The "Official" Aurender Discussion Thread

[KunterK]

15 hours ago, agladstone said:

KunterK - thanks for your response/ answers!!

seems like the battery power can't be done in the N100H:( 

Also, if it is mSata, seems like no sata cable is used either, thus no need to upgrade a Sata cable!! 

I wonder if attempting to mod the N100H so that the entire unit could be powered via an external LPSU would be possible and offer any sound improvements?

I would do the Network Optical Isolation trick first. N100H already has a nice linear supply.

[isquirrel]

On 03/06/2017 at 6:33 AM, KunterK said:

Then Aurender will be busy trying to find a network so not apples to apples. 

The improvement is hard to believe unless you hear it. 

 

And this was suggested to me by Aurender support so there should be a merit somewhere. 

How do you control the Aurender if the Network cable is removed ?

[agladstone]

5 hours ago, KunterK said:

I would do the Network Optical Isolation trick first. N100H already has a nice linear supply.

I have network isolation in my system already!!

I have an isolator first at the cable modem (prior to RG6 going into cable modem), then a network isolator from Cable modem to Wireless Router with built in 8 port Gigabyte switch, then another network isolator from Cable wireless router/switch prior to going into Aurender. (3 LAN Metwork Isolators in chain prior to Aurender). 

These are hospital grade Gigabyte Network LAN Isolators (as opposed to using the TPLink / optical cable / TPLink method, I've read in another thread on this forum (network isolation thread), that this was a better method vs the TPLink method to achieve LAN Isolation. 

I also currently use a W4S RUR that is powered by its own dedicated LPSU going from Aurender to my DAC, I am planning on upgrading from the W4S RUR to the new IFI ISO Micro iUSB as soon as it's available (should be within the next week or so) and I will also upgrade from the LPSU I'm using to power the RUR to the battery powered LPS-1 to power the ISO Micro iUSB. 

Thoughts?? 

[KunterK]

9 hours ago, isquirrel said:

How do you control the Aurender if the Network cable is removed ?

You will be limited to the front facing buttons.

But you can first start a playlist and pull the network plug to test. 

[KunterK]

4 hours ago, agladstone said:

I have network isolation in my system already!!

I have an isolator first at the cable modem (prior to RG6 going into cable modem), then a network isolator from Cable modem to Wireless Router with built in 8 port Gigabyte switch, then another network isolator from Cable wireless router/switch prior to going into Aurender. (3 LAN Metwork Isolators in chain prior to Aurender). 

These are hospital grade Gigabyte Network LAN Isolators (as opposed to using the TPLink / optical cable / TPLink method, I've read in another thread on this forum (network isolation thread), that this was a better method vs the TPLink method to achieve LAN Isolation. 

I also currently use a W4S RUR that is powered by its own dedicated LPSU going from Aurender to my DAC, I am planning on upgrading from the W4S RUR to the new IFI ISO Micro iUSB as soon as it's available (should be within the next week or so) and I will also upgrade from the LPSU I'm using to power the RUR to the battery powered LPS-1 to power the ISO Micro iUSB. 

Thoughts?? 

Wow, you are pretty much covered. 

 

I find grounding the network switch also pays off, sometimes by a large margin. I use an Entreq Silver Mini and Eartha Copper LAN to a great effect.

 

But I would anyhow try the optical isolation as I found it a better match to my tastes. But I did not have the hospital grades so your solution might be better...

[r_w]

On ‎02‎/‎06‎/‎2017 at 4:22 PM, The Computer Audiophile said:

 

Never seen this in all my years of using Aurender since the first S10 through the newest A10. 

 

They haven't answered yet so I'm stuck here without music. Hope they do soon

[edje]

On 2017-5-18 at 9:05 PM, russellbobby said:

Buddy is bringing over his Schiit Yggdrasil next week so we can shoot-out between the internal dac of the A10 and the Yggy.   Lot of Redbook and Hi-Rez ( except DSD of course). All Cardas Clear power cords and interconnects will be used in the shootout. Should have 4 pairs of ears so will be interesting.

Will report back.

Russ

 

Any news on this shootout? looking very much forward to it.

[russellbobby]

Unfortunately this did not happen yet. I did hear the Yggy in his rig and I really like it. I will report when it happens.

