Jump to content
IGNORED

New audiophile looking for good starter system advice


Recommended Posts

Thanks so much for such a detailed response. I should have mentioned that I will have two separate electrical circuits at my rack.  One for the computer equipment and one for audio. 

 

Temperature should not be an issue as the rack is in a non insulated portion of the basement which stays pretty cool and I can add fans if needed. Noise should not be a problem either as the equipment will be in a separate room from the theater/listening room. 

Link to comment

To start I am going to just connect the NAS to the Marantz via USB and see how that does.  If I don;t have any problems getting the audio passthrough from the Docker container then I will probably buy a DAC and call it a day.  If I have problems that way then I will either go with a NUC or something like the sonicTransporter.

Link to comment
5 hours ago, bozrdang said:

 If I don;t have any problems getting the audio passthrough from the Docker container then I will probably buy a DAC and call it a day

 

Why ? You already have the Marantz with a DAC built in. 

 

Or or do you expect a good DAC shall feed analog in on your Marantz, or is your intention to bypass the Marantz? 

 

Also: (another thing)

If you have a Apple TV or a Squeezebox connected in your network, those should show up as audio devices. Just as a confirmation that things are ok. 

 

Link to comment
6 hours ago, bozrdang said:

 If I have problems that way then I will either go with a NUC or something like the sonicTransporter.

 

Did you not already confirm that your iPhone is connected to your Roon core ? 

 

Do you have a laptop or any PC in your house? If any problem occurs , you should install Roon on those and do testing before you ever consider other HW for Roon. 

The PC will in any case serve as a controller, agree ?

Link to comment
1 hour ago, R1200CL said:

 

Why ? You already have the Marantz with a DAC built in. 

 

Or or do you expect a good DAC shall feed analog in on your Marantz, or is your intention to bypass the Marantz? 

 

Also: (another thing)

If you have a Apple TV or a Squeezebox connected in your network, those should show up as audio devices. Just as a confirmation that things are ok. 

 

 

I'm assuming that an external DAC would be better than the one on the Marantz and I would then pass analog audio to the Marantz which would then pass it on to my amp.  I do not have a Apple TV or Squeezebox

 

1 hour ago, R1200CL said:

 

Did you not already confirm that your iPhone is connected to your Roon core ? 

 

Do you have a laptop or any PC in your house? If any problem occurs , you should install Roon on those and do testing before you ever consider other HW for Roon. 

The PC will in any case serve as a controller, agree ?

 

My android phone and tablet both connected to Roon on my NAS and I could browse my music but it said no audio devices found since I have yet to connect the Marantz to my NAS.  I've been playing with Roon for a couple months on my desktop PC but that is not going to be in my listening room once it is set up.

Link to comment
1 hour ago, bozrdang said:

I'm assuming that an external DAC would be better than the one on the Marantz and I would then pass analog audio to the Marantz which would then pass it on to my amp.

 

My assumption would be that you would need an extremely good analogue section in that Marantz, in order to get any benefits from a supposedly better DAC. 

 

If that DAC has it's own volume control (not digital one) you can easy test by bypassing the Marantz. 

 

Or if it has no volume control, you can test it directly to your amps anyway, by using Roon (or HQPlayer) volume control. And compare against the Marantz in the loop. 

 

So so you may purchase a DAC you can return. 

 

I could of cause be totally wrong ?

Hopefully some will disagree and tell you differently based on their experiences.

(I only do "bad" DAC to god DAC to test MQA). 

 

Most likely the ISO regen and/or the MicroRendu and similar will give you better SQ than an extra DAC. Maybe even the Jitterbug. But only you can tell. 

 

I'm not sure if your goal is to combine a home theater with a good stereo setup. I did struggle a long time before I achieved such a solution. 

 

It it would be interesting to hear how your project develops. 

 

 

 

Link to comment

I use a file server, tiny windows pc, jriver, hdmi and optical to avr. Also works with just hdmi but there are occasional handshaking issues when switching hdmi inputs.

 

My goal is the best sound at a reasonable cost. This setup does that for me. I'm also in the "bits are bits" camp and satisfied with decent avr dacs and adequate quality cables.

 

Others approach it from how much can I spend to get some possible incremental improvement. That's fine. Spending a lot of money can be fun, too.

Link to comment
21 hours ago, R1200CL said:

 

I'm not sure if your goal is to combine a home theater with a good stereo setup. I did struggle a long time before I achieved such a solution. 

 

It it would be interesting to hear how your project develops. 

 

 

 

 

Yes.  My goal is to combine a good home theater with a good stereo setup.  What solution did you finally settle upon?

Link to comment
6 hours ago, rn701 said:

I use a file server, tiny windows pc, jriver, hdmi and optical to avr. Also works with just hdmi but there are occasional handshaking issues when switching hdmi inputs.

