[abongiov]

Hi,

I am very new here. After contacting Jim, he put me in contact with Jared who let me audition his songtower. Of course I have then decided to order those with the ribbon tweeter, although I have listen to the normal version.
Now you all now that the waiting period for the Salks let's you think of improving your setup. I have the Creek Evolution 2 integrated amp and the Creek Evolution 2 CD player. I am very pleased with that system.
Jared has a squeezebox linked to an AVA dac and I was very impress by the sound and by the ease of use/comfort. The later makes me wonder if it is time to put the CD in storage. Unfortunately I would need 2 inputs and the AVA dac with multiple inputs is too expensive for me. I have my eyes on a used PS Audio DAC III for 400$. Seems like a good deal but I haven't read any comparison with the Ava. I don't like to go to a dealer to listen to it and then buy it on-line. It feels like cheating.
Does anybody now how those two compare or if the combo squeezebox-PS Audio is good ?
Or will I miss my Creek CD player ?

Thanks guys.

[jsalk]

My advice would be to make no changes until you have had a chance to play the speakers with your current equipment.  I say this for two reasons...

First, you will be able to determine exactly what increase in quality is related to the speakers alone.  If you change a number of things at once, you will have no idea which of the changes is responsible for change in sound quality.  If you change one thing at a time, you will know exactly what impact it had.

Second, while you can always improve upon things, you may find you are perfectly satisfied with what you have.  In that case, there is no need to spend additional funds.  You might be surprised at how good your system sounds with a simple change of speakers.

And one additional thought...sometimes it is better to wait a while so that you can get exactly what you want.  Purchasing a "stop-gap" piece in the mean time can sometimes turn into an expensive proposition (unless you got a really good deal).

That my 2 cents worth - YMMV

- Jim

[TJHUB]

Congrats on your SongTower purchase.  I'm certain you will be very happy with them.

I used to run a Squeezebox Duet into a PS Audio DLIII DAC and loved the sound.  I now run a Squeezebox Touch into an Eastern Electric Minimax DAC Plus.  While the sound may be "better" in some regards, it's not a major difference in any regard.  In other words, I think you are wise to look into the PS Audio DAC if you are not concerned with hi-rez.  It's a great DAC all around.  I doubt there would be significant sonic differences between the AVA DAC and the PS Audio.  Both DAC's can sound wonderful, and I think you'd be very happy with either. 

I assume you too will be looking into a Touch?  In my opinion, nothing is better than streaming computer based music.  I haven't spun CD's for almost 10 years now.  It's just too much work.  Regardless, the Touch streaming FLAC files is a fantastic sounding source. 

Unfortunately, there is no way to really know if you are going to miss your CD player.  I'm sure you won't miss swapping CD's, but as far as sound goes, only you can make that determination. 

[Nuance]

I would also wait until the speakers arrive.  Then, if you still have the itch/desire, replace one component at a time and live with it for a little while; this will give you a good grasp on what improved (or didn't). 

With that said, I agree with TJHUB: once your room, speakers and other components are in prime form, the differences between DAC's is minimal.  The PS Audio Digital Link III is a great DAC, but I bet you can find another one used for a similar price down the road.  Wait it out buddy, as you may determine nothing else is necessary.

P.S.  I would buy room treatments before anything else if you haven't already.  Get the speakers and room in order first!  There, now you have something to do while you wait.

[eclein]

Wait is my vote also....the speakers take awhile to build and deliver then break-in. It may very well be that by the time you get a stable sound that can be counted on day in day out. The market for DAC's will be entirely different, a whole new bunch to choose from. If you buy one now you may actually be buying an outdated model in essence. Follow me??

[Paul K.]

I'm sure you won't miss swapping CD's, but as far as sound goes, only you can make that determination.

This it not meant to be criticism but I do find it somewhat humorous.  I can remember in my vinyl days of having to get up and either change the LP or flip it over about every 20 minutes or so.  With CDs, I can listen for up to 70 minutes or more without getting up and, really, is that a big minus?  I guess if you want to frequently change musical genre or artists with mostly selections that are 3-5 minutes each, ending up with a big variety of music that one plays for hours on end, not having to change CDs would be useful, but since I seldom listen for more than an hour at a time, and almost only to symphonic music, I'm perfectly happy with a CD player.  To each his own, of course.
Paul

[TJHUB]

While I agree with most everyone's posts, I'm reading the OP's post a little differently.  I see a question about changing to a more convenient source setup with a DAC than the CD player.  There is no need to wait to do something like that.  I say do it!  Get it all setup and ready for your new speakers.  Then tweak the rest from there.



 

[TJHUB]

This it not meant to be criticism but I do find it somewhat humorous.  I can remember in my vinyl days of having to get up and either change the LP or flip it over about every 20 minutes or so.  With CDs, I can listen for up to 70 minutes or more without getting up and, really, is that a big minus?  I guess if you want to frequently change musical genre or artists with mostly selections that are 3-5 minutes each, ending up with a big variety of music that one plays for hours on end, not having to change CDs would be useful, but since I seldom listen for more than an hour at a time, and almost only to symphonic music, I'm perfectly happy with a CD player.  To each his own, of course.
Paul

You can criticize me Paul, I don't mind.   While I do own many CD's I could listen to all the way through, I don't have enough of them to be happy listening that way.  I do tend to bounce around quite a bit with my music selections while listening.  I love that any track is literally seconds away from playing.  I also love playlists, and not having CD's stored in my room.  For me, spinning CD's is about as archaic as living in caves, and vinyl is 100 times worse.   I would never chastise someone for spinning round things, but I'm certainly not going to do it. 

[K Shep]

If you're able to keep your CD player, IMO, do so.  I still have my CDP and don't plan on selling it, mean while I play music files thru my computer system to a DAC.  My computer was on the fritz a month ago and I used my CD player to listen.

