Modest system upgrade opinions please :-)

[davide256]

37 minutes ago, NWDave said:

Hi, Greg.

Thanks for the response. You know, I'm perfectly satisfied with the bass; on sine sweeps, the Revels start producing at 25 Hz and become quite rumbly around 35 Hz. I have thought about a pair of micro-subwoofers, but I've had subwoofers before and they're just too much. I listen to a lot of vocal, folk, acoustic, and solo instrumental so deep bass isn't a requirement. Is that a DAC-based solution?

I think if there's one thing I wish this system had is a more realistic soundstage (if that's the right word). It can feel "flat" sometimes. Other times, I can pick the instruments out with no problem. Perhaps that's more of a recording/source issue. But that's what I'd like: more realistic presentation, i.e., so I can "locate" the instruments and performers in "space".

Great question. Really helped me clarify my thoughts.

Buy a NAS to get the media storage out of your Roon server and use a good USB cable to connect your NUC Roon server direct to the DAC in the Cambridge. That should get you better resolution/imaging vs letting the Cambridge streamer firmware act as a limiter on the NUC's capability.

[davide256]

9 hours ago, NWDave said:

Hi, David.

Ah, interesting. I had an NAS setup, but got rid of it when I built the NUC and put an SSD in the internal storage of the NUC. It doesn't matter that they're on separate SSDs within the NUC? Or is it that you have two signals coming off a single (Ethernet) cable?

USB out is  susceptible to voltage noise from components in the server and the power supply. Right now you have solved that issue with your SATA drives

by using the Roon server as a NAS and the electrical  isolation from the Cambridge as an ethernet streamer endpoint. But you can do better if you run a NAS , use an M.2 drive for your Roon OS drive in the NUC, use a good LPS for the NUC PS and connect the NUC USB to the DAC section. If you use HQPlayer or CPU intensive settings you should alternatively consider a 2nd NUC for Roon/USB endpoint as the increased CPU activity at the server will generate additional noise affecting USB out, streaming to a USB endpoint mitigates this, you only deal with the noise generated at the endpoint.

When I last used Roon it was under Euphony which allowed me to run Roonserver on an Optane memory M.2 drive, it was very close to Stylus for performance with USB connection from server to DAC. Roon is a great solution for playing music to any endpoint device that supports it.

[davide256]

19 hours ago, NWDave said:

The treatments *might* be an issue, although I've been very cautious about adding the right mix of bass traps and diffusers under the guidance of the company that sells them. I also did a lot of single-item adding and subtracting to make sure nothing was detracting from the sound. If there's an issue, it's probably the need to have the speakers only a foot from the wall due to the size of the room and the fact it's also a carpeted living room.

If I get a chance later to draw a diagram, I will. But I greatly appreciate that line of thought—it's probably along the correct lines and might not be solvable unless I find a larger room (or larger house :-).

Image is not part of any conductors score😁 And monophonic recordings can be amazing

 

What persuades and is the opposite of flat is a system where complex detail has the resolution of a proof coin. Sadly source solutions can "blenderize" background instruments, music becomes flat like a worn standing liberty quarter. Vinyl and digital both share this in common for commercial source solutions

[davide256]

13 hours ago, NWDave said:

Perhaps idealism is my real problem here. When I play one of those audiophile adjustment albums, I realize how good my system (any system?) can sound with well-recorded material. The only exception that sort of reinforces my original question is that I never hear instruments "6 feet above your stereo" or "18 feet to the left (or right)". It's always more like 2 feet above and 3 feet to the left or right. That's probably a limitation of having a 12' x 25' room with an open end. :-/

Never heard this... and that includes every audiophile system I've ever listened to in a home or at a show. If you can get good instrument placement left to right, front to back, the system is imaging well.