Sonore microRendu

[vortecjr]

I am really sceptical to use the clip-on american type plug to Schuko adapter for the Ifi iPower wall wart. Is this really an optimal solution for Europe?

Any comments to this?

It works for an X-Box console, but audiophile......(?)

 

It's not an american type plug to Schuko adapter. They have independent adapters that are interchangeable and lock into place. It's a very well made system that can be used virtually anyplace on the planet. We are selling a 5V version with the Sonicorbiter SE and they are working out very well for our customers. We are trying to offer an affordable solution because not everyone will need or want an expensive power supply.

[vortecjr]

Is the $640 with a basic power supply for 120V AC? Linear or switcher?

 

640 USD is without a power supply.

[vortecjr]

According to the webpage, there are four PS options:

 

Standard power supply

CIAudio linear power supply

Teddy Pardo linear power supply

Sonore Signature Series linear power supply

 

Pricing for each is not provided but you can easily Google each to get a sense of the pricing.

 

This will be updated when we start sales. Also, for now we plan to offer the iFi iPower supply and the SOtM battery supply. At a later date we will also offer a Sonore linear power supply.

[vortecjr]

Well for me the size isn't part of the interest; I'm thinking it's going to be the best sounding Network and USB solution around - at least for anything that isn't mulltiple thousands. Plus it's setup for all the software players I use. I'm also guessing that with a high end PS it will be quite competitive with $2K or more units.

 

But I'd bet that with the iFi unit or other more sensibly priced (a few hundred $, not thousands) power supply units it will sound great. BTW, not all upscale PS's are the size of a small oven

 

I can't wait to see what cleaver wording reviewers use to compare it to devices costing thousands of dollars more.

[vortecjr]

Well, while the J(ohn)S(wenson)-2 choke-filtered, power-factor-corrected, dual-output, isolated ground, 5-7A LPS is terrific (but parts-costly and labor intensive--and mostly in short supply), it is perhaps a bit overkill for the low current requirements of the microRendu.

 

Yet the other Swenson masterwork (delayed a little due to his focus on finishing microRendu hardware) may be the ultimate match for the new Sonore piece. 3.3V/5V/7V at 1amp and 100% isolated from the AC mains, with radical, yet-to-be-revealed tech requiring an FPGA (and even a microSD card for potential firmware updates), we are hoping this new piece will land at under $300. And the small 11cm x 11cm case even comes from the same enclosure series as both the microRendu and the REGEN.

 

Apologies to Jesus for plugging a product in the off-topic discussion of power supplies. I won't be offended if you delete this semi-shameless post. It's just that there are a lot of Sonore/Swenson/UpTone fans here and I find myself getting more excited about our new LPS for use with the microRendu than I am for it to be used for REGENs, Squeezbox Touch, USB cards, and SSD.

 

Please take any questions about our "mystery" supply over to its ongoing thread:

http://www.computeraudiophile.com/f27-uptone-audio-sponsored/uptone-audio-regen-power-supply-add-24963/index22.html#post512063

 

Cheers,

 

--Alex C.

 

Don't make me spill the beans on your new power supply...LOL.

[vortecjr]

can you please tell me does the microrendu play with the Bryston BDA-2 or do we have to install a driver?

 

It should just work with it.

[vortecjr]

I understand that space/footprint was one issue regarding I2s implementation in the uRendu, but I would also think that product cannibalization was another. If the uRendu rivals the costly Signature Rendu in sound quality I would guess that the SR sales would just plummet (?)

 

PS:

I own the DirectStream so I am also an I2s-hooligan

 

We had a very specific goal and while we considered adding i2s the feature was in conflict with other key requirements. Adding it affects the size, the cost, development time, and most importantly it is not needed for the main function of the unit which is USB output.

[vortecjr]

A few questions please:

 

1) When you say "Mode #3b - MPD Output - This output is intended to work with local storage. This output supports true gapless playback of PCM, DSD/DoP, and native DSD."

What is meant by "local storage?" Seems like the SD card is the only local storage but it also hold the OS.

 

2) In Squeezelite mode are there any upsampling/filtering options such as those provided by piCorePlayer? Would be great to have...

 

Thanks very much. Can't wait to read some user feedback.

 

-Mike

 

 

You need to mount a SMB drive for this option to work. There are no upsampling/filtering options with the Squeezelite output mode.

[vortecjr]

Can't LMS itself run the SoX SRC engine? I recall doing this at my place with John once (that's how we tuned the filter for the BottleHead DAC; he wrote a routine to output the final coefficients and then another to load them into the DAC's FPGA), and I thought we used SoX on the server side.

The high-horsepower server side is where the heavy lifting of upsampling ought to take place anyway. I'm not much of an LMS guy, being in love with the filters and SDM of HQ Player (but not its user interface), so when I buy a microRendu I'll use it as an NAA.

 

Here is some additional information regarding Logitech Media Server:

 

Logitech Media Server on a computer: You can run filters here as you please. You just need to access a configuration file and plug in filter script.

 

Logitech Media Server on the microRendu: We have this feature available for you so one can easily stream local radio and the popular internet services LMS supports. It also supports all the popular formats and sample rates with local playback of SMB mounted content.

