POWER STATION deployment requires a little internal surgery which CLONES Audio’s founder ‘Funjoe’ claims takes only ten minutes. Those determined to pursue a path with the MacMini might want to sit up and pay attention right now because Hong Kong’s CLONES Audio is tapping us on the shoulder with news of its freshly-announced POWER STATION – a low noise linear power supply for the MacMini. Of further nuisance is that it’s found inside the Mac. One major source of that noise is the Mac Mini’s switch-mode power supply. 661-7031 Apple Power Supply 85W for Mac mini Late 2012 614-0507 A1347 Refurbished Special Price 38.00 Regular Price 89. The dividing issue is (predominantly) one of internal electrical noise that can cause music to sound rigid, uptight and iced with treble glare. The patent explains this is a computer in an input device, that’s essentially a Mac mini if it was. The absence of a built in screen on offers two advantages: 1) the Mac Mini can be run headless – once configured, no monitor, no keyboard, no mouse – and 2) lower electrical internal noise emissions. Having run a 2014 MacMini and 2014 MacBook Air back-to-back, I can confirm that sonically speaking, the Mini has the edge.ĭirect, hands-on experience also tells me that the Mac Mini can’t match the AURALiC Aries, Aurender N100H or (especially) the Antipodes Audio DX, even when tricked out with all manner of USB signal cleaners, USB cables or USB-S/PDIF converters.Īt some point in every digital audiophile’s journey comes a point when they either consider moving up to a bespoke solution or just accept the Apple box’s limitations as digital audio transport. The patent is for an Apple keyboard device that is essentially a portable Mac computer. Oh – and you can browse the web, watch video and run office software too.

It’s a solution that gives easy access to the library management awesomeness of Roon as well as the audible amelioration of Pure Music, Sonic Studio Amarra or Audirvana+.

The Mac Mini is Apple’s least expensive OS X entry-point, a not unattractive brushed aluminium box that can easily be tucked out of sight. Hands up how many of you use a consumer-grade computer as your digital audio playback device? Keep those hands aloft if that same computer is a Mac Mini? Yep – thought as much – that’s plenty of you.

Apple mac mini power supply