I'm looking to play my cd collection through iTunes from a firewire disk connected to a g4. I'm encoding using the Apple Lossless Codec. My question is what is the best way to get Hi Fi quality through my Linn system.
The line out direct to the amp gives me a muddy sound compared to the original. As the encode is lossless I can only assume then that it has something to do with the D/A conversion in the mac. Do I need a seperate D/A convertor, if so, can it be USB, firwire or should I be looking at a G5 for the optical out option? Or can I run it through a home cinema A/V receiver?
Apologies if it's a newbie question.

yes... the G5 would be ideal since it has optical output but would still need a converter of some type unless your amplified source has inputs for it.

maybe just consider getting an audio interface of some type with audio outputs. If ouput is all you need... you can go with less featured interfaces either USB or firewire and almost all should produce a better sound than line out... it should be more dynamic in highs and lows for instance. Cables make a difference too... although very small difference... they can change your sound so cheap cables could be another culprit.

I have a Powerbook G4 1.25Ghz and found that the internal D/A is only a 16 bit, 44.1khz unit. Echo Audio makes the Echo I/O PCMCIA card that features a 24bit/96khz A/D and D/A. A close friend of mine who works in the pro audio field ran some tests on the card ans said that it is VERY clean and a great product with exceptional sonics, perfect for importing and playing hi-res audio. The only caveat is that iTunes does/may not support 24/96, so you may have to use a third party Audio editor application. I have Spark ME which was a limited time FREE application however, there are many ass good or better apps for in the $100-200 range.

soundegr7

Of course, all CDs are recorded at 16bit, 44.1K, so having a higher resolution sound I/O at 24bit and 96k would theoretically do absolutely nothing to the audio from your CDs.