[vortecjr]

Not sure if this is getting off topic but it seems to me that if, as Chris suggested earlier in this thread, the microRendu is a new paradigm for computer audio, there may be unexpected (and potentially sad) consequences. I use Audirvana in preference to Roon as for me in my system its SQ trumps Roon's interface. If the mR equalises the sound (as has been implied but not confirmed) then choosing Roon over A+ is likely for me - what then will become of our beloved audio engines. I sort of want this to happen but I massively admire what Damien (and others) have done and would be sad to see their efforts come to naught. Whilst the mR in and of itself may not be sufficient for their demise, if it really is as good as we hope, then it's only a matter of time before other boutique manufacturers and eventually major players produce similar devices. In 3 years time, iTunes networked to Sony's picoRendu will sound better than most of our current systems.

 

A related question re upsampling, pertinent to me. Part of the design philosophy is, I believe, to take the "heavy lifting" upstream so the mR can concentrate on its prime objective. Can this be taken a stage further to the dac itself? Bear with me. I have a Schiit Gungnir MB which, as the majority of dacs, upsamples within; the Schiit guys are proud of their upsampling filter. Many here including myself with my former dac choose to upsample in software (Audirvana etc.) claiming better sound. It could be that software upsampling filters are "better" than those in most dacs, or perhaps that removing this process from the dac benefits the remainder of its processes? But then the computer has to do more work. And under our current paradigm (oops - that word again!) round and round we go. Will the mR shift the balance, perhaps being viewed as an everything-upstream-filter? Will my super mega Burrito whatever filter also become obsolete?

 

Again, if off topic feel free to move somewhere else but I couldn't really think where better to post.

 

Andy

 

It's a valid question. Maybe Damien could add a feature to allow network streaming to his software. I'm sure if enough people ask him he would at least look into it. As for your other question...I like to think the microRendu will make your DAC sound better regardless of where the filters are applied. From there I'll leave it up to each person to decide where the best place is for the filters. Everyone has to do what they feel is best in their system or what is best for them. I promise not to judge.

[vortecjr]

Jesus, excuse me if I had asked this in an earlier post but I could not find it after searching. I know I can not, at this time, use my exaSound DAC with the microRendu with USB and native DSD.

 

I am interested in two new DAC's in possibly replacing my exaSound.

 

In order of preference:

 

1) T+A DAC 8 DSD - Currently available. Able to do DSD512 in native mode in Windows. Windows driver available for download on web site.

 

System requirements for DAC 8 DSD:

(For playing high resolution audio files up to the maximum sampling rate)

- Intel Core i3 or higher or a comparable AMD Processor

- 4 GB RAM

- USB 2.0 Interface

- Microsoft Windows 10, 8.1, 8, 7, Windows Vista or Windows XP

- or MAC OS 10.6.4 or higher

 

2) iFi iDSD Pro - Currently unavailable. Est June release.

 

Would I be able to use either of these DAC's with the microRendu with native DSD? If not now, what would be needed in order for use with the microRendu?

 

Jesus, thank you in advance. I know you are very busy trying to get the microRendu ready for sale.

 

I have not seen the USB information on the T+A DAC 8 so I can't say if it will support native DSD. If the iFi iDSD Pro USB is similar to their other USB devices then there is a good chance it will support native DSD. The best way to tell is to hook up a USB DAC to one of our units and send us the DAC Diagnostics information.

[vortecjr]

You do not seem to understand my reply and what Ted is trying to say.

When I write "The Kernel must be UAC2 compatible - it's going to work in DoP" and "it works up to DSD128", this is in Linux (microRendu is a Linux computer) and it comes directly from T+A!

 

There is an off chance that the DAC might be able to do DSD native in Linux (it means reaching DSD256 and DSD512 input) in the future. I already explained "how" and "if".

 

At the moment, how T+A DAC 8 DSD would work with microRendu it is not different from your exaSound DAC.

 

The difference is that it would seem to work with PCM and DSD/DoP in contrast the exaSound does not appear to work at all.

[vortecjr]

Kazoo requires OH. Are you saying uRendu is somehow Kazoo-ready but not other OH control points?

 

The DLNA/MPD mode works as an OH renderer, but it needs BubbleUPNP Server running on the unit or some other place on the network to work with Kazoo. With the Lumin APP it works without the need for BubbleUPNP Server.

[vortecjr]

Running a uPNP server on this hardware seems to me to completely defeat the purpose of the uRendu. The objective is to make a simple, optimised, electronically super-quiet renderer. Adding even the smallish overhead of a server would be counterproductive.

 

Running BubbleUPNP Server on the unit does not hurt its performance. If you are paranoid though you can always run it some other place on your network.

[vortecjr]

There is a good chance that I will have an opportunity to audition a T&A DAC 8 in the next week or two. If nobody else has done it already, I'll generate the Linux reports on it's USB interface that are needed to enable native DSD support for the DAC 8.

 

Cool and thanks.

[vortecjr]

Jesus,

 

Could you advise if the microRendu will work with the MSB DAC V & Analogue DAC USB interface? Does microRendu support direct DSD output or DoP with the MSB USB interface?

