Being a FIRM believer in the fact that MP3s sound like crap and are all that is wrong with music these days. I must say I am absolutly BLOWN AWAY by how good the 990 makes them sound. Just hooked up the USB cord to the laptop and WOW WOW WOW!!! If anyone out there has not done this yet DO IT!! Now this does not mean that I would use it for critical listning but it is very neat to play with. I am falling in love with this unit more every minute. Now if I could just solve my sub trim issue I would be happy as a tornado in a trailer park.

MP3s are all that is wrong with music these days? How wonderful.

I regularly use my system to play mp3's off my laptop or even my iPod Video. I'm still experimenting with using a PC to play CD files. I have most of my CD's copied to a pair of 250GB hard drives. The laptop holds the mp3's. Yes, everything is backed up. Ripping all those discs was a lot of work! I'm looking into the Logitech wireless music system as the simplest way to get the CD music files from my desktop in the upstairs office down to the 990 in the living room.

No doubt the Golden Eared listeners would criticize this setup, claiming only the original CD played on a high end CD player could possibly produce the purest music. Listening to anything else would be heresy.

While puttering around the house or when having company for the evening there's nothing like having a nice playlist going for several hours with no attention from me. Music is, after all, entertainment. A PC or an iPod can do a wonderful job of orchestrating that entertainment. And if someone has a special request that PC can find the song and get it playing quick as a wink. No fumbling around with CD's. Gotta love it!

What is your sub trim issue? Maybe gonk will find this thread.

I cannot tell you the last time I bought a cd that sounded good. The mastering on anything released today is made to sound good on an Ipod and thats about it. It is compressed to all hell and I think it sounds like crap. Mp3s and digital music have lowered peoples standards for what sounds good. Thats my opinion

Frankly, most of the music that's produced today isn't all that musical. Maybe I'm just an old fogey. When I listen to 50's and 60's music I hear people who can sing. When I listen to music created today I hear people who can whine and take advantage of studio trickery. It's mostly crap.

Try listening to classical music. It's been around for centuries for a reason. Spend some time with Tchaikovsky and Beethoven and Mozart. You certainly won't be subjected to compression.

It helps my blood pressure, too.

BobZ,

I use a Linksys Music Bridge to play my music stored on my PC on my 990-based HT. The MB also has the advantage of connecting to my 990 with a digital optical cable. My music is ripped to FLAC (Free Lossless Access Codec) format using dbPowerAMP which also has a nice player, library function, and file converter. Unlike the Apple Airport Express the Music Bridge routes all audio from the PC so I can use dbPowerAMP, iTunes, or MusicMatch if I choose.

While a CD still sounds the best (as good as a CD will sound), FLAC files played using dbPowerAMP via the MB sound pretty good. As you have noted, the ability to make up a playlist is also a significant benefit.

I think MP3's have their place, being extremely portable, I listen to my ipod in the car all the time, however I agree that it has lowered the standards of this generation as far as the way music is reproduced.
That is really one reason I am dissapointed about sacd and dvd-audio, or should I say, the lack of studio support. These mediums sound fantastic and if it wasn't for their paranoia and infighting it could have shown a generation how good music could sound when done right, instead it is a niche market. Oh well.

My Acura came equipped with dvd-audio. And that was 3 years ago! I listened to the demo disc in the car and thought...wow, that sounds really great.
And then life took over and I forgot all about it. Until today. Now that I have something (my new Oppo) that will play that demo disc on my home equipment I may be in for a real treat.

AvFan, you've given me some new ideas to look into. Thanks. So much to do...so little time...

Hmm...now I won't be able to sleep until I find that demo dvd-audio disc and give it a spin.

OhMyGawd!!!
It all comes back to me now. When I first played that demo disc in my '04 TL I was impressed. So I visited several music stores in search of DVD-Audio. Zip. Nada. Nuttin'. And so I forgot about it.

This morning I located the DVD in the garage and went through the demo and then started playing the music. My opening statement says it all.

Some coworkers are stopping over a bit later to check out the Oppo on my SXRD 60" Sony. When they hear this DVD-Audio disc they are not going to want to leave.

I have to forget everything else and go listen some more...and then find more of these discs...

A bit off topic but the Acura salesman used that DVD-A demo disk when I test drove a TL in '04; very cool! I'm still convinced that the TL has the best car audio. The audio, 270hp and other great features convinced me to buy the TL. The Eagles, Hotel California DVD-A sounds terrific while cruising at 80mph! That Acura demo disc will also sound great on your home system using the 990. Enjoy!