Sonore microRendu

[MikeyFresh]

Is not quite what I expect. Each and every cable I've tried and owned like AQ Diamond USB has made a huge difference in sound-staging and details retrieval at least.

 

I can certainly add a bigger stereo sound stage and improved focus (image specificity) to the list of improvements, but not necessarily detail retrieval unless you count that as sort of one in the same with the sound staging.

 

Part of my comparison was not actually with the hard adapter, over a couple of month's time I first switched to the Chord Co. Silver Plus .75m USB cable, and then on to the WW Starlight 7.

 

The differences between the Silver Plus and Starlight 7 were smaller, though that does not mean the two sound identical, they do not (in my system). Both are superior to the hard adapter in my current set-up.

 

I don't currently have the scratch for the WW Platinum or I'd probably just go for it based on my friend's recommendation, he's definitely not one to heap praise or wax poetic about the cable du jour, quite the opposite actually.

[adamaley]

Thanks for the update, that's great feedback and it looks like mR is a good transport option for me. Were you using the Unitiqute into the Cronus amp directly before? Could you give a description of the sonic gains you experienced first by adding Gumby to the Unitiqute, then with mR? And are there any downsides to both these changes i.e. anything lost such as the Naim prat/dynamics?

 

My feeling is that using mR into Gumby may be plenty good enough for me vs spending a lot more on an Yggdrasil or Naim DAC v1. I've heard DAC v1 fed by a Unitiqute, and Gumby but in different systems, and liked both compared to UQ alone but didn't feel like the DAC v1 was a night and day difference.

 

In explaining the awesomeness of the µR to a friend recently, I stated that I would take a system with µR+Gungnir vs one with only the Yggdrasil. That's how utterly essential I feel the µR is. Note, I didn't say Gumby, but Gungnir, and yes, I do own the Yggdrasil, which I upgraded to through Gungnir --> Gumby (audition over a month).

[muski]

I'm using a 0.7m Supra cable, as the adapter wasn't a good fit in my setup. Can't hear any loss of SQ.

If someone tried a 15-20 cm usb that sounded good and didn't cost an arm and a leg, I'd give it a try. There was a post here by someone who tried the specially made Curious "Regen" cable and didn't like it.

I think we're in the realm of personal taste here and I respect everyone's views, but I do like the Curious cables—I have a two of the Regens and another Micro-terminated one to connect a µRendu to a Chord Mojo.

 

They sound great to my ears—very non-digital and natural. I also purchased one of the Regen's with the 5v disconnect option, which I use with my Devialet D800 (doesn't work with the Mytek Brooklyn). Quite reasonable at US$120. I've seen plenty of positive comments in this thread on the Curious, though I learned about them in a review by John Darko, whose taste in gear I respect.

 

Curious for the curious: a knockout USB cable from Australia | DAR__KO

 

Cheers,

muski

[firedog]

Wasn't criticizing the Curious cable per se, just reporting that specifically with the mR one user reported he didn't like it - and he did like it in other applications.

[E-Stat]

Short of a new firmware adding OS X support without a driver you will need to use a USB digital converter between the microRendu and the AR DAC8.

Update. Received new Audiophilio converter.

 

1. Now getting DAC statistics

2. Squeezelite app remains running

3. Remote "sees" microRendu and allows me to play content

4. No output

 

During my initial problems, I inadvertently loaded the LMS app on the unit. I thought that was some sort of configuration as opposed to loading it. I suspect it might be expecting for the local server to be the one feeding it.

 

How do you uninstall an app? Or perhaps, how do you do a master reset on the unit?

 

Thanks!

[JohnSwenson]

Update. Received new Audiophilio converter.

 

1. Now getting DAC statistics

2. Squeezelite app remains running

3. Remote "sees" microRendu and allows me to play content

4. No output

 

During my initial problems, I inadvertently loaded the LMS app on the unit. I thought that was some sort of configuration as opposed to loading it. I suspect it might be expecting for the local server to be the one feeding it.

 

How do you uninstall an app? Or perhaps, how do you do a master reset on the unit?

 

Thanks!

 

Make sure the volume isn't turned down all the way. This has happened several times with me and I know to look for it!

 

On the uninstall, go to the microRendu web page, click on apps, click on software manager, then click on installed apps. Click on the icon of the one you want to uninstall, this should bring up a delete button, click on that.

 

John S.

[E-Stat]

Make sure the volume isn't turned down all the way. This has happened several times with me and I know to look for it!

That wasn't the primary problem, but it did have relevance. With the Touch, I had disabled the volume level so the gain on the iPad controller had no effect. It does with the uRendu. Initially I had to really crank the preamp before I discovered that.

