Classe Audio CP-800 User manual

COMPUTER AUDIO, AN OVERVIEW
The introduction of computers used as a source
of music in a stereo system brought a revolution
in the way we buy, organize and play digital
music. For the rst time we have the opportunity
to exploit the full potential of computer audio.
The CP-800 is revolutionary in its ability to
process digital music to an unprecedented
level of accuracy and musicality.
The CP-800 takes control of the music les
through the USB connection in an asynchronous
mode, meaning that it decouples the computer’s
internal clock and utilizes its own internal clock
system to determine when and how music les
will be imported. In this context, the computer’s
job is to store bit-perfect les of your copied CDs
on its hard drive and manage its media player
software like iTunes or others described later.
The music stored on your computer will be
accessible from the computer itself or, even
better, accessed via an iPad, iPhone or iPod
Touch used as a remote control and visual
interface. These devices allow full access to
your entire music library from your ngertips
and from the comfort of your listening chair.
The CP-800 combines in a single box the
functions of three different components.
1. An analog preamplier
2. A Digital-to-Analog Converter (DAC)
3. A Digital Signal Processor (DSP)
managing three different functions:
Parametric Equalization, Tone Control
and Bass Management
• The system’s architecture is simple.
The main source is a computer which
stores the music les that will be imported
by the CP-800 via its USB port.
• The iPad (or iPhone or iPod Touch)
is used as a remote control and visual
interface. The artwork, name of the artist,
name of the song, etc. will be displayed
on the iPad screen. Functions such as
Play, Pause, Skip, Stop and Volume are
also accessed from the iPad.
• The bi-directional communication between
the computer and the iPad is done wire-
lessly through a domestic Wi-Fi system.
This guide will show you the step by step
procedures to congure your media software
and optimize the performance of your computer
to get bit-for-bit transmission of data between
your hard disk drive and the CP-800’s USB input.

APPLE OR WINDOWS?
Without doing an analysis of the pros and cons
of Apple versus Windows we will provide a few
guidelines to help you choose what will best suit
your needs.
Regardless whether you decide to use a system
based on Apple or Windows, in both cases you
will be able to achieve excellent results
with a CP-800.
APPLE
In just a few words, if you are beginning from
scratch, this is the most simple and user friendly
system to use. If you consider using an iPad,
iPhone or iPod touch to access a music library
stored on a Mac Mini or another Mac using iTunes
and a wireless router such as the Airport Express,
then you will be in a coherent, easy to congure
and use ecosystem. Do not think for a minute that
the ease of use is done at the expense of sound
quality, this system is impeccable.
There are currently over 300 million iPods and
iPads in circulation in the world. Therefore, over
300 million people already use iTunes.
The choice of media players available for an
Apple based system is somewhat limited but it
is not a real problem, keep in mind you only need
one and iTunes works very well. There is how-
ever a weak point. If you decide to download and
play high resolution les you will have to manually
adjust the sampling rate output of your computer
each time you switch between CD quality and
higher resolution recordings. Alternatively you
may purchase an additional media player such as
Amarra or Pure Music which handle this switching
automatically for you.
WINDOWS
There are many reasons why you would want
to use a Windows based system for a music
server. It could be that you already own a PC
and are familiar with the Windows environment.
In this case there is a vast selection of software
packages capable of superb performance.
These media players usually offer more exibility
and possibilities of congurations than what is
offered by iTunes. The corollary of this statement
is Windows software is often more complex and
requires more steps to be congured.
One of the best known Windows based media
players is JRiver. This media player is capable
of excellent performance and has an enviable
reputation amongst audiophiles. The visual envi-
ronment of JRiver will look familiar to those who
already use iTunes. JRiver also reads FLAC les,
a format not supported by Apple. It handles in a
uid manner high-resolution les (e.g. 24-bit/96
kHz) with no need to manually congure settings.
It will be comfortable playing a wide variety of le
formats and sampling rates.

