Which aurender?

[Jimmy3993]

Hi folks. I’m going to pull the trigger on an aurender and I’m trying to figure out which way to go about selecting the right model.

my system is currently an original Berkeley alpha dac running w/o a pre amp to an ancient pair of Rowland design group monoblocks (5 series as I recall. Very old but sound great to me) out to a pair of audio physic scorpios. I listen to a range of stuff from Tool to Tori Amos.

most of what I listen to comes from tidal which is what got me hooked on aurender along with the app.

i am curious if anyone has ever had the chance to a/b the a10 against the n10. I plan to select one or the other. I like the simplicity of the a10 (I’m not one to tinker once I get my system set up the way that’s I like it) and if I’m not giving anything up sonically vs the n10 w my Berkeley I will just get the a10.

there I see also the n100 I know but then I am either getting the usb converter box from Berkeley or using the hiface product and from what I read the n100 is a noticeable step back from the n10. 

I that DACs are a constantly evolving tech but again, if the current a10 dac product is as good or better than my Berkeley then that is good enough for me.

thx in advance. I feel there isn’t consensus I will track a dealer down and see about auditioning them both. But honestly I’d prefer to buy used if possible and won’t bother a dealer if I’m not going to buy from them.

[JS21]

I can't comment on the Berkeley dac but the a10 DACS are very, very good. You might find that it's all you'll need and maybe sell the Berkeley for extra funds. Also, the simplicity of the a10 is a major plus, you don't even need a pre with it. 

[Jimmy3993]

2 hours ago, JS21 said:

I can't comment on the Berkeley dac but the a10 DACS are very, very good. You might find that it's all you'll need and maybe sell the Berkeley for extra funds. Also, the simplicity of the a10 is a major plus, you don't even need a pre with it. 

Yes this I kinda what I was wondering / thinking. With the a10 there is no digital cable and a nice remote. And no preamp. And I should be able to get 1k for the Berkeley as old as it is. I just owned about the dac quality in the a10. Glad to hear someone vouch for it.

i placed a bid on an n10 over on a’gon. If it goe at my price Im sure I will be happy with it. If not there is an a10 listed as well.

[JS21]

Check out the Aurender thread here. Lots of good info there.

Have had the a10 for almost a year now and I love it. It works flawlessly and it really simplified my system. I was also able to sell my MD-100 tuner because the a10's FM streaming is more than sufficient.