[writeface]

Hello all,

My set-up is as below:
For Pure HT
Panasonic 42" plasma
PS/3
Dish DVR
Marantz SR8002 AVR

For 2ch Music
PS Audio Perfectwave DAC/Transport
Wyred 4 Sound STP Preamp
Wyred 4 Sound SX-500 Amps
Squeezebox

I use the HT Bypass mechanism so my speakers (SALK HT3) perform double duty for movies/music.

I'd like to replace PS/3 with OPPO soon for the movies, however, I have put some music on PS/3 and my family
loves to keep that playing in the background.

I would like to integrate a Mac Mini to this setup and get rid of PS/3 altogether. The Mac Mini will serve as music player for my family only. What do I need, in terms of components, set-up etc to integrate a Mac Mini with my set-up? Can the Mini be connected to my AVR's HDMI input?

I know PS Audio is going to come out with a NAS based solution but I am not sure if that will be easy to use by my family. My family is used to Itunes and I can teach them using the Remote app on iPhone.


Thanks for your time.

[srb]

As far as I know, the Mac Mini's Mini DisplayPort only outputs video, not audio, so even with a Mini DisplayPort to HDMI adapter, there would be no audio available.  The two methods you could use are:
 
1.  Connect the optical digital output from the Mac Mini's audio out jack (combination analog headphone/digital Mini-Toslink optical jack) to an optical input on the AVR (or the PS Audio DAC) with a Mini-Toslink to Toslink optical cable, or a Toslink cable with a Mini-Toslink to Toslink adapter at the Mac Mini end.
 
2.  Use an Apple Airport Express to wirelessly stream iTunes audio from the Mac Mini.  The Airport Express also has the combo headphone/Mini-Toslink audio output jack.  Then the Mac Mini wouldn't need to be next to or in the same room as the audio system.  The Airport Express method is limited to 48KHz/16-bit audio files.
 
Steve

[K Shep]

You may locate your Mac Mini in a different room or different area than your system and use an Apple Airport Express plugged in to your receiver.  Streaming music from your Mini using an iTouch device as the remote.

Edit: Steve bet my post by 2 minutes, two minds think alike.