My current practice is to rip CDs onto an external HD connected to the MacBook Pro by a Thunderbolt cable, which has the iTunes folder on it. I direct the iTunes library to that HD, and I use Time Machine to back up both my internal HD and the external music HD to a second external HD.

I am getting a new Mac Mini as a dedicated music server and thinking of doing about the same thing with respect to music. I would just move the external music HD over to the Mac Mini and direct iTunes on the Mac Mini to that same iTunes folder on the HD. I was also thinking I would get a second HD for the Mini for Time Machine back up.

1. Is that a reasonable approach? It is simple, which is why I like it.

But . . .

2. Could I instead connect the music HD to my Apple Extreme router and let iTunes on both the MacBook Pro and the new Mac Mini look to that HD for the music files? That way I could still rip CDs on my old MacBook directly to the same HD in one room and use the Mini is in another room to play the music off of that HD. And can I do that wirelessly as well as through ethernet as part of the Mac architecture?

Sorry - I've been operating at a really basic level for awhile and am trying expand my working knowledge. I'm not even sure if I'm just describing a sort of half-assed NAS??

Assuming I am kind of figuring this out, I also assume Roon with Tidal would work and should be downloaded onto the Mini?
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 RE: Two more basic CA questions I should know the answer to . . . - AbeCollins 23:03:13 01/20/17 (0)

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 RE: Two more basic CA questions I should know the answer to . . . - AbeCollins 23:03:13 01/20/17 (0)

If you access your iTunes Library over Wifi to the AirPort Extreme, you -may- encounter issues related to wireless network signal strength and channel congestion. If these potential issues arise, they become more of a problem with higher resolution music files or movies & videos that require more bandwidth. If your wifi signal is strong and reliable between your devices, you should be fine.

However, I'm not clear on how the setup above will work for you with Roon. I suppose you can have Roon running on the Mini with your music stored on the Aiport Extreme disks. You can also listen to the music from your MacBook Pro but you will not be controlling playing from the MacBook Pro. Roon is licensed on one device. In this case it is licensed on your Mac Mini. When you want to listen on your MacBook Pro you do so with the Roon Bridge software (installed on the MacBook Pro). You will need to control playback from the Mini or with a tablet like the iPad. The MacBook Pro in this case is an 'end-point'. You can have as many Roon 'end-points' as you like. You tell Roon (on the Mini) to which 'end-point' it should be sending the music. Or.... you can possibly run screen sharing between the MacBook Pro and the Mac Mini and control Roon that way, but things are starting to get a bit 'messy' at this point.

Another possible scenario is to use Roon on the Mini but straight iTunes on the MacBook Pro. Your iTunes library will be on the Airport Extreme. Itunes preferences on your MacBook Pro will just 'point to' the iTunes library residing on your Airport Extreme.

Additional Note:
Unlike the QNAP or Synology NAS, you cannot run Roon Server directly on the Airport Extreme. Some folks run a dedicated NAS to eliminate the computer from their system. But that's another argument because a NAS -is- a computer. It's just a computer specializing in various protocols for accessing files over the network. In fact, my Mac Mini is a NAS when I choose to use it as such. ;-)

• iTunes Libary on a NAS