HARD DRIVES STORAGE CAPACITY
Over time, the storage capacity of a computer’s
hard drive becomes an important asset. Here are
a few tips to evaluate your needs. A CD ripped
to a computer will require about 500 MB of stor-
age space. Two CDs will therefore require about
1 GB of space. As a result, a 1,000 CD library will
require about 500 GB of storage space. A 1 TB
(terabyte) hard drive will hold about 2,000 CDs.
When a lossless compression codec is used such
as ALAC (Apple Lossless Audio Codec) or FLAC
(Free Lossless Audio Codec) a saving of 40% of
the storage space can be achieved. A codec is
an algorithm or program that does COmpression
and DECompression of data. The compression
and decompression of the audio le is done, as
the name “Lossless” implies, without any loss of
information. So, the same 1 TB hard disc drive
containing 2,000 uncompressed CDs will now
hold about 3,200 CD’s in lossless.
Lossy compression algorithms such as MP3 are
not optimized for high delity applications be-
cause in the compression process, a signicant
portion (about 90%) of the musical information,
interpreted as non-essential, is actually removed
from the le to minimize storage space. Lossy
les will take up to 10 times less space mean-
ing your 1 TB hard drive will hold 20,000 CDs!
The dilemma is simple, you can choose between
quantity and quality.
On a high-resolution system such as the CP-800,
lossy les should be considered as a handicap.
Even if you do a le conversion from MP-3 to,
let’s say AIFF, what will be transcoded will be
the exact content of your low-resolution le. The
problem with lossy les is that any information
removed at the source is lost forever and cannot
be magically retrieved later. In this case the com-
pression is done at the expense of both quantity
and quality of information! Changing the le for-
mat (the vehicle) will not change the passenger
(the musical data).
APPLE OR WINDOWS?
Without doing an analysis of the pros and cons
of Apple versus Windows we will provide a few
guidelines to help you choose what will best suit
your needs.
Regardless whether you decide to use a system
based on Apple or Windows, in both cases you
will be able to achieve excellent results
with a CP-800.
APPLE
In just a few words, if you are beginning from
scratch, this is the most simple and user friendly
system to use. If you consider using an iPad,
iPhone or iPod touch to access a music library
stored on a Mac Mini or another Mac using iTunes
and a wireless router such as the Airport Express,
then you will be in a coherent, easy to congure
and use ecosystem. Do not think for a minute that
the ease of use is done at the expense of sound
quality, this system is impeccable.
There are currently over 300 million iPods and
iPads in circulation in the world. Therefore, over
300 million people already use iTunes.
The choice of media players available for an
Apple based system is somewhat limited but it
is not a real problem, keep in mind you only need
one and iTunes works very well. There is how-
ever a weak point. If you decide to download and
play high resolution les you will have to manually
adjust the sampling rate output of your computer
each time you switch between CD quality and
higher resolution recordings. Alternatively you
may purchase an additional media player such as
Amarra or Pure Music which handle this switching
automatically for you.
BACK-UP COPY
Regardless of the computer, operating system
or media player you might have chosen, there
is an important fact that you should know. Any
hard disc drive system can potentially develop
problems. In the long term the question is not
“if” but “when”. So, there is a risk that you might
lose your precious musical data.
Transferring your complete collection of CDs and
downloading on-line music les will imply a sub-
stantial investment in time and money. It would
be a good idea to take a few minutes to make
a back-up copy of your music les. External hard
drives now have huge storage capacity and
are inexpensive. They are indeed a good
insurance policy!

CP-800
A SYSTEM BASED ON APPLE COMPONENTS
Apple

A SYSTEM BASED ON APPLE
COMPONENTS
Recommended equipment
• A Mac computer (we show a Mac Mini
with wireless keyboard and mouse)
• An Apple Superdrive (if using a current
generation Mac Mini, this CD/DVD drive
is used to read and copy your CDs)
• A USB cable (to connect your computer
to your CP-800)
• An iPad (used as visual interface and
remote control)
• Apple AirPort Extreme (your connection
to the Internet to get metadata; other
routers may also be used)
• Apple AirPort Express (optional, this will
allow a strong local Wi-Fi signal if needed)
• Apple portable devices such as iPhone
or iPod Touch (used as optional additional
remote controls if desired)
CP-800
A SYSTEM BASED ON APPLE COMPONENTS
Apple
Recommended software
• iTunes: The media player included with
your Apple OS (Operating System).
• Remote: Free application downloaded from
the Apple App Store. This application turns
your Apple portable device such as iPad,
iPhone or iPod Touch into a remote control
for your iTunes media player.
Optional software
Pure Music or Amarra
These software programs are installed on top
of iTunes and will allow direct access to high
resolution les. This topic is discussed later
in this document.