Being in Mich we only have 10 weeks of summer so the focus is shifting. I live on the water so boating and playing come first right now.

 

[mabe]

On 6.6.2017 at 9:03 AM, r_w said:

 

They haven't answered yet so I'm stuck here without music. Hope they do soon

 

....any news?

[r_w]

On 6/17/2017 at 3:30 PM, mabe said:

 

....any news?

 

Sorry forgot to update... I initially replied to an old conversation and their system caught the old case number and archived it. After two attempts I worked that out and sent a new clean email which was replied to very quickly.

 

They are sending me a new emergency USB drive (there is one inside) which houses the code to rebuild the SSD.

 

If that doesn't work then it has to be sent to the factory.

[mabe]

5 hours ago, r_w said:

 

 

They are sending me a new emergency USB drive (there is one inside) which houses the code to rebuild the SSD.

If that doesn't work then it has to be sent to the factory.

 

thanks for the update.

Lets hope it works w/o additional turnaround time by sending it back to the factory.

[r_w]

31 minutes ago, mabe said:

 

thanks for the update.

Lets hope it works w/o additional turnaround time by sending it back to the factory.

 

... Would just like to add that Aurender's support has been 1st class - it was a case of auto detection code that apprehended the old case number.

 

For future reference in general, don't reply to old email conversations, always create a new support ticket.

 

;-)

[skytool]

I heard that somebody upgraded the internal hard drive in N100 by himself. It seems that you can use ghost (a software tool) to clone the existing hard drive to a new bigger hard drive and it should be working. 

Wondering if anyone had tried that or confirm if it works or not.  I am trying to upgrade my 2tb in N100h.

[r_w]

On 6/19/2017 at 3:23 PM, r_w said:

 

... Would just like to add that Aurender's support has been 1st class - it was a case of auto detection code that apprehended the old case number.

 

For future reference in general, don't reply to old email conversations, always create a new support ticket.

 

;-)

 

Success! emergency USB stick saves the day... music is flowing again, thanks Aurender for great service!

;-)

[dminches]

2 minutes ago, r_w said:

 

Success! emergency USB stick saves the day... music is flowing again, thanks Aurender for great service!

;-)

 

Great to hear!

 

[TubeLover]

I was surprised while using Tidal tonight on My N100, to see that MQA enabled albums are now available for me to select to play. I'm impressed that Aurender was able to make this happen on the network player/streamer side. Granted, I do not have an MQA capable DAC and certainly have no plans to buy one, so it's mostly a moot point. I did do direct, A/B comparisons with some songs I know very well. I can't say that I heard any improvement. In fact, I would have to say that the MQA encoded versions, as I listened to them, were lacking something. Just my thoughts. 

 

JC

[agladstone]

19 hours ago, skytool said:

I heard that somebody upgraded the internal hard drive in N100 by himself. It seems that you can use ghost (a software tool) to clone the existing hard drive to a new bigger hard drive and it should be working. 

Wondering if anyone had tried that or confirm if it works or not.  I am trying to upgrade my 2tb in N100h.

Where did you hear / read this? 

I've been interested in doing the same thing myself for a while now! Ive also been interested in doing the same (with ghost or similar) to not only replace the 2TB HDD to a 4TB HDD, but to also upgrade the 128GB SSD (I think it's M.2) to a 256GB one (The N10 uses a 256GB SSD (not an M.2 like the N100H does). 

My concern was that I would end up with a 4TB HDD that had a cloned 2TB HDD, and thus would only operate / function as 2TB HDD even though it was "sitting" in a 4TB HDD (but not increase capacity past 2TB). 

Please let me know where I can read more about this or if you try it and it works, I'm closely approaching the 2TB limit in my Aurender N100!!

[agladstone]

FYI:

i found this in the web:

OK, i decided to take this task on because no where on the net is there any instructions on how to do this, other than send it in to your dealer or Aurrender.

First off, if you do this you may run the risk of voiding your warranty, damaging your unit, and or losing all of your data so proceed at your own risk. i emphasize that this is a task for anyone who is computer savvy and is comfortable working on a desktop with precision.