 

I have a feeling that's where I will end up because I think I am going to have problems giving my Roon Docker container access to a USB port for an audio device.  If so and I end up adding a NUC or other compouter in the chain I might as well have it run Roon Core rather than my NAS.

 

Right now I have been running Roon on my desktop upstairs outputting via HDMI to my Marantz and it sounds pretty good to me.

Link to comment
12 minutes ago, bozrdang said:

I have a feeling that's where I will end up because I think I am going to have problems giving my Roon Docker container access to a USB port for an audio device.  If so and I end up adding a NUC or other compouter in the chain I might as well have it run Roon Core rather than my NAS.

 

Thats why you NOT add a NUC, but the MicroRendu ?

 

I'm not joking. If you struggle with USB from your Linux/Docker, you don't solve the issue with adding another computer. 

 

As I think I indicated, you test this by install Roon Brigde on your PC, and drag the USB cable  from that PC to the Marantz. You don't even need to connect a Ethernet cable to that PC. Wifi is OK.

Then you purchase an endpoint like the MicroRendu. 

 

I hope you understand. 

Link to comment
6 hours ago, rn701 said:

I use a file server, tiny windows pc, jriver, hdmi and optical to avr. Also works with just hdmi but there are occasional handshaking issues when switching hdmi inputs.

 

Where is your Roon installed ? ( OP use Roon). 

Link to comment
28 minutes ago, R1200CL said:

 

Thats why you NOT add a NUC, but the MicroRendu ?

 

I'm not joking. If you struggle with USB from your Linux/Docker, you don't solve the issue with adding another computer. 

 

As I think I indicated, you test this by install Roon Brigde on your PC, and drag the USB cable  from that PC to the Marantz. You don't even need to connect a Ethernet cable to that PC. Wifi is OK.

Then you purchase an endpoint like the MicroRendu. 

 

I hope you understand. 

 

The USB problem I am talking about would be strictly related to my NAS.  By default the Docker containers do not have access to all of the system's peripherals and/or unRAID's OS doesn't have drivers installed for many of them.  It can be done but this is where my skills are lacking.  I haven't tried it yet but from my reading I don't think the Roon Docker container I setup on my NAS will be able to access a USB port to send audio to my Marantz without a bunch of work.

 

If I end up using a NUC outputting straight to my Marantz then I would most likely use HDMI so I can also get the GUI on my screen.  Plus I can then get mutlichannel audio playback for my SACD's.  Would that be possible via USB?  What about a MicroRendu?  Can it output multi channel?

 

24 minutes ago, R1200CL said:

 

Where is your Roon installed ? ( OP use Roon). 

 

Right now, in my main room of interest (the theater room), Roon is installed on my unRAID NAS but I have no audio equipment down there yet so Roon shows "no audio device available" or something like that.

Link to comment
2 hours ago, bozrdang said:

The USB problem I am talking about would be strictly related to my NAS.  By default the Docker containers do not have access to all of the system's peripherals and/or unRAID's OS doesn't have drivers installed for many of them.  It can be done but this is where my skills are lacking.  I haven't tried it yet but from my reading I don't think the Roon Docker container I setup on my NAS will be able to access a USB port to send audio to my Marantz without a bunch of work.

 

If I end up using a NUC outputting straight to my Marantz then I would most likely use HDMI so I can also get the GUI on my screen.  Plus I can then get mutlichannel audio playback for my SACD's.  Would that be possible via USB?  What about a MicroRendu?  Can it output multi channel?

 

When reading your answer, I think we not fully understanding each other. 

 

I understood your usb issue. And again; you don't solve that by adding a NUC. 

 

Roon can work direct via usb, but it works best over network and with an endpoint. 

So you solve that by adding an endpoint. Period !!!!

 

And as I indicated you have a quite perfect Roon server in that NAS. 

And it may even be more perfect cause there are no USB.

 

Roon and USB are multi channel. Should work. Can double check and get a confirmation that MicroRendu will do fine. 

But so can you do by using your tiny PC ?

 

If HDMI is important, try an Apple TV. ? (As Roon endpoint). 

 

If you like to have Roon controller displayed on screen, then use some options like mirror a tablet, or HDMI from your minipc, but again as a controller. 

Controller NOT server. I hope you understand the difference. 

 

HMDI for picture. USB and MicroRendu for sound. 

Which means you need to find a clever way to display Roon, cause you can't take your Marantz, that already has selected the USB input as source. 

 

So unless your screen has several hmdi inputs, you will need a simple hmdi switch. 

 

Now of cause if you as a TEST add you PC as an endpoint, assuming it has HMDI, you can of cause then play via HMDI, and get both sound a picture simultaneously.

 

It you happy with that, make yourself a NUC AS ENDPOINT, but not as a server. 

 

You have one server and as many endpoints you like.

And those endpoints can be on other rooms, that's why the term zones. 

 

Or or you just use several different inputs into your Marantz from the same Roon server. 

You play the same song simultaneously on different endpoints and chech which one sounds best by just change the input on your Marantz. 

