cd player or computer with dac


i have put together a system which consists of the dartzeel cht8550 integrated,ascendo system f speakers with the arcam cd17 but i know the cd player is the weak link i shall be grateful if some one could help me decide the source and cables for the same and does a source really make the difference
jasbirnandra
After a good night’s sleep and breakfast, I’m unhappy with the harsh tone of my last post. And in the first place, I am not technically competent enough to be the one to make that point. I apologize if I offended anyone.
Phaelon: Your point in the previous post was well taken. I took offense to Steve's insinuation.

All I was trying to say is if the DAC is designed properly, the things mentioned by Steve are of no importance.

I certainly never intended for this to get personal in any way and felt respectfully disagreeing with someone is fair.
jtinn whats your take on power cables in the price bracket of 700 to 1000 dollars i would appreciate your opinion if you have any recommendation as i see you also use the same amp and mps5 and what the waiting period for playback mps3
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Just an FYI for anybody new to the forums.....

Audioengr and Jtinn both are selling something. I've never dealt with either but it is incomprehensible that someone who is selling a product in this category wouldn't have a biased opinion that favors what they sell.

Both are probably swell fellows but take what they say with a grain of salt.

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There is a DAC manufacturer that is very well known that states that their DAC will acheive the following:

"By connecting a PC or a Mac to the USB2.0 port you will be able to play audio files in high resolution beyond the limits imposed by the previous technology on USB ports. Appropriate drivers have been developed for different operating systems, thus ensuring a proper timing and a no-compromise reproduction quality.

But all this would not be enough to get an audiophile reproduction. One of the big challenges in the reproduction of streaming music is the (negative) influence of the computer on the quality of reproduction. Many audiophiles have the experience that for playing music from a PC or Mac via a dedicated sound cards, also of great quality, one often faces limitations related to noise generated by power supplies and not to mention the noisy fans needed to cool down the computer, which are limiting the pleasure of listening. Forget about all that. Today you can get the most from these sources by designing the converter to make it independent of the computer used for playback.

Two are the devices used: data resynchronization and magnetic separation of the ground. The first solution allows different methods to release from the transmission on USB, using on-board reference oscillator with low jitter of the DAC is capable of re-clocking of incoming data from the computer with absolute precision. The second solution allows to completely decouple the ground of the computer from that of the DAC, allowing the transmission of signals at high speed but without the noise generated by the computer. We can say that, whatever the computer, the playback quality will always be at the highest levels.

Whether it's music from a PC, MAC or traditional source such as a CD player, DAT, satellite receiver 's USB dac32 represent the heart of your system, capable of dialoguing with each type of source always at the highest levels."

I think this is the philosphy that Jtinn is talking about.

I have brought this exact same opinion up on another thread several days ago.

We will see I guess.