Hi @carlsbad2 I believe the Aurender N200 is Roon Ready.
The Streamer-Dac-Preamp Chain
I'm building a second system, and I'd love your thoughts. My starting point is Roon / digital library / Qobuz. My ending point is a Moon 761 power amplifier which then goes on to speakers. I need to insert a streamer, a DAC, and a preamp between the starting point and the ending point. Now, I know I can get a Moon 791 for around 15K, which looks and sounds lovely with the Moon 761.
Question: can you suggest a streamer, a DAC, and a preamp (for the same approx total) that spans this particular chain (e.g., no phono needed) and does better than the Moon 791?
[I do have an Auralic Vega G2.1 left over from my first system which connects all the dots above. But I don't like its preamp stage --- I've already replaced the volume control module. And the Moon 791 easily outperforms it. However, if you want to incorporate its DAC into your suggestions, I am happy to listen...]
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That ends my question, but you might be interested in hearing what ChatGPT had to say. Pretty confident character, our Chat :-)
This is a great problem. Here’s a stack that should significantly outperform the Moon 791 in terms of DAC resolution, preamp transparency, and streamer flexibility:
1. Streamer: Auralic Aries G2.2 (~$5,500)
• Tesla G3 processor is far superior to the Moon 791’s built-in MiND 2 module.
• Femto clocks + isolated dual processors mean exceptionally low jitter.
• USB, AES/EBU, and I²S outputs (versatile for DAC pairing).
• Dedicated power supply for streaming means cleaner signal delivery.
2. DAC: Holo Audio May KTE (~$5,500)
• R2R discrete ladder DAC (no delta-sigma conversion, ultra-natural sound).
• Fully balanced dual-mono design.
• Separate power supplies for analog/digital stages.
• One of the most analog-like DACs available. Unlike ESS-based DACs (like in Moon 791), the Holo May avoids digital glare.
3. Preamp: Benchmark LA4 (~$3,000)
• Absolutely neutral, ultra-transparent preamp. The Moon 791 preamp section is good but not at LA4’s level.
• No capacitors in the signal path, no coloration.
• Near-zero distortion and noise floor.
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@debrajray If you are not into the LA4 for aesthetic reasons consider the Holo Audio Serene preamp. It should be good with the Holo DAC you are looking at. The Serene is compared to the HPA4 in this review. The reviewer liked the Serene more. I am considering trading my Serene for a LA4. The Serene and LA4 I think are better than the 791 which I heard with the 761 and Paradigm Persona 9H speakers (not an ideal pairing). I think my preamp and DAC are better for a fraction of the price. The 761 amp is amazing and one I would like to get used in a few years when people start upgrading again.
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Hi @yyzsantabarbara I like your BTW2 comment! But let me head back to the pre-DAC bit for a second and the oRendu. I have Verizon Fios which is fiber optic up the basement in my apartment building and then distributes via standard ethernet cable, so I am guessing that I would need to use the Ultra Rendu instead with standard ethernet input --- does that difference fundamentally alter things at the streaming stage? And thanks! |
The fibre used in the OpticalRendu cleans up any noise in your internal network. Whatever is connected to the Ethernet and into the RJ45 connection will likely inject noise into the network. That noise will potentially travel into your DAC. The UltraRendu does not help in this scenario, the OpticalRendu is the way to go. A fibre optical "moat" just before your DAC is ideal. Now the Lumin X1 is great at this because it has a fibre Optic connection in the DAC/Streamer. However, the DAC part is not as good as my Schitt Yggi+ OG DAC (my opinion). The OpticalRendu is not theoretically perfect like the X1 because there is a conversion from fibre to USB and then into the DAC. However, the bits into the OpticalRendu should be clean since it traveled through the glass fibre optical cable. Glass cannot carry analog noise, thus a "moat". This is how I am able to use a noisy $500 Dell PC to run my ROON Core. I have no keyboard, monitor, or mouse hooked up to the PC and it resides under a bed in the guest room. I RDP into the machine in the event I need to reboot or whatever. This hardly ever happens. The PC starts automatically up at 7AM and shutdown at 2:30AM. I sometimes run processor intensive ROON convolution filters (for headphones). The digital balance (for speakers). Everything worked perfectly on this low-cost PC. I also use the copper wires in my house walls to move the bits from room to room. The OpticalRendu's are at the endpoints where I have audio systems. So easy, so powerful, and sounds perfect. |
@yyzsantabarbara, I’m really exploiting your generosity here so please tell me where to get off. I live in Manhattan and have Verizon Fios. I believe it is FiberOptic all the way to the ONT in my apartment, but the ONT has only standard RJ45 Ethernet out! I just don’t see how to connect directly to the fiber optic "flow" here. Maybe I can get a third party router and bypass Verizon’s ONT but I am at the limit of my own technical knowledge at this point ... my question is, how did you set this stage up? (My Roon core is a Mac Mini btw in case that info is needed.) And as always, thank you! |
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