AirPlay

[CLJ]

First post, so hello.

My set up is simple, 1 Phantom Silver and 1 MacBook. For the last 3 months I have been using optical output from my Mac to play my music from iTunes, mostly Apple Music. 

I have recently decided to give AirPlay a go - I dislike Spark, its clunky and doesn't support Apple Music. So I connected an Airport Express via optical and have set up the Phantom as my computers main output in the Sound Settings. 

My 2 questions are as follows;

-Do others experience blips in transmission (nothing major, but enough to annoy you after a while of listening)? If so, any solutions?
-Does it matter what volume I leave the phantom at in order to use the computers volume control? I once heard that it is better to have the output on full and adjust the speaker volume (a previous post also mentioned this) and I am not sure if this warrants attention.

Thanks,

[msg]

First post, so hello.

My set up is simple, 1 Phantom Silver and 1 MacBook. For the last 3 months I have been using optical output from my Mac to play my music from iTunes, mostly Apple Music. 

I have recently decided to give AirPlay a go - I dislike Spark, its clunky and doesn't support Apple Music. So I connected an Airport Express via optical and have set up the Phantom as my computers main output in the Sound Settings. 

My 2 questions are as follows;

-Do others experience blips in transmission (nothing major, but enough to annoy you after a while of listening)? If so, any solutions?
-Does it matter what volume I leave the phantom at in order to use the computers volume control? I once heard that it is better to have the output on full and adjust the speaker volume (a previous post also mentioned this) and I am not sure if this warrants attention.

Thanks,

I have an AirPort Express connected to a Dialog via optical for the very same reason you've done so. Although the set-up was somewhat unstable when I first got it in September 2015, since the latest software/firmware updates it's been rock solid. I have not experienced blips in transmission. Everything is smooth. I read somewhere that it's best to set the volume on your computer to the maximum and then use Spark to adjust the volume to the appropriate level on the Phantoms--something to do with the maximum number of bits being transmitted from the computer when the volume is maxed. I don't know whether that is true, and I'm skeptical most people (anyone?) could tell the difference in an A/B test.

[CLJ]

I have an AirPort Express connected to a Dialog via optical for the very same reason you've done so. Although the set-up was somewhat unstable when I first got it in September 2015, since the latest software/firmware updates it's been rock solid. I have not experienced blips in transmission. Everything is smooth. I read somewhere that it's best to set the volume on your computer to the maximum and then use Spark to adjust the volume to the appropriate level on the Phantoms--something to do with the maximum number of bits being transmitted from the computer when the volume is maxed. I don't know whether that is true, and I'm skeptical most people (anyone?) could tell the difference in an A/B test.

Is your AirPort connected to your wifi or do you use Ethernet?

I have mine running wifi which may be why it occasionally stutters. Perhaps not though.

Edit: I thought I'd add that I think its ludicrous that the Spark on iOS is not optimised to iPhone 6, just venting frustration

[msg]

I have an AirPort Express connected to a Dialog via optical for the very same reason you've done so. Although the set-up was somewhat unstable when I first got it in September 2015, since the latest software/firmware updates it's been rock solid. I have not experienced blips in transmission. Everything is smooth. I read somewhere that it's best to set the volume on your computer to the maximum and then use Spark to adjust the volume to the appropriate level on the Phantoms--something to do with the maximum number of bits being transmitted from the computer when the volume is maxed. I don't know whether that is true, and I'm skeptical most people (anyone?) could tell the difference in an A/B test.

Is your AirPort connected to your wifi or do you use Ethernet?

I have mine running wifi which may be why it occasionally stutters. Perhaps not though.

The AirPort Express is connected to my computer and all my iDevices via WiFi. The way I have my system set up is my router is connected to a PLC adapter in one room and my Dialog is connect to a PLC adapter in another room, where my two Phantoms are. The Dialog and Phantom power cords are all plugged into the same extension cord (not a power strip), so all the Devialet components are connected via PLC (as confirmed in Spark). Then, as previously noted, the AirPort Express is connected to the Dialog via optical and to my music sources (Mac and iDevices) via WiFi.

[CLJ]

That makes sense, I have just experimented with a new method;

I have ditched the airport express as the stuttering was problematic and downloaded a piece of software to allow my MacBook to act as an airplay receiver.

Now when using my MacBook the output is direct optical to Phantom but I can also use my iDevices and other Macs in the house to stream to the Phantom by airplay though my Macbook (which has a more consistent output than the AirPort for some reason).

[Silvertouran]

As regards to the volume issue you are correct although i can't remember why buy i have my laptop and iTunes both maxed out at full volume and i use the Devalet remote to control the volume. I do the same when i use my Fiio X5 portable DAP in the car , i use the line out (volume is max) and not the headphone out and volume is controlled by the player in the car.

[CLJ]

Just reviving this after I saw that the new Dialogue supports airplay.

I'm slightly confused as how the setup works; does the Dialogue need to be wired to anything or is it just plugged into the mains to bounce the airplay signal from my iPhone/MacBook to my Silver Phantom?

[ragwo]

Just reviving this after I saw that the new Dialogue supports airplay.

I'm slightly confused as how the setup works; does the Dialogue need to be wired to anything or is it just plugged into the mains to bounce the airplay signal from my iPhone/MacBook to my Silver Phantom?

I believe the Dialog has to be wired to your router.