(Content removed at the request of Aurender. - CC)
 

[Taxman]

3 hours ago, agladstone said:

(Content removed at the request of Aurender. - CC)
 

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

34 minutes ago, Taxman said:

 

 

If one person has the information, it's no longer secret. I'm sure people will be able to obtain it if they want. I just don't want to publish the info that a manufacturer kindly asked me to remove because it was "inside" information. 

[Taxman]

2 hours ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

 

If one person has the information, it's no longer secret. I'm sure people will be able to obtain it if they want. I just don't want to publish the info that a manufacturer kindly asked me to remove because it was "inside" information. 

 

It's not really about the information, but more how Aurender as a company choose to act. I have been following this thread for some time and provided some comments and thoughts around my S10, but I have never seen or heard any "official comments" from Aurender then, but when someone provides useful information about disc upgrade, they requested it to be removed. The only "inside information" I saw in that information was regarding how to format the drive. IF Aurender would be a customer oriented company, they could easily provide a format functionality in the conductor app, allowing computer savvy users means to improve their Aurenders.

 

 

[dminches]

8 minutes ago, Taxman said:

 

It's not really about the information, but more how Aurender as a company choose to act. I have been following this thread for some time and provided some comments and thoughts around my S10, but I have never seen or heard any "official comments" from Aurender then, but when someone provides useful information about disc upgrade, they requested it to be removed. The only "inside information" I saw in that information was regarding how to format the drive. IF Aurender would be a customer oriented company, they could easily provide a format functionality in the conductor app, allowing computer savvy users means to improve their Aurenders.

 

 

 

I don't recall Aurender asking me to remove any of the comments I made regarding my disc upgrade.  While I would have preferred to do this myself, the upgrade performed by Aurender could not have gone smoother.

 

I think they are a very consumer-focused company.  Every interaction with them has been positive.

 

I know everyone wants everything to be DIY but I am fine with a company not wanting to do down that route.  Consumers break things and then expect the manufacturer to fix it for them.

[The Computer Audiophile]

1 hour ago, Taxman said:

 

It's not really about the information, but more how Aurender as a company choose to act. I have been following this thread for some time and provided some comments and thoughts around my S10, but I have never seen or heard any "official comments" from Aurender then, but when someone provides useful information about disc upgrade, they requested it to be removed. The only "inside information" I saw in that information was regarding how to format the drive. IF Aurender would be a customer oriented company, they could easily provide a format functionality in the conductor app, allowing computer savvy users means to improve their Aurenders.

 

 

 

I hear ya. The company is actually very consumer, for its target market. Have a problem? They connect directly to the server and fix it.  There are different business models that allow customers to do different levels of "support" themselves. Some companies want to control the user experience while others don't. Fortunately, there are plenty of solutions available for everyone.

[agladstone]

The one thing that does actually frustrate me is this:

I understand completely why Aurender wants to limit the end users to do too much DYI upgrades to their units. 

However, what they could easily do, is allow the end user to physically replace a broken HDD or someone whom needs more space / larger driver themselves by providing a PDF or online of very specific step by step instructions and photographs (it's honestly a pretty simple task). 

Then, have the end user contact Aurender tech support via email or the conductor app and then Aurender could dial into the unit remotely and they could perform the HDD formatting themselves for the end user. 

I was actually told that this is what they did when I bought my Aurender by my authorized dealer! 

Unfortunately, it turned out to be not true (or they stopped doing it) and I have moved to another state, and I cannot physically go to the dealer I purchased it from myself. 

Thus, my only option is to ship my unit to China and back to upgrade to a larger HDD, when it would be so simple for me to buy a 4TB or 8TB drive(s) and have then log in remotely and perform the reformatting themselves for me if they don't want to allow end users to do it ourselves. 

[The Computer Audiophile]

I certainly hear ya. I'd prefer something similar, but it's Aurender's business decision. This decision is very similar to Apple. I wanted to replace the battery in my MacBook Pro. Apple told me to drop the laptop off at the Apple store so it could be shipped to the nearest service center. Total turnaround time was approximately 5 days.

 

I'd prefer to order the battery online and pop it in myself, but I made the decision to go with Apple and have accepted its system.The pros outweigh the cons when I consider the totality of the situation.