I use a Zenith MKII running Sense in my listening room. I also run Roon core on a Mac mini for whole house stereo. I can also run Roon in my listening room via my PS Audio DirectStream DAC with/ Bridge II. A/B testing Sense and Roon, Roon SQ is good; Sense SQ is A LOT better. Sense sounds more natural and the music is more full bodied with a wider soundstage.
I can’t characterize Roon’s SQ as being degraded and I was fine with it until I tried Sense. For critical listening I plan to stick with Sense - unless the Roon SQ matches or better’s it. For whole house stereo to powered speakers in my home, Roon works fine.