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

@vonhelmholtz

Thank you for sharing your experience and joy. Good call on Shunyata Sigma NR V2 upgrade and glad it all worked out. I just finished reading up on the proprietary tech employed with these cables, very impressive indeed!

IMHO, a high quality power conditioner and power cables are the foundation of a high resolution system that is equally addictive and musically engaging. 

My N20 just shipped from my dealer, so I should have it this weekend. Like OP, I have a Holo Audio May KTE DAC, but I’m using a Shunyata Omega USB. Both the N20 and DAC will be powered by the Everest using a Sigma v1 PC. Looking forward to hearing it in my setup.

 

@ghdprentice

I’m anxious to hear it in my system, but I’m not excited. After all it’s just a component in my system.

Anyway, my N20 was delivered today. I like how easy it is to install the hard drive compared to taking apart the Auralic. It is now transferring files from my Auralic to the N20, and I’ll let it go overnight. I’ll do some serious listening tomorrow. Btw, do you always have to enter the 6-digit code when connecting from my iPad Conductor app to the unit?

Go to Settings, select Face ID and passcode.  Scroll down and turn passcode off.