 

Thank you.

 

They work via PCM and DSD/DoP. Native DSD support needs to go through the same process of validation of the USB information and development of the driver if they are setup properly for native DSD. I can email them to find out more.

[vortecjr]

I intend to use microRendu with the 2x setup scenarios with Roon below.

 

1.) Roon (on server) > microRendu (roon ready output) => this is straight forward.

 

2.) Roon (on server) > HQPlayer (network mode) > microRendu (HQPlayer NAA mode) => does this work?

 

Thanks.

 

Roon handles the user interface and hands off playback to HQ Player. The microRendu handles the remote connection to your USB DAC via NAA. This is already working great for Sonicorbiter SE customers and would work the same on the microRendu.

[vortecjr]

Good to hear... I think I'll give it a shot. I don't have a NAS yet so I'm actually reading up now to see if there would be any SQ difference running Minimserver on a PC instead and using it as a server. I hope the MicroRendu would not be very susceptible to differences in configuration upstream like this.

 

Running MinimServer on a computer would be perfectly fine.

[vortecjr]

does it mean that with the uRendu there is no audio difference using roon in NAA mode or HQ player in NAA too or using with a Minimserver ?

 

Roon is not involved in playback with the Roon / HQ Player combination so they will sound identical. Comparing HQ Player to Minimserver is not practical because one is bit perfect playback and the other one has a filter stack on top of playback.

[vortecjr]

Since emails aren't answered does anyone know the release date of this hyped product?

 

Jason, sorry...I forgot to answer it. Your email says,

 

"Hello Jesus,

 

Will this be at Axpona? Also, if the $640 is paid now what is the lead time? I'd really like to try this unit out against my ARIES'. I have a couple of them...

 

Regards,

Jason"

 

A pre-production sample unit will be at Axpona in one of Vinnie's rooms, but I'm not sure which room. I have specifically not allowed pre-payments even with long time customers. I'm not ready to announce the release date and it when I am it will be via the mailing list. FYI the mailing list has been closed for some time. What I will say is that we are very close to launching. Chris' review unit should ship tomorrow or Tuesday at the latest. There is a lot of hype, but some of the feedback is honest feedback from people who have actually heard the microRendu. In regards to your planned comparison...let me say in advance that I'm sorry for your loss;) Just kidding. I look forward to your feedback.

[vortecjr]

Is the microRendu capable of processing multi-channel input? I am thinking of running crossover filters with the HQPlayer's convolution engine into the microRendu via NAA and then deriving the i2s from DIYINHK’s XMOS Multichannel high-quality USB to/from I2S/DSD SPDIF PCB which has a Linux UAC2 compliant kernel. (If this makes sense as I’m new to Linux) I would use exa U21 (USB to multi-channel i2s) but I believe there no Linux drivers.

Tony

 

There is some inherent support for multichannel, but this remains untested and not supported for the time being. I assume that NAA and MPD can work with your USB interface and I would be curious to know for sure. There just aren't that many devices that support multichannel on Linux. exaSounds devices will not be supported until the release the Linux drivers.

[vortecjr]

Having two wireless hops between server and the microRendu is not a good idea, avoid it if you can. A much better approach is to get the wireless bridge and plug both the server computer and the microRendo into the bridge. The one you mentioned has 4 ports so can easily handle this. This way music data goes wired from server to microRendu and you still have a LAN connection for using other computers as controllers, online streaming etc.

 

This configuration would be a very good setup.

 

John S.

 

This is a very good suggestion. Generally, we think of the computer / server or NAS as being far away in another place. There may be some electrical and acoustical benefit from having them far away, but when it's not practical to do this John's suggestion makes a lot of sense for local content. How good internet streaming works still depends on the strength of the WiFi signal though. Overall though I really like this solution.

[vortecjr]

That's why context is important. What Jesus was saying is that it will work over DoP but he doesn't know if it will work over direct DSD, and has to find out more from MSB to see if it can work doing direct DSD with the microRendu.

 

MSB was not able to give us the information we needed. Someone is going to have to hook one up to a Sonicorbiter SE or to a microRendu and send us the DAC Diagnostics information from the GUI.

 

We say DSD/DOP because the unit supports both formats. It's really up to your DAC to support these and most only support DoP. It would be nice to support more devices with native DSD, but it not necessary.

 

For more information on native DSD support on the Sonicorbiter SE and the microRendu refer to this thread:

http://www.computeraudiophile.com/f26-sonore-sponsored/sonore-sonicorbiter-se-native-direct-stream-digital-support-27418/

[vortecjr]

One more question. When will the AURALiC Vega compatibility testing be complete?

 

Unfortunately, they did not submit the patch to support native DSD on their device to the open source project. Instead, we had to figure it out and submit it ourselves. The patch remains untested as far as I know, but it should work. On the DAC side you may need a firmware update that you can obtain from them. BTW it would not worry me in the least for you to stream DoP during your comparison.

[vortecjr]

Howdy....any more info available regarding Amanero dsd256 capabilities?

 

The Amanero needs a firmware update to work properly with the available driver. Until that driver is available you have to use DoP.