MAC MINI
The Mac Mini is a computer that can store
music, photos and documents, access the
Internet (wired or wireless) and perform the
wide range of tasks that we associate with other
computers. Its advantage in our application is that
it is quite elegant, quiet and small, is easy to set-
up and can provide excellent sound quality.
The Mac Mini has an HDMI output. This can be
connected to a at panel display or projector in
the listening room to act as a monitor for setup
and to help with copying discs and getting cover
art. Use a mouse and keyboard for these func-
tions. Since ripping CDs and getting cover art
is not something you ordinarily will need to do
on a daily basis, the keyboard and mouse can
be disconnected and hidden away during every-
day use. This is why a wireless keyboard and
mouse are so convenient. You don’t need to
connect and disconnect them whenever you
need them.
iTunes SETUP
It is possible to transfer an iTunes library or
even completely copy the setup of another Mac
onto your Mac Mini. Instructions for doing this
are available from Apple. iTunes comes installed
on the Mac Mini, so you can begin loading it
with your CDs after just a few setup adjustments.
Either way, you will be using iTunes to access
stored music les and to make copies of your
CDs. Let’s begin with ripping (ripping is the
term used for copying CDs to a hard disc drive).
There are just a few items to check rst.
1. Open iTunes and go to iTunes/Preferences
2. Choose the General tab where you will nd the
Import Settings button. Note also that you should
probably check the box to “Automatically retrieve
CD track names from Internet.” It is also conve-
nient if iTunes is set to “Ask to Import CD” when
you insert a CD.

3. Pressing the Import Settings button gives
you access to the le format iTunes will use
when importing CDs. Among the options you
can choose any of the following three, all of
which allow you to store full resolution, bit-for-bit
data copies of the CD. Choose the option that
best suits your needs.
• WAV (Waveform Audio File Format) cre-
ates full resolution, full size les. They are
uncompressed so they consume the most
storage space (not a concern for most of
us) but are easily transferred to other plat-
forms. The one drawback is that metadata
(disc info including track names and album
art) do not attach to the music les auto-
matically, so if you move the les you need
to move the metadata as well.
• AIFF (Audio Interchange File Format) is
Apple’s version of WAV. It is also uncom-
pressed, full resolution and full le size,
so it consumes storage space. Metadata
remain associated with AIFF les. iTunes
can easily convert AIFF to WAV if you ever
want to do that, so many Mac users and
audiophiles choose this option.
• Apple Lossless Encoder uses lossless
compression to save storage space. Once
uncompressed for playback, the le is bit-
for-bit identical to a full size AIFF or WAV
le. Like AIFF, metadata are attached to
these les.
Through a properly set up system using a
CP-800 you should hear no difference between
any of these three formats.
MAC MINI
The Mac Mini is a computer that can store
music, photos and documents, access the
Internet (wired or wireless) and perform the
wide range of tasks that we associate with other
computers. Its advantage in our application is that
it is quite elegant, quiet and small, is easy to set-
up and can provide excellent sound quality.
The Mac Mini has an HDMI output. This can be
connected to a at panel display or projector in
the listening room to act as a monitor for setup
and to help with copying discs and getting cover
art. Use a mouse and keyboard for these func-
tions. Since ripping CDs and getting cover art
is not something you ordinarily will need to do
on a daily basis, the keyboard and mouse can
be disconnected and hidden away during every-
day use. This is why a wireless keyboard and
mouse are so convenient. You don’t need to
connect and disconnect them whenever you
need them.
Make sure the box is checked to “Use error
correction when reading Audio CDs.”
Unlike a CD player, which reads the disc in real
time, a computer may make multiple attempts to
read the data. The result is that a ripped music
le can have a more accurate representation
of the data on the disc than you would get
when playing the original disc in a CD player.
This is one of the advantages of playing music
from your computer instead of a CD player.
4. Click OK, return to the Preferences window
and choose the Playback tab.

