Gapless playback with a Linux DLNA server, was: "software to create cue files" Options

[Richard Kimber]

Virtually all the music I buy now comes in the form of downloaded flac files. These have no cue sheets with them.

Some of the music needs to be played gaplessly, and I'm under the impression that flac files + cue sheets is a solution to this. If this is so, can anyone recommend a linux program that would enable me to generate cue sheets from the flac files on my hard disk? I have seen software that creates cue files from music on a CD, but I can't find anything that does it from a folder of flac files on the hard disk.

[Wombat]

I only repeated what i read on that review that claims the chipset used in the Pioneer is produced by Apple-Partner Bridgeco and this can´t play gapless. They may speak about DLNA usage can´t be gapless.
Maybe some iTunes interaction with the Airplay feature may be able to play perfectly gapless.

[Nessuno]

I only repeated what i read on that review that claims the chipset used in the Pioneer is produced by Apple-Partner Bridgeco and this can´t play gapless. They may speak about DLNA usage can´t be gapless.
Maybe some iTunes interaction with the Airplay feature may be able to play perfectly gapless.

I may be wrong, but from the little I know about it, Airplay has nothing to do with DLNA: is not a file server system, simply a streaming protocol and as such has not the concept itself of "songs" and gap between them.

I'm not blaming it on you, of course, but today on the internet everybody and his dog has become a reviewer...

This post has been edited by Nessuno: Apr 12 2012, 08:01

[Richard Kimber]

I may be wrong, but from the little I know about it, Airplay has nothing to do with DLNA: is not a file server system, simply a streaming protocol and as such has not the concept itself of "songs" and gap between them.

Yes, the Airplay functions and normal DLNA music server functions seem to be quite separate on the device itself.

[Nessuno]

Yes, the Airplay functions and normal DLNA music server functions seem to be quite separate on the device itself.

By the way: just made a fast Google search and it seems that there is some AirPlay support on Linux via pulseaudio modules. If it works (can't try myself now as I haven't a Linux box at hand here at home), then you can use one of the many Linux gapless FLAC players and stream his output to the receiver.

[Richard Kimber]

By the way: just made a fast Google search and it seems that there is some AirPlay support on Linux via pulseaudio modules. If it works (can't try myself now as I haven't a Linux box at hand here at home), then you can use one of the many Linux gapless FLAC players and stream his output to the receiver.

Thanks. I don't know anything about Airplay. Does it handle 24bit 192kHz files?

Edit: Actually, I think I found the answer. As I now understand it Airplay is 16 bit and anything else is converted to 16 bit. That's no good to me unfortunately, since I want to deliver high res files to my DAC unsullied by the PC.

This post has been edited by Richard Kimber: Apr 13 2012, 15:28

[Nessuno]

Edit: Actually, I think I found the answer. As I now understand it Airplay is 16 bit and anything else is converted to 16 bit.

Where have you got this information? Don't mistake protocol specifications with capability of single devices that implement it.
And even if, the tradeoff is between gapless and something you very very very very probably cannot hear!

Anyway, best that you can do is to have a try and verify if you hear any difference (and if you feel like reporting back us, please follow the rules greynol pointed you to )

[Richard Kimber]

Edit: Actually, I think I found the answer. As I now understand it Airplay is 16 bit and anything else is converted to 16 bit.

Where have you got this information? Don't mistake protocol specifications with capability of single devices that implement it.
And even if, the tradeoff is between gapless and something you very very very very probably cannot hear!

Anyway, best that you can do is to have a try and verify if you hear any difference (and if you feel like reporting back us, please follow the rules greynol pointed you to )

My source may well not be reliable but FWIW it was a posting here:-
http://www.computeraudiophile.com/content/...s-it-make-sense
I suppose some devices may well exceed the specification. The N-50 manual doesn't give any guidance about its performance in this respect. But I do have a way of testing it, so I could do that in due course.

[Nessuno]

As I now understand it Airplay is 16 bit and anything else is converted to 16 bit.

Where have you got this information? Don't mistake protocol specifications with capability of single devices that implement it.

My source may well not be reliable but FWIW it was a posting here:-
http://www.computeraudiophile.com/content/...s-it-make-sense

The only reference to bitdepth and sampling frequency I see there is to the analog output of Airport Express. That, you understand, is different than speaking about AirPlay as a protocol.

The truth is that, AFAIK, as every Apple technology, AirPlay is largely undocumented, so the only reliable result is the one you obtain when you try with your device (and of course it is valid only for that device).