Streamer/Ripper/Storage

I’d say either a used Innuos Zenith Mk3 or new Zen Mk3 is calling your name. It does everything you’re looking for, has a very user-friendly app, and you’ll likely hear a significant performance improvement as well especially over a Mac Mini. Streamers matter greatly and have a significant impact on sound. Hope this helps, and best of luck.

+1 on @soix ’s recommendation. I have the Zenith Mk3 and had the same initial considerations as you. That streamer works and sounds just great. The Zenith is well regarded here but, you will of course receive additional recommendations for streamers that are more or less optioned, expensive and/or pleasing, as the case may be. I generally listen after some narrowing research and decide from there. Best of luck with your search.

432EVO outperforms Innous an aeon as  tested vs a statement next gen and found to sound just as good for a third of its price

And the construction is modular allowing for upgrades in the  future.

Designed to run roon.

Dave and troy

AUDIO INTELLECT  NJ

432EVO DEALERS 

I'm very happy with my Innuos Zen Mk3.  It has a built in cd ripper and a USB output. 

Innuos Zenith MK3 is a ripper, streamer, storage and optimized for USB.

Aurrender N150 or N200. Outstanding sound quality, build quality, support and app. I own two and have heard much of the line up, against a number of models within the $4K - $13K range. I have not had an opportunity to listen to the Innuos Zenith MK3. It gets good press, but I’ve not read a professional audiophile review of it yet.

I have the N200.  Great  machine, support was great the few times I needed it.  Sounds excellent 

Aurender just announced the A1000 a streamer /dac.  $3500.    Innuos is good too.  You should really try to demo in person if possible to get a feel for the user interface and hear them

@bogartg1 - I can vouch for the Innuos ZENith MKiii. Works and sounds great. I thought I’d use the cd ripper more but find I rarely use it. Once I started streaming Qubuz, that urge sort of went away. 

While I don’t have any direct experience myself, I’ve read many express innuos’ sense software sounds better than Roon… Again, I don’t have any experience with Roon. 

I wouldn’t focus on ripper but instead concentrate on getting the best possible streamer. I have Aurender N200 and have a large collection of CD rips on the SSD mounted inside the Aurender that I rarely dip into unless I’m planning to listen to something that’s not available on Qobuz or Tidal. It’s as good as playing CDs. 

Playback Designs MPS-X Edelweiss Streamer. 

Does the OP need a ripper?  He states Qobuz will be his main source.

Another recommendation for Innuos Zenith Mk III. It sounds very good, performs flawlessly & they offer very responsive customer service for any issues or questions of which mine were of course user error….

If you are looking for a music player sans the ripper, the Innuos pulse series is the droid you’re looking for.

https://innuos.com/pulse-series/

Ditto, Innuos ZENith mk3. Matches all of your requests.

@mahler123 he titled the post streamer/ripper/storage so I assumed that he did. 

Innuos  has a bunch of different $price point streamers with Solid state drives from 

1-3 or 4 Terabtpes  and have a excellent fluid interface that is seamless ,and firmware upgrades  when available easy to integrate .

Innuos has the features you want, and it has a stable and user friendly user interface. Include a really good USB cable in your budget, it will make a difference. 

I would not get a streamer with a ripper. First, once you get a very high quality streamer there should be no difference between ripped files and streaming and so the value disappears. You want all the cost to be in making the streamer sound good… not additional unnecessary functions. Also, you can alway use a laptop or PC to rip files.

Varying opinions on a CD ripper feature. If you don't need one, don't get a streamer with the drive to rip cds.  But, if you want to rip cds, the feature in my Innuos is as easy as it gets. You pop in a CD and in less than 5 minutes, the cd pops out and the album shows up in my library.  

With the Innuos, I use a tablet to run the Sense app which is more convenient than a laptop, imo.  Before I got the Innuos, I tried ripping cds with my laptop. Not nearly as simple. 

Thanks to everyone for the input. The Innuos Zenith MK3 really rises to the top. 

For those who think a ripper is unnecessary I think that means I would either need a NAS or built in storage in the streamer. Could I not just continue to access my current ripped CDs in my Mac Mini via the Streamer (essentially making the Mac Mini the NAS)? If yes, would the Pulse series be a better option than the Zen series? I kind of like the idea of the simplicity of an all-in-one device but I agree that ripping CDs is rare. 

As for USB cables, would a Belkin cable be fine?

Innuos!!

Innuos!!

Innuous…. It just works…easy and reliable.

The Mac Mini ought to be able to function as a NAS.  I have to say that I have a MacBook Pro and when I am using it while listening to my streamers the music files stored in it never show as one of the libraries that can be accessed by the streamer, despite everything being on the same network.  I don’t care since those files are on my Melco N100 NAS but it’s curious.

  It should also be possible to directly attach the Mac Mini to the streamer and bypass the LAN.  You might need an adapter depending on the outputs of the Mac Mini and the inputs of the streamer but I think that going straight usb would be the best option.

What gets me is, OP is stating what he wants and so many of you are telling him what he needs and what he should be concentrating on...smh

@bogartg1 I would look into the Eversolo A8

Are you using a Belkin cable now ? You absolutely need a better cable. I’m looking at a new streamer in the $2-$3.5K range now , hence I’m reading all the threads. I currently have a Project Ultra Stream II that replaced a laptop. It was an improvement, but not that great. I tried different USB’s with the laptop and currently have a Cardas Clear that I still use with the Project. As soon as I get a new streamer,  I’m  ( looking hard at Innuos and Aurender ) I’m going to upgrade my cable. I’ll probably try a Starlight that runs about $800. So yes upgrade your cable. PS , at the sub $3K price range some units lack a linear power supply. Happy Hunting and please post what you pick. Cheers, Mike. 

Generally the more you spend on a USB cable the better the  sound so replace the Belkin.

The two most recent cables I used were the FTA Callisto and Sinope.  There is a moderate price difference in the cables but the sound difference is huge!

Before that I used the original Network Acoustics Eno Ag and that way much better than the Curious Cable which was way better than a no name cable like yours.

I would suggest taking advantage of the Network Acoustics trial offer for their cable as well an Ethernet Filter if you don't already have one and if you can afford it one or more of their Ethernet cables.  All it will cost you is the return shipping and your not likely to pay that after hearing the benefits.

Also realize that different USB cables have different sounds and sound different in different systems.  Unfortunately you need to hear the cable in your system to know if it is to your liking or not.

I have an Innuos Statement and can only recommend the brand, and while the USB output is very good I have found the Ethernet out to be superior.  I use a series of DDC's to get to a S/PDIF input for my DAC, verses a direct USB to USB connection.