Mac mini or Synology (or something else)??

[frejo]

So you have a bunch of options.

A thousand CDs is going to be about 700-750GB if you store them uncompressed (i.e. AIFF).

You could add a second hard drive to the Mac Mini to store the music files if you got a Mac Mini.

Currently the Samsung EVO 850 1TB SSD is on sale at places like Amazon for $249.

If you can connect both your Mac Mini and Devialet to ethernet, that should resolve issues with AIR3 that you are experiencing with WiFi.

BTW - I don't think connecting a Synology NAS via USB is an optimal path in your situation. You only really need the NAS if you anticipate a very high volume of music files and/or intend to use it for other purposes as well. IMHO.

Have fun! You have lots of options. Oh, and don't forget to backup all the music files after you rip them.

I was thinking FLAC, is AIFF a better sounding format?

I also took a brief look at my cd collection and not all of them are going to be ripped. Quite a lot of not-so-good music there so no no need right now for a second hdd... I am not going to be able to connect a Mac mini and the Devialet to Ethernet, I'll have to chose one of them.

Can a Mac mini be controlled by an ipad?