 

On the uninstall, go to the microRendu web page, click on apps, click on software manager, then click on installed apps. Click on the icon of the one you want to uninstall, this should bring up a delete button, click on that.

Yep, with a little digging, I found it! Also I had set the bit rate to 24 and it's happier on auto.

 

I really love you man - it's alive!

 

First impression? OMG

[Topspin70]

We have not isolated this. It occurs when one presses reboot in which case the unit shuts down and it's difficult to watch for logs at that point.

 

On the subject of shutting down, each time I turn off the unit, would you advise I power down via the url or just turn off the LPS? I've been doing the latter. Any bad effects on the mR?

[vortecjr]

On the subject of shutting down, each time I turn off the unit, would you advise I power down via the url or just turn off the LPS? I've been doing the latter. Any bad effects on the mR?

 

Shutting it down from the GUI is not a bad idea because it keeps the OS from just crashing when you remove power. Then just power cycle to the PS switch and allow time for the unit to boot up.

[firedog]

2. Optical network isolation

50/50 chance that optical network isolators will cause connection and playback issues. The use of optical network isolators is not recommend

 

Can you give any more info on this? I was just about to try optical isolators when I saw this warning.

Why would the mR be especially problematic in this scenario?

[vortecjr]

Can you give any more info on this? I was just about to try optical isolators when I saw this warning.

Why would the mR be especially problematic in this scenario?

It's based on customer feedback....it works for some and not for others.

[Topspin70]

Shutting it down from the GUI is not a bad idea because it keeps the OS from just crashing when you remove power. Then just power cycle to the PS switch and allow time for the unit to boot up.

 

Got it. Thanks!

[d_elm]

I am using two TP-LINK MC220CM without any problems with microRendu. If using a CAT7 cable the MC220CM does not like the shield connected at both ends, one end only for a link.

[earnmyturns]

I had been using my microRendu with MPD/DLNA serving FLAC from Minimserver on a Synology NAS. Since last night, I've been playing with Roon Server on a Ubuntu Linux Intel NUC indexing the NAS FLAC contents, controlled by Mac and Android Roon clients. It may be placebo effect, as I can't do blind testing, but Roon sound seems a bit cleaner than MPD. The only (barely) rational hypothesis I can come up with is that RAAT exercises the microRendu's processor and memory differently (less?) than MPD, and that has slight effect on what happens downstream. Or I'm hearing ghosts...

[d_elm]

Using DLNA you could convert flac to wav on the NAS with minumStreamer. It is a module of minumServer and is installed with minumWatch. The microRendu would have less to do with a wav. With Lumin the track stats do not indicate the format of the data received by the microRendu but Lumin does show such information if foobar2000 is the renderer. It would be desirable for microRendu to make available more track information.

[vortecjr]

I had been using my microRendu with MPD/DLNA serving FLAC from Minimserver on a Synology NAS. Since last night, I've been playing with Roon Server on a Ubuntu Linux Intel NUC indexing the NAS FLAC contents, controlled by Mac and Android Roon clients. It may be placebo effect, as I can't do blind testing, but Roon sound seems a bit cleaner than MPD. The only (barely) rational hypothesis I can come up with is that RAAT exercises the microRendu's processor and memory differently (less?) than MPD, and that has slight effect on what happens downstream. Or I'm hearing ghosts...

I have customers on both sides of this argument. You can try allowing MinimServer to transcode FLAC to WAV, increase the bit rate, increase the sample rates, or some combination of those.

[vortecjr]

Using DLNA you could convert flac to wav on the NAS with minumStreamer. It is a module of minumServer and is installed with minumWatch. The microRendu would have less to do with a wav. With Lumin the track stats do not indicate the format of the data received by the microRendu but Lumin does show such information if foobar2000 is the renderer. It would be desirable for microRendu to make available more track information.

 

That information is available to the server and the controller so that is where it should be displayed. We are a renderer only. Some DAC can also display the information. Anyway, I'm against having a display on our gear.

[charlesphoto]

I transcode flac(5) to Wav24 with minimserver on my Vortexbox as a matter of practice since I was/am using the Unitiqute as my streamer. It does sound better (on the microrendu too), the hypothesis being the streamer has less to do not having to unpack the flac file. Or whatever. Easy to do, costs nothing.

[d_elm]

That information is available to the server and the controller so that is where it should be displayed. We are a renderer only. Some DAC can also display the information. Anyway, I'm against having a display on our gear.

 

I use Lumin as the DLNA controller. When I was using foobar2000 as the renderer Lumin would display track information that contained the type of data, flac or wav. When I changed from foobar2000 to microRendu, and no other changes, Lumin does not display the type of data the renderer is getting and it also tells me 24 bit files are 32. It appears to me the renderer has something to say about what the controller displays.