Mac Mini AUDIO OUTPUT SETUP
Connect a USB cable from the Mac Mini to the
rear panel of the CP-800.The CP-800 is designed
to minimize the inuence of properly designed
USB cables, but like everything else, have a listen
and if you prefer one over another use that one.
USB cable lengths are usually limited to about 3
meters (10 feet).
On the CP-800, press Menu, System Setup,
Source Setup, USB B. This gives you access
to the source naming option for the USB Back
panel connection. Re-name the input Mac Mini (or
whatever suits you). Remember to press <enter>
when exiting the keyboard page in order to save
the new name. Return to the home page, touch
the screen to access the Source Select page and
choose the Mac Mini.
The CP-800 will be recognized by the Mac Mini
but to establish sound output to the CP-800 you
may need to enable the path. To do this, access
the Audio MIDI Setup page using the Finder.
Under Applications, choose Utilities.
Choose Audio MIDI Setup.

Highlight the CP-800 and using the settings tool
(gear) at the bottom of the window, choose “Use
this device for sound output.” Once chosen, you
may disconnect and reconnect the CP-800 and
the sound will automatically be routed through the
CP-800 whenever it is connected.
Before exiting the Audio MIDI Setup page, make
sure to set the output to 44,100.0 Hz. At the bot-
tom of the CP-800 touchscreen you should now
see a sampling frequency of 44.1 kHz displayed.
If not, close and reopen iTunes.
Since most of the recordings you will play
from iTunes will have been ripped from 44.1
kHz CDs, you will want to play them back at
their native rate, so the computer needs to be
set up to output 44.1 kHz. If you don’t manually
set this output frequency, the Mac will negotiate a
higher (96 kHz) rate with the CP-800.
This is an extremely important setting. If ripped
CDs are played back at anything other than 44.1
kHz, the computer will have applied sample rate
conversion with damaging effects on the sound. It
is a good idea to check periodically to be sure the
sampling frequency shown on the CP-800 is the
one you expect.
Mac Mini AUDIO OUTPUT SETUP
Connect a USB cable from the Mac Mini to the
rear panel of the CP-800.The CP-800 is designed
to minimize the inuence of properly designed
USB cables, but like everything else, have a listen
and if you prefer one over another use that one.
USB cable lengths are usually limited to about 3
meters (10 feet).
On the CP-800, press Menu, System Setup,
Source Setup, USB B. This gives you access
to the source naming option for the USB Back
panel connection. Re-name the input Mac Mini (or
whatever suits you). Remember to press <enter>
when exiting the keyboard page in order to save
the new name. Return to the home page, touch
the screen to access the Source Select page and
choose the Mac Mini.
The CP-800 will be recognized by the Mac Mini
but to establish sound output to the CP-800 you
may need to enable the path. To do this, access
the Audio MIDI Setup page using the Finder.
Software packages like Pure Music and Amarra
are available to help manage things like automati-
cally playing back music les using their native
rate. This eliminates the need to manually make
changes if you frequently switch between 44.1
kHz and 96 kHz recordings.
ALBUM ARTWORK
Unfortunately, some of what you rip to your
iTunes library will be missing the associated art-
work. The iTunes library can be a rich graphical
experience, but to take full advantage, you must
be vigilant about matching missing artwork to the
music in your library. Songs without artwork de-
tract from the otherwise rich graphical experience.
The easiest way to ll in missing artwork is to lo-
cate images online. You can use Amazon.com or
Google the album name and look for the cover art
images. Save the image to your iPhoto library. In
iTunes, highlight the entire album or song that is
missing cover art. Click File, and then Get Info.
Double click the empty Artwork box or the Artwork
tab and choose the cover art from your iPhoto
library, then click OK. The cover art should now
appear for the associated album or song(s).

iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch SETUP
The iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch (hereafter
referred to only as iPad) can be used to access
the songs in your iTunes library from your listen-
ing chair. You can download the Remote App for
free from the App store. With the Mac Mini and
iPad connected to the same Wi-Fi network,
follow the instructions for establishing control.
Once done, every time you turn on the Mac Mini
and iPad, choosing the Remote App icon on the
iPad will connect it to iTunes and you will be
ready to use your system. The one caution worth
noting is that the signal strength and reliability of
the Wi-Fi network could be, in some cases, poor
or inconsistent.
For $100 you can buy an Airport Express which
can plug into an outlet in your listening room and
provide a strong, secure and reliable local Wi-Fi
network with which to connect your iPad and Mac
Mini. It is not necessary to have an Internet con-
nection for your Airport Express to be able to use
it as a shared network for the iPad and Mac Mini.
In some cases, you may need to take the Mac
Mini to another room to have an Internet connec-
tion for importing discs, getting info and nding
cover art. In your listening room, whether using
the Airport Express or your home’s Wi-Fi network,
a strong, reliable connection is critical to really en-
joy the benets of your system. Everything must
work quickly and reliably to achieve your goals of
getting a rich graphical experience that enhances
the listening experience. Bear in mind you can,
of course, connect your Airport Express to your
existing domestic Wi-Fi. In this case there would
be no need to move anything at all.
Airport Express

AND FINALLY…LISTENING!
At this point you should have audio playing from
your Mac Mini to the CP-800 at 44.1 kHz (con-
rmed by checking the CP-800 touchscreen
display),CDs imported to iTunes at full resolution
using WAV, AIFF or Apple Lossless and error
correction turned on, Sound Enhancer and Sound
Check turned off, artwork associated with all CDs
and a shared, reliable Wi-Fi network with the iPad
running the free Remote App.
Since the graphical and musical discovery experi-
ence is stronger when you have more content,
the general rule is the more CDs you can rip to
iTunes the better your listening experience will
be. Start with at least twenty discs, but work up
to several hundred as soon as possible. Not only
does this give lots of listening options but will
make obvious the benet of having an entire
music collection at your ngertips.
One of the great advantages of this type of setup
is that you will listen to more music and a greater
variety of recordings than ever before, simply
because access is so quick and easy. The bonus
is that with the CP-800, the sound quality will be
better than if you had gotten up, found the disc
and loaded it into a CD player!
iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch SETUP
The iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch (hereafter
referred to only as iPad) can be used to access
the songs in your iTunes library from your listen-
ing chair. You can download the Remote App for
free from the App store. With the Mac Mini and
iPad connected to the same Wi-Fi network,
follow the instructions for establishing control.
Once done, every time you turn on the Mac Mini
and iPad, choosing the Remote App icon on the
iPad will connect it to iTunes and you will be
ready to use your system. The one caution worth
noting is that the signal strength and reliability of
the Wi-Fi network could be, in some cases, poor
or inconsistent.
SETUP a PLAYLIST
Playlists may be used to organize music into
theme-based groups or simply to manage a lis-
tening session in real time. Create a new playlist
called Listening Session, Evening Music, Party,
etc. Load it with the number of tracks that you
want to have available for your next listening ses-
sion. Using the iPad, practice changing the order
of songs in the playlist and adding or removing
songs from the list while you are listening. The
more familiar you are with this process the more
comfortable you will become at structuring your
playlists and the more useful the Remote App
will be to you.
Time to get started…happy listening!

