Do I need a better source?

[Lewis Sheppard]

Of music? Gonna get an RCA to 3.5mm jack but after what I've read on here that would be bad right? How else could I? Also, how should I play music from my laptop/iPad/iPod? Youtube is bad I'm guessing?

 

[j_garcia]

Would help if you mentioned what your current source is.

 

[Lewis Sheppard]

Would help if you mentioned what your current source is.

I don't have one. The 3.5mm jack to RCA is my "current" source or the one I am getting (waiting to be delivered)

 

[j_garcia]

A source is the device, not the method of transmission. CD, DVD, turntable, latptop, iCrud, etc... those are sources. Different sources have different methods of getting that audio to amplification.

 

[Lewis Sheppard]

A source is the device, not the method of transmission. CD, DVD, turntable, latptop, iCrud, etc... those are sources. Different sources have different methods of getting that audio to amplification.

AhSorry about that, newbie. So do I need a better method of transmission rather than the cable? My source would be a laptop or iPod playing 320/256kbps songs or songs from SoundCloud/Spotify.

 

[j_garcia]

So if 3.5mm is your only option, then that's what you'll have to do since it sounds like you are on a budget. Beyond that you can look at going to an external DAC then to your receiver/pre-pro down the road OR if the receiver you choose has a USB input or dock, that would be a better choice than 3.5mm to RCA. I use 3.5mm to RCA in my other setups and it works adequately, but not the best method usually. I think that will depend on the specific device and how much voltage its headphone jack puts out, so try it first and see how it sounds.

 

[ImcLoud]

with the 3.5mm X rca cables, I notice a buzz at low volumes...

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

your ps3 has optical out port and your yammi avr has optical in. that should be probably the way you'd want to connect it
same for your laptop with this adapter: Amazon.com : Turtle Beach Audio Advantage Micro II USB Analog & Digital Audio Adapter : Electronics Cable Connectors : Electronics

and couldn't care less for iCrud, but probably Airplay with iApple iAirport iExpress (get a used one on ebay) should work (toslink to avr)

 

[Lewis Sheppard]

your ps3 has optical out port and your yammi avr has optical in. that should be probably the way you'd want to connect it
same for your laptop with this adapter: Amazon.com : Turtle Beach Audio Advantage Micro II USB Analog & Digital Audio Adapter : Electronics Cable Connectors : Electronics

and couldn't care less for iCrud, but probably Airplay with iApple iAirport iExpress (get a used one on ebay) should work (toslink to avr)

Please elaborate Most of that made 0 sense

 

[Lewis Sheppard]

Does optical make a big difference compared to RCA? If so I'll get an optical to 3.5mm and an optical lead for my PS4/360 to play CD's.

Do CD's at 320kbps play better than songs played from a phone at 320kbps? Sorry if this is a stupid question?

 

[j_garcia]

Can you post all of your gear in one place (like in this thread or the bedroom thread) please, so we don't have to figure out what you have each time?

PS4 should be connected via HDMI. If not, then optical will definitely be better than RCA.

320KBPS is 320KBPS; what matters is the track quality as opposed to the bitrate. With the same quality track, CDs will sound better than 320KBPS on a good system IMO, because CDs are lossless PCM.

 

[Lewis Sheppard]

Amp: Yamaha DSP-A595A | Owners/Service Manuals, Schematics, Free Download, Reviews | HiFi Engine
Speakers: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Jamo-Studio-170-Loudspeakers/dp/B0000YW8DS
Speakers I'm Buying: Cambridge Audio S30 Oak | Speakers Per Pair | Richer Sounds
Source: iPad(16GB), iPod(8GB), iPhone(16GB), Laptop(500GB), External Hard Drive(500GB), PS4(500GB), Xbox 360(250GB) - SoundCloud, Youtube, iTunes, Spotify, CD's
Method of Transmission: RCA to 3.5MM Jack
Method of Transmission I Wish to Buy: Optical to 3.5MM Jack, Optical to Optical(PS4/Xbox 360)

Hope this is what you wanted.

 

[j_garcia]

Yes, that helps for sure. That receiver has no digital inputs, so stick with RCA and 3.5mm to RCA for now and/or budget for an external DAC that can feed analog (RCA) to the receiver. A DAC should make things easier for the digital sources like the laptop, iphone, ipad, possibly the HDD, but won't help with the PS4 or 360.

 

[slipperybidness]

Yes, that helps for sure. That receiver has no digital inputs, so stick with RCA and 3.5mm to RCA for now and/or budget for an external DAC that can feed analog (RCA) to the receiver. A DAC should make things easier for the digital sources like the laptop, iphone, ipad, possibly the HDD, but won't help with the PS4 or 360.

The link he posted indeed indicates that the receiver has digi inputs?????

Edit: I just looked at a pic of the back panel in the manual, it shows both optical and coax inputs. Not sure how you missed that....I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that the model number starts with "DSP" and that means "Digital Signal Processor"

 

[j_garcia]

The link he posted indeed indicates that the receiver has digi inputs?????

Was hard to see in the first pic I found, but on this one it does show them. I saw the multichannel inputs and figured it didn't when they weren't obvious.

So, for the PS4 and 360, use optical.

 

[Lewis Sheppard]

Yeah the reciever/amp has digital, both optical and coax inputs. What now? Optical to 3.5mm and keep it the same as I was planning/to do with the laptop or still buy the DAC? Will the DAC make much difference with the sound compared to optical? Also, how could I improve the sound source (YouTube/SoundCloud/Spotify)?

 

[j_garcia]

PS4 via optical -> receiver
360 -> their adapater to optical I believe -> receiver
3.5mm to RCA for the rest

DAC would be substituted for the 3.5mm and a decent one will improve audio from those devices IMO. The problem is, a decent one isn't that cheap.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Audioengine-D1-Premium-24-bit-DAC/dp/B0079KWSF4/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1393453963&sr=8-12&keywords=dac

I use this one for the laptop and it works, but not best quality audio and is better via optical than analog:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Behringer-UCA202-U-Control-low-latency-Interface/dp/B000KW2YEI/ref=sr_1_32?ie=UTF8&qid=1393454022&sr=8-32&keywords=dac

 

[Lewis Sheppard]

PS4 via optical -> receiver
360 -> their adapater to optical I believe -> receiver
3.5mm to RCA for the rest

DAC would be substituted for the 3.5mm and a decent one will improve audio from those devices IMO. The problem is, a decent one isn't that cheap.

Audioengine D1 Premium 24-bit DAC: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics

I use this one for the laptop and it works, but not best quality audio and is better via optical than analog:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Behringer-UCA202-U-Control-low-latency-Interface/dp/B000KW2YEI/ref=sr_1_32?ie=UTF8&qid=1393454022&sr=8-32&keywords=dac

How come 3.5mm to RCA instead of 3.5mm to Optical for the rest? Thanks a lot by the way, helps alot! I think I'm going to lay off the DAC's for now as I don't think it's a necessity for me.

How can I improve the sound that is coming from my phone/laptop. What is Jriver?

 

[markw]

Optical allows for a digital signal to be passed. If it's an option, it's the preferred way to go simply because it's better.

You're going via RCA because you only have an analog signal to work with. It's not as good as optical but that's the only option you have.

 

[Lewis Sheppard]

Optical allows for a digital signal to be passed. If it's an option, it's the preferred way to go simply because it's better.

You're going via RCA because you only have an analog signal to work with. It's not as good as optical but that's the only option you have.

I have both optical and coaxial digital outputs in my amp if that's what you mean?