 

Did this nake name any sense to you, or did you already know all I said ?

 

Are you planning to use HQPlayer ?

And if yes, at what sample rate ?

Link to comment

R1200CL - I apologize for all the confusion.  It's a combination of my general ignorance on computer audio and a total lack of understanding how Roon works.  Up to this point all I had dealt with was my PC connected to my Marantz and Roon running on that PC playing audio direclty.  So I was thinking my NAS needed an audio output for the Roon Docker running on it.

 

After reading your last post and giving it some more thought the light bulb finally went on (although very dimly, lol).  I just installed Roon Bridge on my upstairs PC and after a little bit of trial and error, I am playing audio on it via Roon Core running on my NAS.  Very Cool!

 

Now I understand a little better.  So, in a basic sense, something like a MicroRendu would act just like my upstairs PC is currently acting?  

Link to comment
43 minutes ago, bozrdang said:

I just installed Roon Bridge on my upstairs PC and after a little bit of trial and error, I am playing audio on it via Roon Core running on my NAS.  Very Cool!

 

Indeed. You're very creative. I would never thought about that option. (Almost) Thanks for letting me understand my explanation helped. 

I've been where you been, and Roon Brigde I only understood less than a month ago myself. Basically because I thought I did not need it, which is correct, but for me to have a bit fun with MQA and an Explorer2, Roon Brigde was the perfect way to go. 

When you understand how different Roon works compared to anything else, you won't look back. The analogy is probably server and client. 

For some probably good reason Roon avoided that "picture". 

 

So then unless you start to push your Docker to hard, I suppose you've found your Roon server solution for now. 

 

You probably don't know but I learned about the Docker option from you, and probably many people don't know this route to utilizing Roon. It may as I said be one of the best. 

 

I suppose your SACD also produces sound on that tiny PC. Totally meaningless of cause. 

 

There is a thread :

Maybe you get inspired to make some virtual switches on your NAS. ?

 

I haven't studied everything on your Marantz, so I don't know if it does DSD. But I would expect PCM 192/24 for sure. 

So have you considered HQPlayer? Or do you know what it is ?

 

Even today your PC will do HQPlayer for PCM. But don't download and test it before the rest works. 

 

If your docker do VM's, you can install HQPlayer on those. Actually you can install Roon as well ?

But I'm not sure if a good way to go. Maybe for testing. 

 

 

 

Link to comment
5 hours ago, bozrdang said:

Yes.  My goal is to combine a good home theater with a good stereo setup.  What solution did you finally settle upon?

 

Before I answer more, are you able to read somewhere in my profile what equipment I have. 

I haven't fully understood all features of the new CA yet ?

Link to comment

I will check out that thread.  Thanks!  Crutchfield says this about my Marantz and DSD:

 

  • plays high-resolution digital music files via USB storage device or a networked computer (PCM up to 24-bit/192kHz resolution; DSD up to 2.8 MHz .dsf files)

I have read about HQPlayer and it sounds like one of those things that is so configurable that it could be complicated.  I haven't really looked into it that much yet though.  Docker is an alternative to VM's so Docker dooesn't "do" VM's.  unRAID however supports both Docker and VM's via Linux's KVM.  I have never played with VM's in KVM but I have in ESXi.  

Link to comment
23 minutes ago, R1200CL said:

 

Before I answer more, are you able to read somewhere in my profile what equipment I have. 

I haven't fully understood all features of the new CA yet ?

 

If i click on your name and then the "about me" tab, I can see your equipment.

Link to comment
  • 2 weeks later...

This is getting more complicated.  After all of the thread I figured I'd get a microRendu or SMS-200 and connect it via USB to my Marantz and be good to go. But its looking like the USB input on the Marantz is just for memory devices and I'm not sure it wall take audio input through it. Furthermore, since my system doubles for home theater, I cant use a DAC because all the analog inputs on my amps are already in use. 

 

So now do I have any other options besides a NUC or computer?

Link to comment
2 minutes ago, bozrdang said:

This is getting more complicated.  After all of the thread I figured I'd get a microRendu or SMS-200 and connect it via USB to my Marantz and be good to go. But its looking like the USB input on the Marantz is just for memory devices and I'm not sure it wall take audio input through it. Furthermore, since my system doubles for home theater, I cant use a DAC because all the analog inputs on my amps are already in use. 

 

So now do I have any other options besides a NUC or computer?

You should just make it easy on yourself and get a pair of these. Add one of the bridge/DAC cards and done like dinner:

 

If you're just starting out might as well do it with today's technology. 

Link to comment
10 minutes ago, bozrdang said:

I already have speakers and amps.  I am simply looking for a high quality end point for Roon. 

Okay sorry I should have read the rest of the thread. I'm just excited about these new active speakers. This is the future today if you ask me. The bridge's can act as built in Roon endpoints. 

Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now



×
×
  • Create New...