Last question for the Mc guys. DAC playback?

Im confused about two things with the usb input on the Mc gear

1 - it states that it can do 32/192 but I can't think of a source that can do this
(personally I don't think this matters but I am curious)

2 - when it says "plays back your digital files" what does that include file wise?
Is the "bottle neck" in the software you are using for playback or is it what the DAC itself can decode?

I did looked at the FAQ and saw nothing - I also read the brochure and the manual and could not get my answers.

Thanks.

What is your first question? Whether or not 32/192 exists?

File type is irrelevant (excluding DSD which is another story). The DAC doesn't know whether the file is an mp3, wav, FLAC or whatever. File decoding is performed on the PC or whatever playback device is being used.

Max77 said:

What is your first question? Whether or not 32/192 exists?

File type is irrelevant (excluding DSD which is another story). The DAC doesn't know whether the file is an mp3, wav, FLAC or whatever. File decoding is performed on the PC or whatever playback device is being used.

Click to expand...

Thanks, that really clears things up.

As far as the 1st question goes - to my knowledge I do not know of a product that exists that can hook up via USB and run 32/192. My Macbook Pro only puts out 24/192 via usb.

mgrenwic said:

Thanks, that really clears things up.

As far as the 1st question goes - to my knowledge I do not know of a product that exists that can hook up via USB and run 32/192. My Macbook Pro only puts out 24/192 via usb.

Click to expand...

You macbook will play 24/192 bit, but when you send the file out via usb you bypass the macbooks sound card. The McIntosh DAC will handle the 32/192 files as long as your player source can handle them.

mgrenwic said:

Thanks, that really clears things up.

As far as the 1st question goes - to my knowledge I do not know of a product that exists that can hook up via USB and run 32/192. My Macbook Pro only puts out 24/192 via usb.

Click to expand...

Yeah, until you hook it up to the McIntosh DAC then you can select it to run at 32bit/192khz....

Or you use another media player which doesn't use the core audio in the Macbook......

I'm late to this thread, but like to chime in. Not sure of which product, so I can't look into it further, but just because it says "32/192" doesn't mean it can handle those files. Sometimes it means it "upconverts" to 32/192.

For example, the MX-119 was advertised with a 24/192 DAC. However, it could not handle 24/192 files. It could only upsample internally to 24/192 for processing.

At least that's my understanding. Please correct me if I'm wrong.