Afraid to commit to Roon - But I did for a year :-)

Roon does not support UPnP/DLNA (and never will).

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I think there are 3rd party bridging devices that do it by pretending to me squeezeboxes on one interface and then sending to upnp.
But I can’t remember the details, getting old.
But a search of the forum brings

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I bet there’s an RPI solution for this which would cost you $50.

We think it is. I articulated why here, almost 5 years ago:

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Someone asked about why some trials are 14 days and others are 30 days. Roon’s current trial offer is 14 days. I ended up with 30 after because I canceled when their Kindle control application kept crashing, making it impossible for me to use the program. Roon wrote me saying they knew about the problem and would have a updated fix available in a few days. They offered to extend my trial to 30 days because of that. I took advantage of that but still ended up deciding Roon wasn’t for me. I explained my reasons for that in a different post.

Quite apart from the way that Roon integrates my locally stored albums (Synology NAS) and albums streamed from Tidal into a seamless music library and the fact that it offers a UI that is much better than anything else I have used, here are a couple of additional features that make it invaluable for me.

I have 4 music streaming devices in my house (each from a different manufacturer) that are used to play music in different locations. Prior to taking Roon on board, I had to use 4 different control ‘apps’ to play music: Linn Kazoo app (Windows or IOS) , Naim Audio app (Android or IOS), Tidal app and Marantz app. This presents a number of problems. The Marantz app is ancient, no longer supported and a real pain to use. The Linn and Naim apps are ok, but it is a real pain having to swap them in and out.

I no longer use any of the above control apps. I have the Roon control app installed on my iPad AIr and each of my Windows 10 devices, and now use Roon to control each of my streaming devices. This has a number of benefits. Roon recognizes that both my Linn Klimax DS/1 streamer and Mytec Brooklyn+ DAC can play hi-res files up to 24bit/192 MHz and so passes hi-res files straight through to these devices. It is aware that my Marantz NA7004/Chromecast Audio set up has limited hi-res capability, and is also aware that my Mytek Brooklyn DAC supports DSD files and MQA whereas my other devices do not.

I no longer have to wonder whether or not the files I play are compatible with any of my devices. I simply select the highest resolution files from my music library and if that file is not compatible then Roon automatically transcodes the file into the highest possible resolution PCM files that each device supports. Similarly, it transcodes on the fly DSD files I have into the highest possible PCM files that each of my non-DSD devices supports, but feeds DSD files directly to my DSD compatible Mytek DAC. Finally it performs the first MQA unfold for each of my devices that do not support MQA, but feeds MQA unfolded to my Mytek DAC which is able to perform the full software/hardware unfold.

The whole process is seamless, and a joy to use.

Then of course there is Roon Radio which works wonderfully well for me, and has been invaluable in the new music discovery process. Roon Radio appears to divide opinions and have its detractors, but then of course you can choose not to use it if you don’t like it.

I really would hate to be without Roon nowadays. Its absence would greatly reduce my music listening experience and enjoyment.

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Yes, Roon Radio is fantastic, much more so than before after the Valence engine was released. I cannot be without Roon in my main system, it would suck.

A few more useful Roon uses:
1- When I am on my home computers (mac pro or macbook) I can always run Roon and play to whatever DAC I have connected to them. I don’t have to run another app.
2- Same goes for iOS devices - I can run the Roon app and play anything to their DACs (external such as Dragonfly or Chord Mojo) or internal in my iPad. The external devices will work in hi-res - even MQA rendering if you care - and Roon can always do the first MQA unfold for you anyway to any DAC anyway.
3- The fact that the Roon app is available on the iPhone, iPad, and Mac means I can control any music to any endpoint anywhere in the house with any device I have closeby

Software that is this versatile, that allows you to play music seamlessly, consistently, from any source (local or streaming), transparently and without a glitch is well worth the asking price IMHO.

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I only can lineup to this comment. Since I started using Roon (txs) the need of purchasing CDs is gone, my CD player is on sale and a lot of the records, which has been ripped on my hard disk is rediscovered day by day

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Thanks Chris. :+1:

@danny

Excellent, more reading over my Easter break. :grinning:

I read that many people here like Roon for it’s multi- end point ability and seamless integration with their many devices. I think that’s great. However, I’d also suggest that there are uPnP for DLNA apps that can do this for under $10.

I just thought I’d point this out as it’s highly possibly that happy Roon users have not looked at viable alternatives for some while.

Sure, you’d not get the UI and a host of other features found to be useful, but merely for streaming to various end points, that’s easily achieved by single apps these days.

Cheers.

I spent a lot of time on UPnP/DLNA before I found Roon. Nothing even approached Roon in usability, reliability, ability to handle gapless play across devices. Besides Roon’s much better play control, it also gives me the right view of my collection in terms of artists, albums, … rather than some buggy mishmash of folders and “albums” that requires endless folder/filename structure and ID3 curation to be usable. My time is worth a lot more than the savings for those apps over Roon.

