Putting a computer in the listening room I would not call "easiest". There are so many issues with this. As you mentioned noise. You generally want a wired network to it. Controlling it with an IR remote becomes a project. And verifying your really getting the raw bits to your preamp can be a project (picking right sound cards, drivers etc.). You want it to be easy to use too. Some people hook up the video of the PC to their TV/Projector to operate it. But I prefer not require the TV/Projector on each time I listen to music. If you already have a HTPC type setup then yes it would be fairly easy.

The simplest is probably the Sonos. A complete system. Server and handheld color control screen. Plug in the base. Plug in the extension and start ripping. No noise, nice remote.

The next easiest and cheap is probably the squeezebox. The computer can be remote eliminating the noise. It can be almost any size any model. It is fairly easy to setup. It takes a while learning all the ins and outs. I've had mine 6 months and I'm still learning stuff that it can do. It is extremely powerful and flexible what it can do. Display on squeezebox is somewhat limited.

Transporter is a delux squeezebox. It has twice the display size. It will auto scroll less and can show a little more. The bulk of the transporter cost is it's analog DAC electronics. If your using a external DAC or Digital preamp your not getting much more than good looks and bragging rights. It can handle 24/96 where the SqueezeBox is limited to 24/48. However there is a huge flaw in my opinion in that it cannot handle 88Khz (upsampled CD's). Transporter is supposed to have lower jitter. Read the the slimdevices.com forums. But keep in mind that most folks their own analog amp/speakers.

It's really a religous debate of music server vs high-end CD. Some folks own both and enjoy the merits of each. Some have ditched high-end transports and others would never listen to anything less than a 800/808/G08 etc.

Highest I went was a 598 and it's replaced by a squeezebox. One thing I notice is I have no idea what music I'm in the mood for day to day. The amount of music I scan through before my toe starts tapping would take and hour of flipping CD's. On the squeezebox it takes me minutes. So I listen to music I enjoy more and have more time to listen. I might think I'm in the mood for Rock but it turns out I'm in the mood for classical. I might hate a song monday but on tuesday love it.

- Fiddler (IMHO)

If you think listening to music is fun, try learning an instrument.
HT: G61RSL, 4x5K, 5.5KHC, 2xSC6000, Transporter, HD621, Philips BDP7501 4K, Tivo, 65" LG OLED 4K C6
Computer: Foobar2000, 5K, Mojo, HiFiMan HE1000 V2