Hi from Mount Kisco, NY. My name is Mel Comberiati and I've been enjoying the discussions as a silent observer for a while. I've been using a PC server to stream music in my classes for many years (I am a Professor of Music History at a liberal arts college), but mostly for convenience rather than higher definition. As a composer, my first interest was in electronic music, but I have performed popular and classical music, as well. So, my interests in music are very broad. I teach courses in classical music history, world musics, and popular topics including the Beatles and the Blues.
I switched over to Apple computers at home for studio work about 15 years ago, and have been appreciating each generation of improvement. Since I have been teaching so long, I basically have collections in every format (even going back to a few eight-tracks!) from records (including 78s), to reel-to-reel tape and cassettes, to CDs and digital files. Lately, I've been listening to two formats more and more: vinyl, which has always been my preference and around which I have put together a good listening room, and HD files using a 2012 MacBook Pro as a server through a Musical Fidelity M1DAC with the Pure Music upgrade to iTunes for the files and for various streaming options. I will look to update the DAC soon, since it has a first generation USB and is limited in some ways. I'm leaning towards building a DAC from a kit.
I am learning from discussions and I really appreciate the civility of the discourse. I really like learning about technical differences and I happily spend hours comparing all the related items, from file players, to cartridges, to cables, to software and hardware. However, I love the music and I am happiest in extended listening sessions. I spent last Saturday comparing optical versus USB cables from the computer to the DAC and then performances of Bruckner's Eighth Symphony upsampled from Apple Music, from an HDTracks recording, and from a CD. That was followed by every online performance I could find of Aretha Franklin performing in Washington, DC for political events. Finally, I played through an early recording by Leo Kotke, that I found at a used record store. That's my idea of a great day!
