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While I would not consider myself an audiophile, I do appreciate great sound. Recently, I began to upgrade the sound in my theater. When I did not like the sound of the Denon 3803 as compared to my old Sony 5.1 unit, I started looking for alternative solutions to preamplification.
I don't own a standalone DVD or CD player. I use my HTPC exclusively for two channel audio and DVD playback. Convenience / WAF is not a problem as my theater functions are automated by the HTPC. I have a separate 5 channel amp (ATI 1505) connected to my ~2 year old Sony reciever (decoding / preprocessing only) and a full set of Diva's (6.1, C3, 2.1, dipoles). Here are a few questions I have about using an HTPC and soundcard as a pre-amp:
- Are people who have comparable equipment using a PC in lieu of a receiver or pre-amp?
- I read something about "thumps" or "pops" when the PC was rebooted. Do workarounds exist to deal with this and, if so, how difficult and/or costly are they?
- Regarding sound quality, can I expect to get near / quasi "audiophile" quality results from a properly equipped HTPC using the equipment above?
Thanks for any information you can provide!
Jeff
I don't own a standalone DVD or CD player. I use my HTPC exclusively for two channel audio and DVD playback. Convenience / WAF is not a problem as my theater functions are automated by the HTPC. I have a separate 5 channel amp (ATI 1505) connected to my ~2 year old Sony reciever (decoding / preprocessing only) and a full set of Diva's (6.1, C3, 2.1, dipoles). Here are a few questions I have about using an HTPC and soundcard as a pre-amp:
- Are people who have comparable equipment using a PC in lieu of a receiver or pre-amp?
- I read something about "thumps" or "pops" when the PC was rebooted. Do workarounds exist to deal with this and, if so, how difficult and/or costly are they?
- Regarding sound quality, can I expect to get near / quasi "audiophile" quality results from a properly equipped HTPC using the equipment above?
Thanks for any information you can provide!
Jeff