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UPNP/DLNA can be brutal. RAAT is at a different level of reliability and control.

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I’m not knocking Roon Fernando, just suggesting there are alternatives at a fraction of the cost as it seems from this thread, some are unaware of the current selection of apps.

I can confirm that there are apps that are not buggy at all. However, yup, you’d need to browse via folders (for some this is good, others not so), yet search functions alleviate that issue. You could then browse by genre, artist and so on. There is no overcoming though, that you’d need to tag all your albums and ensure you provide all the necessary metadata you deem important.

Whether that’s time well spent or not, I’d suggest is up to the individual. For me, I tag as a matter of course in the same format & ensure album art is included. I’ve been doing this for years. And I’ve got roughly 5000 albums in my local library.

As a Roon user, I do this simply as one would back up their digital files. Whether it’s necessary or not is up to the individual. I think it’s future proofing. (But, that’s just me).

Cheers. :smiley:

I didn’t say you were knocking Roon. As for non-buggy UPnP/DLNA apps, I’m very doubtful because those protocols are fundamentally broken for serious music playing. I looked closely at the protocols themselves as I was trying to debug different setups (servers, clients, control points) before I moved to Roon, and I’ve never seen such mess, driven by short-term product concerns rather than from sound protocol and API design. The fundamental reason Roon works so well for many of us is that they dropped that junk — which I fortunately forgot since — into the trashcan and designed a simple, robust alternative for sending high-quality audio streams around a LAN.

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YES! I bought a Pro-Ject Expression 10 (it might be an Evolution 10). It cost a fortune for a record player!

BUT it was set up in situ before I committed to buying it. My husband has a vast collection of vinyl. I asked him to choose a record he really liked and that would show him the quality or not of the deck. After a few minutes I saw his eyes dampen and he was in his own world. I knew I had not made a mistake,

We have spent, mainly me, on vinyl over the last 3 or more years. I do find it annoying that some are very clean and others are not. I buy 180g or 200g when I can but due to my limits I avoid albums that are double but with only 2-3 tracks a side. The sound difference is negligible and is not worth the pain to me of changing sides or records so quickly.

Hi Fernando,

I really can’t comment on any of that, I’ve not conducted your tests.

I can only say, from my personal experience (as per above), apps under $10 will do the job of sending your digital music to multi end points. We have spoken about the differences in terms of needing appropriate tags & file structure browsing for it to be an efficient method (at least for those with larger libraries). The bells & whistles such as ‘discovery’ they can’t do. However, integrating streaming services they will & I believe flawlessly. There is a considerable difference between the purchase of a $10 piece of software & $700.

Is Roon robust? I can’t answer. As per many threads on this forum, I see that Roon has its own issues & it has taken Roon some 5 years to reach this point.

Is Roon fit for purpose? I’d suggest it is (that’s why I’m here).

Is Roon perfect? Likely not, as there is always room for improvement. As per a large section of this forum, it’s about having contact with the developers, providing suggestions, so that Roon can and will develop further.

Cheers. :smiley:

Please don’t overspend on vinyl based on weight alone. There is no guarantee that heavier vinyl will be better, let alone sound better. Just think about all those old albums from the 60’s that play perfectly and are 140-160g.

The issue today is largely at the pressing plants, where quality control is far from what it used to be. The past few years this has improved some with more pressing plants opening.

Avid collectors of new vinyl are well aware of certain plants and either avoid those pressings or conversely like to buy based on their quality.

Don’t put up with a poor pressing, it’s just that simple (imo). Return inferior pressings (noisy, warpage etc). You are paying top dollar for a niche product, that should arrive to you in pristine condition.

Cleaning is part of the course, both your vinyl and your stylus. There are many cleaning options out there - all the way from really expensive automated vinyl cleaners to various brushes, anti static devices. stylus gels (such as onzow) & small brushes. Keeping your records clean is key. Some go as far (me) as buying new higher quality clean sleeves & paper sleeves should typically be avoided. Aside from anything else, there is always the risk of scuffing.

Enjoy!!!

No way would I get rid of the vinyl or the cd’s, sacd, dvd-audio, and pure audio discs. I deeply regret parting qith my Oppo 205. Someone took advantage of my brain trauma, I didn’t know what I had done until recently. I lost 5 years and durin g thst time I did things I am pleased about and other things I regret but only those I now see evidence of. Like loads of bought cd’s unopened. And not being able to find the Oppo 205. Still, it’s done. I am not going to bew spending the silly money they now cost 2nd hand. I am sure someone made a pretty profit from mine . I still have issues which may or may not show from time to time.

I have a UDP-203. Worth more now than new. The 205s bring even a bigger premium.

How many SACDs do you have? These can be professionally ripped to hard drive. I had about 50 ripped. You can rip DVD-A, music DVD, and CD.