WINDOWS 7 and Vista
Used with iTunes or JRiver
iTunes is by far the most popular media player.
It can be used as well on a Windows or an Apple
platform. Many CP-800 users will end up using
iTunes on a Windows based system. This section
is intended for Windows users.
Everything discussed in the previous sections
of this manual regarding the use of iTunes, like
importing metadata or using an iPad as a re-
mote control remains identical. The object of the
exercise, which is to copy your CD’s to the hard
drive of your computer while keeping the native
sampling rate at 44.1kHz remains not only un-
changed but very important. When ripping your
CD’s, you will still need to use the iTunes error
correction system as described earlier. So, even
if you intend to use iTunes on a Windows plat-
form, reading the previous sections will enable
you make all the necessary adjustments to get
the best sound from your CP-800.
However, a Windows operating system being dif-
ferent from a Mac OS, some adjustments specic
to Windows will have to be done on PC’s. Speci-
cally, you will want to congure the digital output
from the soundcard.
Please keep in mind that the touch screen located
on the front panel of your CP-800 will display at
all times the sampling rate of the incoming data
and taking a look at it will give you instantaneous
conrmation that a CD le is indeed sampled at
44.1 kHz.
With Windows 7 for instance, the default param-
eter of the sound card is 96 kHz, 24 bits. This will
need to be changed to 44.1 kHz.
Conguration of the Windows output
(regardless of the media player)
Connect a USB cable between your computer
and the USB port located on the back panel
of the CP-800.
• In the lower left corner of the screen,
click on the Windows logo.
• In the new window click on Control Panel.
• Select the Sound icon (speaker).
• The CP-800 will appear in the new window,
click on it in order to highlight it, then click
again.

WINDOWS 7 and Vista
Used with iTunes or JRiver
iTunes is by far the most popular media player.
It can be used as well on a Windows or an Apple
platform. Many CP-800 users will end up using
iTunes on a Windows based system. This section
is intended for Windows users.
Everything discussed in the previous sections
of this manual regarding the use of iTunes, like
importing metadata or using an iPad as a re-
mote control remains identical. The object of the
exercise, which is to copy your CD’s to the hard
drive of your computer while keeping the native
sampling rate at 44.1kHz remains not only un-
changed but very important. When ripping your
CD’s, you will still need to use the iTunes error
correction system as described earlier. So, even
if you intend to use iTunes on a Windows plat-
form, reading the previous sections will enable
you make all the necessary adjustments to get
the best sound from your CP-800.
However, a Windows operating system being dif-
ferent from a Mac OS, some adjustments specic
to Windows will have to be done on PC’s. Speci-
cally, you will want to congure the digital output
from the soundcard.
In the new window, click on the Advanced tab.
• Optional: In the window on the next page,
you could have decided to change the icon
showing a speaker and replace it with an
icon showing an audio component and give
it any name you want (Classé, or DAC or
preamp, etc).
• This could be useful if you ever end-up
with several digital components. It makes
them easier to spot with an icon instead of
reading who they are. This is only for visual
presentation and convenience and does
nothing to the performance.
• To modify the icon, click on Change Icon
and select a new one. Enter the new name
and click OK.

After selecting Advanced you will nally get
access to the sampling rate window. From this
window you will be able to adjust the sampling
rate of the music les that will be imported by
your CP-800.
1. The default parameter displayed will be 96
kHz. Click on the tab and, from the drop-
down menu, select the option 44100 Hz.
2. Check both boxes in the exclusive mode
section.
3. Click on Apply then on OK.
Close all windows, your PC soundcard is now
congured and ready to play your CD music les
in their native sampling rate!

After selecting Advanced you will nally get
access to the sampling rate window. From this
window you will be able to adjust the sampling
rate of the music les that will be imported by
your CP-800.
1. The default parameter displayed will be 96
kHz. Click on the tab and, from the drop-
down menu, select the option 44100 Hz.
2. Check both boxes in the exclusive mode
section.
3. Click on Apply then on OK.
CP-800
A SYSTEM BASED ON WINDOWS
Conguration of JRiver Media Center

