does apple tv replace airport express for audio purposes?

Question

does apple tv replace airport express for audio purposes?

So I'm looking to stream music from my iMac through airtunes (now airplay) on my home theater system. I was going to get an airport express to hook up next to the receiver, but it looks like Apple TV will do the same the at the same price. Are there any advantages, in terms of audio, in one or the other?

If they're the same, then ATV is certainly the better deal because of the added video benefit.

iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.4), macbook, macbook pro

Posted on Sep 5, 2010 9:33 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

Winston Churchill

Level 10

122,487 points

Sep 5, 2010 9:39 AM in response to bigbigwalleye

I believe the maximum audio rate is 44 Khz through an express whereas it's 48 Khz for the new tv. The tv does indeed have advantages over the express, although it can't act as an AP and may need your tv on to work as a remote speaker.

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Answer 2

Sep 5, 2010 11:01 AM in response to Winston Churchill

Winston Churchill wrote:
I believe the maximum audio rate is 44 Khz through an express whereas it's 48 Khz for the new tv. The tv does indeed have advantages over the express, although it can't act as an AP and may need your tv on to work as a remote speaker.

Interesting. So you think that the TV may need to be on in order show up as a remote speaker? Why would that be? (I don't have a current ATV, so I may be missing something).

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Answer 3

Sep 5, 2010 11:31 AM in response to Winston Churchill

Also, does the ATV have a maximum sample rate of 48kHz or is it fixed at 48kHz? It's not trivial to resample audio on the fly. You said maximum, but I wanted to double check. Thanks!

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Answer 4

celliott147

Level 6

11,877 points

Sep 5, 2010 11:59 AM in response to bigbigwalleye

If you're connecting to the home theater system or any other system for audio through digital audio, then you should be fine...if you are connecting via standard RCA jacks, you will need to adapt your setup.

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Answer 5

Sep 5, 2010 12:35 PM in response to bigbigwalleye

bigbigwalleye wrote:

Interesting. So you think that the TV may need to be on in order show up as a remote speaker? Why would that be? (I don't have a current ATV, so I may be missing something).

I have the tv in the lounge connected by HDMI to the tv and by optical to my receiver, I have my tv's audio connected to my receiver by RCA cables. generally unless I'm watching something in 5.1, I just leave the receiver set to the input from the tv (I've not got a remote for the receiver and manually switching between sources just to listen to stereo seems pointless).

When I turn my tv off the sound from the tv goes off too, but then it would because the audio goes through the tv via HDMI and to the receiver by RCA. However I watched shutter Island last night which has 5.1 so I set my receiver to the optical input from the tv.

The movie had finished but the credits were playing, I turned my tv off and the audio went off too, so yes in my case if the tv isn't on then there is no audio from the tv to the receiver.

I say in my case because I strongly suspect this may change from tv to tv as some tv's have HDMI features that others don't.

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