[charlesphoto]

I see the same thing, 32 bit for 24. Lumin is far from a perfect app though. Kazoo either. Nor the Naim app. My poor wife is really confused.

 

I like the browser function of Lumin in genre and artists, but it really needs visible play controls in all windows. Kazoo is neater but slower, and same tree type navigation to genres. Tried mConnect but couldn't get it to be stable.

 

Hey, how about Sonore create a player software combining the best of all, and charge for it?

[earnmyturns]

I see the same thing, 32 bit for 24. Lumin is far from a perfect app though. Kazoo either. Nor the Naim app. My poor wife is really confused.

 

I like the browser function of Lumin in genre and artists, but it really needs visible play controls in all windows. Kazoo is neater but slower, and same tree type navigation to genres. Tried mConnect but couldn't get it to be stable.

 

Hey, how about Sonore create a player software combining the best of all, and charge for it?

Over the last several years, I've tried pretty much everything available for NAS-resident PCM with FLAC, and Android control points. I ended up with an OK setup: Minimserver on my NAS, BubbleUPnP for control points on our Android devices, and a lot of manual curation of metadata with Metadatics on a Mac. Cheap on the software side (everything free or small $$ apps). But I've just started trying Roon, serving from an Intel NUC with Ubuntu and its Android control points, and the experience is way better. Except for a couple of weird folder issues that Minimserver had managed to work around but Roon disliked, which I fixed by cleaning up the folder mess that I had inherited from two Nonesuch and HDtracks downloads, Roon indexed everything really well, and both me and my wife are finding it much easier to navigate our medium-sized collection (664 albums, mostly jazz, world, and classical). The price for the Roon subscription feels a bit steep at first, but I work in the industry so I understand the expense of building and supporting reliable server and client software with nice UIs.

[André Gosselin]

I use Lumin as the DLNA controller. When I was using foobar2000 as the renderer Lumin would display track information that contained the type of data, flac or wav. When I changed from foobar2000 to microRendu, and no other changes, Lumin does not display the type of data the renderer is getting and it also tells me 24 bit files are 32. It appears to me the renderer has something to say about what the controller displays.

I fully agree with you on that. It is acceptable to say it is not the job of the renderer to display track information like the frequency, format and bit width, and relegate that responsability to the controller. But where does the controller will get that info, if not from the renderer when the controller polls it regularly to get timing data ? It is clearly the responsability of the renderer to send those track data to the controller. I have used different renderers before like Cambridge Audio, Simaudio Mind, or Foobar 2000, and was able to be informed of the track format and bit width when using different controllers like BubbleUPnP and Lumin. With the microrendu MPD module, all one gets is the frequency and the bps value. It should not be such a terrible task to update the MPD module so track format and bit width is also sent to the controller. I raised this point before in this thread. May I suggest this could be a nice improvement to the microrendu software ?

[earnmyturns]

I have customers on both sides of this argument. You can try allowing MinimServer to transcode FLAC to WAV, increase the bit rate, increase the sample rates, or some combination of those.

I may try FLAC>WAV on Minimserver out of curiosity, but I'm happy with Roon from our experience so far. One additional twist is that I also have a Sonicorbiter SE for my speaker system (waiting on some other upgrades before replacing the SE with a second microRendu), and the SE improves more than the microRendu from the switch to Roon/RAAT, to the point that my wife (who has more refined hearing than me) remarked on this without prompting. All of this with good PCM-only DACs and a combination of Redbook and some higher rate/depth PCM.

[zettelsm]

Hello everyone!

Has anyone preferred the fancy USB cable to the hard adapter? Asking because I'm about to get the WW Platinum 7 to try with uR while constantly reading that most prefer the hard adapter.

 

I've tried the following USB cables in this order and preference: Oyaide, WireWorld Platinum, Nordost Heimdall, Light Harmonic Lightspeed split, Curious Cable, Audience AU23 SE. The Audience continues to be my favorite due to its very balanced, transparent and harmonically rich performance.

 

Steve Z

[HumanMedia]

I've tried the following USB cables in this order and preference: Oyaide, WireWorld Platinum, Nordost Heimdall, Light Harmonic Lightspeed split, Curious Cable, Audience AU23 SE. The Audience continues to be my favorite due to its very balanced, transparent and harmonically rich performance.

 

Steve Z

 

Sorry I'm a bit confused - is the order of the list the order you tried them in, or the descending order of preference, or ascending order of preference?

 

If the Audience is the most favourite, then the Oyaide is s the least favourite?