Using Roon ARC on Vacation - I Hate It, I Love It, I'm Indifferent

Sorry but for me the ARC concept is silly. ARC tries to make your home infrastructure into a CDN, talk about a hack. How spoiled are we that we can’t just listen to Qobuz directly and be happy with what’s available while away from home. I see it as either a gimmick or the impossible dream.

I have bad news for you Chris...

". I would never put money on the signals bars being a perfect depiction of actual signal strength, but it seemed reasonable as I drove adjacent to downtown Minneapolis, past the Sculpture Garden, where a strong signal would be logical for both carriers. "
 

I can consistently drop calls along that road, past the Walker and either a few blocks down Hennepin, or under the bridge down Lyndale, towards Uptown. I have AT&T.

Way too many moving parts!

I am on the fence as well but don’t have the patience to document my journey with ARC.  It works, then it doesn’t.  Too busy to care to fix it on my own.  
 

I switch to Qobuz and am good to go.

9 hours ago, AnotherSpin said:

I can always use Qobuz when I'm not at home. Nevertheless, in a strange way, when I'm not at home, not in a familiar environment, I don't often feel like listening to familiar music. I don't mean repetitive every day rides in the car for a hour or two. I don't use the car anymore, but I used to always have a changing set of titles with me to listen to, there's no way without it. 

 

In a broader sense, the war has changed the familiar environment in a radical way. I get the felling that the war affected my interest in music. Some of the things I had been listening to for decades are no longer relevant. The number of composers or bands I turn to now has decreased drastically, a lot has dropped off without a trace. Who knows will it change back when the war will be over.

I know what you mean. I was a month home and a month in LA, previously. I was using an iFi nano, JRiver 30 and music on a 6TB USB 3 portable HD (using my Surface Pro 7) but I never used it. I was either working or just too tired to do anything.

I switched from OpenHome and DLNA to Roon about a year ago, but I still keep MinimServer and BubbleUPnP Server running on my NAS and the BubbleUPnP control point on my Android devices.

For me, Roon ARC runs sometimes, and sometimes it doesn't. In no case will it drive a DLNA, OpenHome, or Roon client at the receiving end. On a good day, it will drive a USB DAC via a cable from my (Android 13, Samsung) phone. Most days, it won't.

Though it was a bit trickier to set up, the BubbleUPnP Server setup has always worked well. I can stream my own library and Qobuz (BubbleUPnP supports Qobuz) and direct the output to any DLNA or OpenHome renderer, no matter where I am. I sent music to a friend's Rossini DAC, to a NAIM Uniti at a local dealership, and on many vacations.

I have a lifetime subscription and I am worried about Roon's future. They don't support any of the most popular streaming services, so it's hard to see how their user base can grow. They spent a lot of development effort on ARC*, which is buggy, crippled in output options, and with a GUI seemingly designed by someone who never used any other Roon clients. I still love using Roon at home, but I don't like ARC yet, and I'm concerned about Roon's future.

Mike

* Why pick a name already used for two other audio things? (Anthem Room Correction, HDMI Audio Return Channel)

@The Computer Audiophile, I have felt your pain with Roon ARC. For me, I found that a compete rescan of my library, coupled with the latest Roon updates, has fixed my accessibility to Roon at home and also via Roon ARC, which previously was at least as troublesome to use as you found it. I’ve been driving around today from Edina to the U of M and into downtown and South Minneapolis and Roon ARC has been streaming from home without issue.
 

JRMC and its JRemote app is another simple way to stream outside the home, so long as you avoid DSF files, which JRemote cannot decode. JCR 

I download to my phone if there is something I really want to give a listen but most of the time I am fine with local radio or Radio Paradise.  I can use the QNAP services to access my music but it can be....s...l...o....w...to connect.

Off topic but I am interested in the dual AT&T/T-Mobile signal...two phones or two sims in your phone?  We have T-Mobile Over-55 plan ($30/line unlimited everything) and are loathe to give it up...except whenever I need to search for something, and I have two bars 5G, nothing works.   Nothing.  T-Mobile only works 3 or more bars.  What a scam.

9 hours ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

Using an eSIM you can add more lines of service to a phone. I have AT&T on the physical SIM card and T-Mobile on an eSIM. Two numbers. One personal, one business. I can route and manage use of them. It’s great. 

I have a Samsung S22U with 2 physical sims. Not so popular in the US, but in the rest of the world lots of people have phones with 2 sim slots. You can get a phone with 2 sims if you look for it. Can do the same thing that way. 

Looks like we just missed each other by a couple of weeks (if that). Honestly, when I'm on Kauai or elsewhere like it, I don't even bother with music, though at times I suppose it would be nice (like The Descendants soundtrack esp). We listen to a little bad island reggae on the car radio, and rest of the time it's the waves and birds and tucked into a good book or game of cards, taking photos (nearly 200GB this last trip) etc. I've never once thought the lack of music made my time there anything less than it should be. And the last thing I want on vacation are IT hassles. Of course, audio reproduction, or writing about it, is not my job. 

Was it still raining considerably there? What part of the island were you staying? Our favorite beaches are the "Sheraton" beach in Poipu, and the hidden Allerton Beach, or "Trespassing" beach as we call it (as one has to ignore the "No..." signs) past Spouting Horn. 

ARC actually frustrated me yesterday as it was playing when I didn't know it, therefore using up my data (I'm on Google Fi, pay as you go). I went to search for something I heard on the radio (my main use of ARC) and accidentally got a 'radio' stream going. How long for I don't know. Think I prefer Qobuz direct personally. 