OVERVIEW OF THE JRIVER
MEDIA PLAYER
There are two versions of the JRiver media
software:
1. Media Jukebox
2. Media center
Media Jukebox is the basic version. It is down-
loadable for free and does work very well for most
people but has two weak points. There is no bit-
for-bit accuracy during playback and no automatic
sample rate change when playing high resolution
les unless a plug-in driver called ASIO4ALL is
installed. The installation of ASIO4ALL is very
complex and should only be attempted by people
with above average computer skills.
At the time of writing this guide, the most recent
version of the Media Center was Version 17
(most recent but also the most sophisticated yet).
The purchase of JRiver Media Center 17 will cost
you $50. But if you want to try JRiver before you
buy the download comes with a free 30 day
trial period.
The Media Center has a built-in feature called
WASAPI; this is a new audio software interface
between the operating system and the music
player. It bypasses many unnecessary windows
layers and keeps the signal path as direct and
short as possible. More importantly, the latest ver-
sions of Media Center (version 14 and up) feature
a variation on the same theme called WASAPI
EVENT STYLE (Windows Audio Session Applica-
tion Program Interface, Event Style). This soft-
ware has been specially developed for Windows
7 and Vista to optimize data transfer between
windows and an asynchronous DAC. The Media
Center 17 version is especially well suited to be
used with a CP-800 because the CP-800 uses
the most sophisticated asynchronous DAC tech-
nology. A computer is a multi-task machine. Using
WASAPI Event Style will give absolute priority to
undisturbed bit-for-bit transfer of your precious
musical data. The CP-800 not only bypasses the
computer’s clocks but is also given priority and
the shortest path through the windows layers to
import music les. They beautifully complement
each other’s work!
Media Center 17 can easily import your music
libraries. (If you are already using iTunes because
you own an iPod or iPhone you could still rip
(copy) your CD”s using iTunes and import your
les to JRiver. In such a set-up iTunes would still
be used to download to your portable devices and
JRiver to feed your CP-800).
JRiver Media Centre will decode Apple les or
other types of les such as FLAC, APE, etc. and
will also automatically read high-resolution les.
Installation is easy and straightforward and does
not require third party software, everything is
included.
SET-UP FOR CD RIPPING
Once downloading of Media Center 17 is
completed open the application and on the
task bar and select Tools, Options.
In the new window select (highlight) CD, DVD.
Under the CD Ripping, tab select from the
drop-down menu Copy Mode: Secure.

OVERVIEW OF THE JRIVER
MEDIA PLAYER
There are two versions of the JRiver media
software:
1. Media Jukebox
2. Media center
Media Jukebox is the basic version. It is down-
loadable for free and does work very well for most
people but has two weak points. There is no bit-
for-bit accuracy during playback and no automatic
sample rate change when playing high resolution
les unless a plug-in driver called ASIO4ALL is
installed. The installation of ASIO4ALL is very
complex and should only be attempted by people
with above average computer skills.
At the time of writing this guide, the most recent
version of the Media Center was Version 17
(most recent but also the most sophisticated yet).
The purchase of JRiver Media Center 17 will cost
you $50. But if you want to try JRiver before you
buy the download comes with a free 30 day
trial period.
The Media Center has a built-in feature called
WASAPI; this is a new audio software interface
between the operating system and the music
player. It bypasses many unnecessary windows
layers and keeps the signal path as direct and
short as possible. More importantly, the latest ver-
sions of Media Center (version 14 and up) feature
a variation on the same theme called WASAPI
EVENT STYLE (Windows Audio Session Applica-
tion Program Interface, Event Style). This soft-
ware has been specially developed for Windows
7 and Vista to optimize data transfer between
This is a very important adjustment. If you use
JRiver to rip your CD’s this setting will give you
a secure copy, in other words, a bit-for-bit copy.
With this feature activated, your computer will be
given permission to read the information on your
CD as many times as required until the whole
content of the copied le is an exact replica of
the original. Contrary to a CD player that needs
to read the musical information imbedded in your
CD in real time with the inherent losses and mis-
takes implied in a real-time reading, your comput-
er will only care about recovering all the informa-
tion, regardless of the time it will take. This is
one of the reasons why computer audio has
the potential to outperform even reference CD
players.
Click on OK.

SET-UP OF THE AUDIO OUTPUT
From the task bar select Player, DSP Studio.
• In the new window, in the left column,
check the box Output Format.
• Make sure every box on the left column
is empty except for Output
• In the middle column, under Sample Rate,
select No resampling
• On the right side, under Bitdepth, select
24-bit.
• Close this window using the red X in
the upper right corner. The system will
remember the setting.