Most recent activity
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Spot on. Perfect size for your wrist. Congratulations!
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Advice please. Currently running a 2014 MBP 13" + NVIDIA eGPU, mostly for coding work but also some basic data work using Tableau and TensorFlow. I MUST have High Sierra to use the eGPU for Tensorflow as NVIDIA drivers are not available for subsequent OSes.
I've got an offer to get a new laptop from work. As far as I understand, nothing with a T2 chip will run HS. So I can either get a 2017 13" / 15" MBP with the shitty keyboard and run HS, or a 2019 13"/15" MBP and buy (out of my own pocket) something like a 2014 Mac Mini to run HS on my desktop as a separate machine for data stuff. Alternatively I could wait for the 16" MBP, probably next year.
Budget is not an issue and I'm not desperately interested in the productivity benefits of the latest operating system. However there have been significant hardware specification improvements since 2017 I guess.
WWYD?
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What's the thinking with the off-board DAC (I'm assuming audio interface - was it you with the focusrite scarlett/red?) not doing any DAC? Is the Mac optical out a bit shit?
Yeah that was me. I love little offboard DACs, having a dedicated piece of hardware for audio ringfences the digital signal generation and offers a more stable and higher quality output than the Mac mini’s standard optical out. More specifically, jitter and signal to noise are significantly reduced. I’m pretty certain I have more headroom too so it’s a win all round.
Just to clarify:
Mac mini with a Creative soundblaster G5 DAC -> optical -> hifi DAC -> pre-ampThough if I had a better hifi DAC I’d just USB in to that.
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Mainly reliability - laptops have poorer heat management IME so fail more frequently. Also with a micro pc you can just replace the motherboard and it’ll gorilla tape to the back of your tv. OTOH you’ll need a tv :)
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Pretty sure we’ve done this to death (repeatedly!) earlier in this thread. I have plex and Spotify premium so use chromecasts across most of my rooms. Tried the chromecast for main hifi but settled with a Mac Mini running plex (and Spotify) with an off-board DAC connected by usb to reduce jitter. Optical out from that to my hifi DAC for optimum quality. This means I can cast plex or Spotify (or anything that also has a Mac/pc client app) to the Mac mini.
I also have an audioengine b1 for Bluetooth on the main hifi but it’s only really for guests. in general your DAC is almost always the bottleneck (the one in the chromecast is shit, the one in the b1 is a bit better), though I agree with everyone else. adding codecs as another constraint isn’t going to help you get a good result.If you don’t have a DAC on the hifi just save a bunch of effort and buy a micro pc of some sort and a Topping D50
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Congrats on the new watches @Regal @JB @YeahNerdz @panic all really nice choices.
@Stonehedge i really miss that watch, can I get first dibs if you ever decide to sell it?
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yep, total horseshit. This is a bad cover story for what is likely to be a parts watch. As they say, there's a patsy in every game, and if you don't know who it is.... it's you!
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haha!
honestly I've really started to like that watch :) -
The NS and SN (panda dials) are like rocking horse shit. Anything good is locked away in a collection, anything on the open market is either way overpriced or a parts watch (or both). For example the NST you just posted has had a polished case and the subdials aren’t particularly clean, it’s in ok / good condition but it wouldn’t make me drop my knickers. There are a lot of 2447 S’s around tho and prices seem to generally reflect this.
I’d quite like an 2447 SN or a Heuer Abercrombie and Fitch but I’m saving next for a nice UG Nina which will scratch the panda dial itch.
Anything this rare (very few were actually made, and the original condition makes it all the more valuable) is unfortunately too risky to wear everyday or even on rotation. I do wear it out, but perhaps only every few months.
If I’m lucky this piece will significantly appreciate. There’s no reason they won’t eventually price around the same mark as early Daytonas which ten years ago were around the same price but now comfortably fetch £70-£100k... I live in hope!
Lovely! Great restoration 👏