20 hours ago, jrobbins50 said:

I found that a compete rescan of my library, coupled with the latest Roon updates, has fixed my accessibility to Roon at home and also via Roon ARC,

I was also getting a poor connection message. I updated Roon and did a reset of the app on my phone a few days ago and so far it has been working fine. Maybe they fixed it, maybe a coincidence. Time will tell. 

here is a note from the recent update's change log dated March 15

This release addresses two issues which have been impacting a number of Roon users over the course of the past week. The first issue resulted in a number of connectivity issues which have been preventing ARC from communicating with its core.

Roon itself was a far-from-pleasant experience until version 2.0 which resolved most of the issues from inefficient polling and various other performance issues best forgotten. It may well be that the preparation for ARC was the gain that preceded in the version 2.0 changes. One good thing I am counting on from this progression with ARC is the hope that Roon continues to improve and still remain an audiophile focused software. ARC personally does not strike me as particularly audiophile centric but maybe the resulting software improvement gains will be something bit more exciting.

I had a horrible time with Roon ARC at first. It would disconnect before I could even get through a single song. I have a massive local library (500K+ tracks) and I figured that had something to do with it. I was considering getting a phone with more RAM. 

But Roon issued a hotfix update this week (Roon/Roon Server build 1234) that successfully resolved the connectivity issues for me. I did need to clear the data & cache for the Roon ARC app from my Android, but after I did that, Roon ARC has been 100% rock soild!

I've been using JRiver to stream my library to my phone for years and it works perfectly, but the functionality is crude compared having Roon in the phone/car. Having access to my entire library with easy searching and especially Roon Radio combining my library with Qobuz is game-changer.

Like others, I experienced inconsistent playback issues with ARC. After a small amount of troubleshooting, I gave up which is very unlike me. 

I went back to Apple Music or TIDAL apps in the car and for the albums unavailable or non-remixed albums I enjoy hearing away from home, I'm back to using Plexamp which, in my car systems, doesn't sound as good as I would like but is reliable.

I'm sure I'll give ARC another chance but I'm not in a hurry.

8 hours ago, loop7 said:

I'm sure I'll give ARC another chance but I'm not in a hurry.

if you haven't updated in the past few days try it... that is a very simple thing to do. Update your core and reset the app.. 

On 3/18/2023 at 8:19 AM, charlesphoto said:

Looks like we just missed each other by a couple of weeks (if that). Honestly, when I'm on Kauai or elsewhere like it, I don't even bother with music, though at times I suppose it would be nice (like The Descendants soundtrack esp). We listen to a little bad island reggae on the car radio, and rest of the time it's the waves and birds and tucked into a good book or game of cards, taking photos (nearly 200GB this last trip) etc. I've never once thought the lack of music made my time there anything less than it should be. And the last thing I want on vacation are IT hassles. Of course, audio reproduction, or writing about it, is not my job. 

 

Was it still raining considerably there? What part of the island were you staying? Our favorite beaches are the "Sheraton" beach in Poipu, and the hidden Allerton Beach, or "Trespassing" beach as we call it (as one has to ignore the "No..." signs) past Spouting Horn. 

 

ARC actually frustrated me yesterday as it was playing when I didn't know it, therefore using up my data (I'm on Google Fi, pay as you go). I went to search for something I heard on the radio (my main use of ARC) and accidentally got a 'radio' stream going. How long for I don't know. Think I prefer Qobuz direct personally. 

Hi Charles! Yeah, we just missed each other. I saw some of your photos as I was preparing to leave :~)

When I'm on vacation, music is critical for me and my family. This year, Taylor Swift provided the soundtrack to much of the trip becuase my daughter is a hug fan. I'd say most of my frinds and family are in your camp and don't bother with much music on vacation. As you say, there is aso the factor of audio reproduction and writing about it as a job, that gives me an extra push. 

I used to bring a camera everywhere, but haven't felt like going through the hassle lately. Sound familiar? I count on professionals like you to shoot the good stuff I could never get anyway :~) Family photos are just fine on my iPhone for now. I'm sure some day I'll go back to by 503CW just because I enjoy using it and I love what the photos look like, not that they are more accurate than other options. 

It wasn't very rainy at all. We stayed half the time on the north side and half on the south. Hanalei is our favorite place. We love the vibe of the north side of the island, even though the beaches can be dangerous this time of year.  I love the one lane bridges while driving to Hanalei and all the way to Tunnels beach, and the little beaches along the way. 

On the south side we stayed in Poipu, but spent a considerable amount of time along the south coast each day. Talk Story bookstore, Japanese Grandma cafe, Waimea Canyon, etc... all fun stuff. The turtles Poipu were of course unforgettable. 

Thanks for the beach tips. Those are usually the best, rather than the most popular beaches. I can't wait to return.

I might copyright the name "Roon Goldberg" 

Sadly, in the most useful place for such software, on a high-end DAP, Roon ARC doesn't have bit-perfect output. 

I have Cayin's N7 1-bit DAP in for review, and if there was an easy way to offline a bunch of DSD to it, then ARC would be perfect. The only reliable method is to copy files directly to a micro SD card and do playback via the included player. 

17 hours ago, Currawong said:

Sadly, in the most useful place for such software, on a high-end DAP, Roon ARC doesn't have bit-perfect output. 

I don't see that as "the most useful place" for the vast majority. What % of users really want to offline a bunch of DSD files to play remotely? I suppose sad if you hoped it would be, and I could be wrong, but I don't think it is intended to be a solution for your application.

If it works well in my car I'll be happy. 

They promote it as below... not as a bit perfect interface for high end headphone systems

"Whether you’re working out at the gym, heading into the office, or traveling thousands of miles from home – Roon ARC gives you remote access to your complete library of artists, albums, playlists, and tags. "

Here is an update to my original ARC article.