Aurender x100L vs N100H

[Cycleman]

One difference - the N100H, a newer design, has a linear power supply, while the X100L has a switching power supply, which tends to generate more electrical "noise" than the linear kind.

 

Other differences too, which I cannot remember off the top of my head.

 

Dave, who has been testing out a N100H

[Cycleman]

I have found it very difficult to manage files on the internal disks after the initial drag and drop. ... So, if you are like me, you may find that the internal storage is not really an asset....

 

Ah, but how can we know if we are like you, aking, unless you describe in some detail the difficulty you're finding in managing files on the internal disks.

 

I ask, because with the N100H's hard drive mounted as a network drive on my work Macintosh desktop, it's just a drive with folders.

And that means I can simply move files from place to place, even after the initial drag and drop.

It's easy for me, so I'm trying to understand why someone might have problems.

Perhaps I can help you.

 

Actually, I'm really moving not just files, but mainly folders named by artist which contain folders named by albums (which contain the music files themselves).

 

Dave, who so far has been mighty pleased by the N100H and if he can find the time will write up a summary of what it's like to move from a headless Mac Mini music server to the Aurender unit

[Cycleman]

Here's my quick experience, with more to come when I have time.

 

1. I've kept my digital music library for nearly 15 years using iTunes, growing it to the point where all my CDs have been ripped, new CDs get ripped in days, and in addition I regularly download high-resolution PCM audio.
   
2. That use of iTunes includes both creating and editing metadata, as well as consolidating files into one main folder on my work iMac.
   
3. The metadata, including covers (which I paste in by hand; not letting iTunes do it), is as complete as I want it.
   
4. That music library has worked well with my Squeezebox Touch, my first digital music player, and the iPeng iOS app.
   
5. That music library has worked well with Audirvana (integrated) on my (dedicated) music Mac Mini.
   
6. The music library also works well with Audirvana (standalone), by pointing Audirvana to the main folder that iTunes originally created.
   
7. I regularly have copied music files from one computer to another, and the metadata is just as complete on the second or third Mac as it is on the first.
   
8. Then, when I got my Aurender N100H last week, I copied those same music files from my work iMac to the Aurender's internal drive.
   
9. All 2092 albums and all 30,068 tracks (which are all PCM) that are on my work iMac and music Mac Mini also appear on the N100H.
   
10. And all of the metadata, including covers, that is on the Mac computers also appears on the Aurender N100H.
    
11. And adding new music to the Aurender N100H is a simple task, just copying on the Mac desktop to the N100H as a connected server.
    

I love the Aurender N100H, for both its substantially better sound quality than the Mac Mini in my main music system and the great iPad app for controlling it. Plus, I continue to use Audirvana (in standalone mode) on the Mac Mini in my secondary system.

 

I can describe more details of my continued successful process over the next week or so, in case others might benefit.

Any questions now, please just ask.

 

Dave, who says other than album covers the metadata he has in his music files includes only these:

• track name
  
• artist
  
• album artist
  
• album name
  
• year
  
• track numbers
  
• disc number(s)
  
• composer(s)
  
• genre