straight up improvement, and it will give you 192khz capability as well.
I used one between my Macbook and my 840c until i upgraded to a Weiss 202.
Kuzma Stabi/S 12", (LP12-bastard) DC motor and optical tacho psu, Benz LP, Paradise (phonostage). MB-Pro, Brooklyn dac and psu, Bruno Putzeys balanced pre, mod86p dual mono amps, Yamaha NS1000m
Senior Member
Location: leicestershire
Posts: 694
I'm John.
Thanks so far.
Alex, yes I'm looking at the Bushmaster.
Mike, thanks for advice on Audiovarna plus.
Simon, the Hiface USB to s/PDF looks a bit wide. The two USB ports on my MacBook are adjacent and I need one to feed in the external drive, which means I struggle fitting anything wider than a conventional USB into the second slot.....do you have this problem or a solution?
Cheers all
John
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Technics 1210/Mike New Bearing/Jelco SA750d/Goldring 2500/Paul Hynes SR5 21/27.
Cambridge Audio 840c CD. Squeezebox Touch. Synology NAS.
Teac A-3440.
Beresford Bushmaster.
Quad II monoblocks....Quad 44/405.....Croft Micro.....Cambridge Audio 840.
Celestion Ditton 66.....KEF Reference One
Trade: Beresford Media & Electronics
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Posts: 6,288
Is there no optical output on the Macbook?
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Administrator / Magnetic Tape Person
Location: Bristol, UK
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I'm Nick.
There is. The headphone output also acts as an Optical if you plug a mini Optical cable into it.
Trade: Beresford Media & Electronics
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If it has an optical socket already then a USB to SPDIF converter is not required.
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Senior Member
Location: Sheffield
Posts: 2,898
I'm Simon.
I'd suggest that it's the optical out that is the bottleneck, not the dac, and it is that which requires fixing. If you just want to buy a new dac then have at it. But why not try an asynchronous dac that is impervious to source issues?
Kuzma Stabi/S 12", (LP12-bastard) DC motor and optical tacho psu, Benz LP, Paradise (phonostage). MB-Pro, Brooklyn dac and psu, Bruno Putzeys balanced pre, mod86p dual mono amps, Yamaha NS1000m
Senior Member
Location: stoke-on-trent
Posts: 647
I'm andrew.
I used a modified hiface until recently, it was a step up from the optical out of a Macbook.
Andy.
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