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Aurender N20

Wow, just received my used N20, installed a 2TB 870EVO SSD and downloaded Conductor. Uploaded 72GB of purchased and ripped CD files from my Synology NAS. Connected to Qobuz and I must admit, I wasn’t prepared for what I heard. I thought that my fiber isolated, upgraded power supply iFi Zen Stream was really good, but it is no where near as good as the Aurender and I’m just listening to AES. Upsampling was set to 176.4K and so I went with it. I purchased from an experienced Dealer, so I went with his bang for the buck DH Labs AES and USB cables, which he doesn't sell.   Evidently, they punch above their price point.

Local media and Qobuz sound equally stunning. This gets close, or rivals my analog system and that is saying something.

Complaints so far.. no information regarding bit rate of music. I’m use to Roon and this is not Roon..not even close. I think that with Qobuz I can make playlists with quality high bitrate music and import the playlists.

Anyway, if I would have heard the N20 first, I would not have anguished over spending the money. Again, having a good dealer, or trusted friend really makes the difference. Time to burn in the cable(s).

vonhelmholtz
kairosman's avatar
kairosman
278 posts
 

Roon’s SQ seemed meh when I was using it, and although Roon is said to be working hard on improving the SQ it is apparently still not yet at the level of the Lumin/Innuos/Aurender/Grimm/Taiko apps, something to do with how demanding it is of system resources exacerbates various noise factors. Manufacturers make their gear Roon ready only because customers demand the best UI experience. Don’t take my word for it, go and read the Grimm and Taiko white papers on the importance and means of optimizing bespoke software for purely audio playback.

And as someone else mentioned, in my experience the Aurender N200 is a fantastic value in case anyone on this thread is looking for a streamer/server solution at that $5K price point.

lalitk's avatar
lalitk
5,424 posts
 

@vonhelmholtz

Once you’re settled with N20, please post your impressions on USB vs AES. As I recall, this was one of your consideration for a streamer with Holo May DAC. I think it would be very informative for readers here to know how well your DAC’s implementation is with USB and AES.

And if it’s AES, here is a cable recommendation that will further improve over very good DH lab cable. I have used the prev Gen. Acrolink 6N-D5070 II AES cable and it was best sounding cable to my ears under $2K price point.
https://www.usaudiomart.com/details/649910522-acrolink-7n-a2080-leggenda-aesebu-1m-digital-cable/

boxcarman
403 posts
 

Someone will always say you could have something just as good for less money.  You should be happy with the aurender.  They have probably sold thousands of these and it is rated very high.  Plus there are thousands that love them!

Ag insider logo xs@2x
nmcc0866
4 posts
 

So sad that Aurender doesn't do Roon.

For me, Roon is irreplaceable: so much pleasure from finding new music and new links, looking up artists and the like.  And the combined Roon + Qobuz library is simply brilliant.

There must be a market for Roon plus great sound quality.  Maybe my only real choice is dCs.  Or maybe someone can tell me why Aurender doesn't make a unit that works with Roon.

For now, I will stick with Roon, using a Lumin streamer and a Denafrips Terminator+.  Sounds great - maybe not as good as an Aurender - but the Roon interface wins over all!

vonhelmholtz OP
911 posts
 

@nmcc0866

I agree that moving to Aurender represents a loss with regard to user experience. Conductor does allow for extensive search functions, but lacks lyrics and more inclusive background information.

Per those in the know, function is kept basic to reduce internal noise from the internal server/computer.

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