I agree with TJ while you're waiting for you ST's research and listen to other gear and if you find the right priced piece buy it.  I ordered a pair of Song Towers a while ago and the wait was brutal!  So I mixed up a few pieces in my system during the build, made the wait less difficult.

My .02

[charmerci]

 I ordered a pair of Song Towers a while ago and the wait was brutal!  So I mixed up a few pieces in my system during the build, made the wait less difficult.

Next time, go on vacation just after ordering! 

[adydula]

I agree with Jim, wait and see how things work out with the speakers and your existing cd player.

I kept out of the computer audio stuff for years....and I consider myself a computer EXPERT big time...

As my cd collection has grown and wanting to listen to a song on one CD and then hop to another on a different cd i found it a real pain to actually find the other cd etc.....so having things digitized to FLACS makes it really nice to do this.....

I dont want to take this thread down other paths....but I dont think your going to be a bit disappointed in your cd player and these speakers in your present setup. You will be smiling alot!

The actual source material will play a big part in your listening experience.

If it gets to a point like for a lot of us, having the ability to play any song or track almost immediately then its time to start thinking about the 'other' stuff...

Enjoy!!

All the Best!
Alex
 

[abongiov]

Thank you all for your answers,

I think TJHUB is the only one who understood my idea. Maybe my english si not good enough (I'm from Belgium). I am really happy with both my CDP and Amp, and I know that the ST will improve my system alot. It is the comfort of browsing through my music collection with a fingertip (and my lazyness) that made me wonder about the squeezebox-DAC combo. I am not specially looking for better sound but I certainly don't want worse.

But in the end, I'll probably wait, enjoy my ST once they arrive and a few months later look again for a DAC. I have been living with my actual speakers (Entry level B&W) for 15 years, I don't know why a few weeks seem so long.
The room treatment is a great idea for sure but I don't have a dedicated room, just plain family room with hardwood floor and huge windows. Any improvement has to have a huge and I mean HUGE WAF/SAF. Each inch from the backwall is greatly negociated already.

Again thanks guys.

[jsalk]

Some of the comments above brought back memories (I'm dating myself now).  When TV's first came out with remote controls, I recall hearing comments like, "What, you too lazy to get up and change the channel?"  Remotes changed the way we watched television.  We could jump to another channel each time a commercial came on the air. I doubt you could sell a TV today without a remote.

Jump ahead to DVR's.  Now we can just skip the commercials.  I find that I can no longer stand watching live TV.

CD's were an improvement over vinyl in that, as Paul notes above, you can listen to an hour of music without moving.  But having music on a server opens up a world of additional possibilities.  I find I prefer listening to one song from one CD, then a song from another and then another.  Add the power of playlists created for different moods, played in order or in a random fashion, and it compounds the value.

In short, technological advances usually have a more dramatic impact on the way we interact with media than first might be apparent. 

I think I can say this for certain:  Putting your music on a server will dramatically change your listening habits.  And once you make the move, there is no going back.

- Jim

[TJHUB]

Thank you all for your answers,

I think TJHUB is the only one who understood my idea. Maybe my english si not good enough (I'm from Belgium). I am really happy with both my CDP and Amp, and I know that the ST will improve my system alot. It is the comfort of browsing through my music collection with a fingertip (and my lazyness) that made me wonder about the squeezebox-DAC combo. I am not specially looking for better sound but I certainly don't want worse.

But in the end, I'll probably wait, enjoy my ST once they arrive and a few months later look again for a DAC. I have been living with my actual speakers (Entry level B&W) for 15 years, I don't know why a few weeks seem so long.
The room treatment is a great idea for sure but I don't have a dedicated room, just plain family room with hardwood floor and huge windows. Any improvement has to have a huge and I mean HUGE WAF/SAF. Each inch from the backwall is greatly negociated already.

Again thanks guys.

I was a B&W fan owning several models over a 15 year period.  My last pair were 805S's that I clearly felt were the best sounding.  This is when I met Nuance who posted earlier in this thread.  I brought my B&W's to his place to compare side by side to his SongTower RT's.  I left his place a couple hours later feeling like I couldn't get rid of my B&W's fast enough.  The SongTowers were just better in every way possible.  I've been a very happy Salk owner for more than 2 years now.  You are going to love yours when you get them.

Too bad you are going to wait on the Squeezebox.  I don't think you would have regretted the decision at all.  And just to be very clear, Nuance was at my place a couple of months ago with his PS Audio DLIII DAC.  We briefly compared his DAC to my EE Plus DAC (a highly praised DAC here on AC) and the differences were very subtle at best.  I think that says a lot for how good the PS Audio DAC is.  If you can grab on for around $400 and you don't care about hi-rez, you'd be making a great choice.

 

[rick_reynolds40]

I also use the Squeezebox Touch - PS Audio DL III combination and I can vouch for them being great together.  I also agree with Jim, once you get a server and can use playlists it is very hard to go back to cd's.  I still play alot of Vinyl as well...I guess of I am going to mess with changing music I use a record...for digital it is squeezebox all the way.

[rockadanny]

Welcome to AC abongiov! (I am up in Canton by the way.)
You mentioned speaker positioning, room treatments, and WAF. Just wanted to share a few ideas which helped me get past those issues since my listening room is our Living Room:
I set up my bass traps and speakers for optimal sound. Then lightly marked the floor where my speakers sound best. Then stored my bass traps in a closet and pushed my speakers near the back wall. For casual listening (walking around, cooking, in another room) this sounds fine. When it is time for sitting in the sweet spot for serious listening I set up my bass traps, pull my speakers out, and cover the TV with a down throw. Easy! Takes only a few minutes to set up/tear down.