[tripanazomi_1]

Hello to All ,

Ok. Instead of changing the headunit, I have been thinking to place a HDD Media Player , then connect the player to Audison processor "Bitone" with optical cable and run stereo signals through the cable.

After all processor will deliver signals to analog amps which will run a 4 way active setup.
I will run wav or flac format files which will be ripped from my Audio CD collection.

The question:
How will be the signal quality which will run through the toslink cables. Can we talk abt any quality loss of signal as it will be delivered digitally to bitone. ( I will replace the fan of the HDD player with a heat sink to keep it in silence )

I am in between buying a real headunit ( i.e Clarion DRZ 9255 or P9 combo) and buying the bitone + HDD player + HDD

Note : Currently I have a 2 way + sub active setup connected to OEM unit with UCS Pro.

FYI:
The setup will have following other components:

Front Speakers: Audison TH 3 way active
Rear: Nothing
Sub: sealed box in the trunk 10" ( unfortunately there is no space for subw at the front) brand N/A at the moment.
Amps : 3 X DLS A3 to drive fronts and 1 X DLS A6 to drive the subw

Thank you

 

[jdhun]

ditch the HU and go with the HDD player and BitOne...

I did and will never look back

One major advantage is the ability to play almost any file format (especially FLAC) which head units cannot.

 

[duro78]

Correct me if I'm wrong but using an hdd player it can only be controlled by remote and how would one navigate to the songs they want.

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[duro78]

There are a handful of HU that are flac capable

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[rain27]

What hdd player will you use??

 

[Onyx1136]

I don't know how soon u are wanting to make a purchase, but at CES Elettromedia showed their own HDD/media server piece. Has all the ins & outs you would need, plays FLAC files, & is designed specifically to work with the Bit.One. Sounds like the exact piece you're looking for. As for when it will be available, no way to know. Elettromedia is notorious for missing the initial release date for their products. Take whatever date they say, & add 10-18 months for a realistic timeframe.

 

[tripanazomi_1]

Thanks for the replies, I just found the time to write,
I would love to see what audison will announce. ( seems like a similar but more car solution then what I am considering) I do have aprox 1 year infront of me to start installation.

Think to use the Ezcool media player which plays all the formats I needed including FLAC. Has wifi to connect to my notebook incase of need and also has internet radio. 2 USB inputs and work with any 2.5 inch HDD. ( HDMI,Coax,optical, RCA outs are possible)
The best thing about this unit is it has a 4 line simple LCD showing where you are(folder) and the file name being played so it doesnt actually need an LCD to work; its only 99 USD posted to my door.Have friends which changed the fan to heatsink and happy with the result when they watch 1080p films.

My question was: How will be the quality of the sound if you compare with P9 combo for example? As long as the FLAC file played digitally and DAC will be made at the bitone, therotically the differance is at the processor only if you compare with P9 combo for example , am I right ?

I am thinking to use my OEM head unit to bitone for radio use and hook the media player through optical out to bitone for FLAC use from my 2.5" HDD.

 

[t3sn4f2]

Jitter would be the only thing to look into. The link below will help you inderstand it more. The hidden comments at the end of the page are just as informative.

NwAvGuy: Jitter Does it Matter?

And this thread from post #29 on. Yes theres a lot to read and fish through, but A LOT of important stuff in there that you will likely not find anywhere else on the net.

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/diyma-sq-forum-technical-advanced/78017-car-audio-mag-review-pioneer-dex-p99rs-standard-sound-quality-3.html

My final conclusion, unless the HDD player you want is an incompetently designed POS, jitter won't matter (and even it is is it still won't). So you could not improve that signal interface with any equipment change/upgrade.

Edit: Some more reads....

http://www.aes.org/e-lib/browse.cfm?elib=8354

http://www.aes.org/e-lib/browse.cfm?elib=9976

 

[t3sn4f2]

Oh, and Toslink and Coax is the same quality.

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/car-audio-truth-myths-industry-dogma/108838-digital-coax-sounds-better-then-toslink.html

And you might need an Audison "SFC", if you have noise issues with the player/bitone digital input combination you use.