Do You Have A Roon Fallback Plan - Options / Alternatives

I think the plan was to freeze the local library “as is”.

With the current way artwork is done that needs to be re thought as it’s all in the cloud not local anymore. Roon would be a dead weight without the back end, if they go the product just isn’t worth using.

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Well I have learned something new today :grin:
I can stop trying to learn anything else today now thanks.
Never really liked UPNP though, I still have a license for
Bubble UPNP that I have not used in years.

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Well it’s very flawed as it’s not consistent across devices or software as per Danny’s pet hate against it. But it’s still the most widely used system for hifi streaming playback and the one that most argue sounds better than RAAT, when they talk about native apps sounding better, they on the whole use UPnP or some variant of. I use bubble to play Qobuz or Tidal releases when they are not in Roon.

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yes my original point is that most new devices come with either or both Airplay/Chromecast and many are being updated with Tidal/Spotify Connect as well, so hopefully the need for it goes away or we add a device that supports all of them like the Primare NP5, Zen Stream etc or a Pi running Ropieee XL.
They are Roon Ready but also support other services if Roon does ever disappear.
Hopefully as this market expands and Apple add handoff capability outside of the walled garden then devices can possibly be upgraded to use that as well. That can only be a good thing in my mind.

I find the UPNP reputation a problem, a lot depends on the implementation, the CXN handles DLNA perfectly at least the JRiver Media Server version. I appreciate that implementations vary due the “wideners” of the spec but find a good match and SQ is as good as Roon.

Ironically a product like Audirvana that sets its stall out on UPNP fails miserably with the CXN without adjusting the stream

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No fallback.
Roon is my Crossover (Active speaker setup), Routing Mix, Room correction, Streaming transport, User Interface, Volume control. My everything… lol
I’m all in, and a lifetime owner.

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Love that thought! My 1979 Nakamichi 582 has been refurbished twice from a talented guy I met on TapeHeads. I also have a refurbished Nak CR-3a and a sizable collection of NOS blanks. I’ve been recording my collection of pre-digital vinyl and it’s all a lot of fun. But, at some point, the tape decks will die and that will be that.

My backup plan is simple: FLAC files, carefully tagged, and .m3u playlists. Everything plays them and probably always will.

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I had a 582, probably one of the best value 3 head Naks out there.
Then I stumbled into a ZX7… What a machine.
But yes, eventually they will all fail and there will be no parts to repair or the skill available to repair.
There is a LOT going on inside one of those beasts!
At least a belt drive record player is simple Simon compared to a top flight tape deck.

But that’s also why I have a lot of FLAC and WAV files ready to roll too.

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A few months back I repaired my old Sony ES 3 head deck. It had been unused for at least 10 years. Two out of the three belts inside had just dissolved and wrapped themselves around the pulleys. Belt sets are readily available but there was one belt that was tricky to fit without extensive disassembly but I managed it. Cleaning out the remains of the old belts is what took the time.
It was a complete success…for a few hours. The main drive motor started making a squeaking sound every second or so. Probably a dry bearing which might respond to lubrication but will need disassembly again. It is still waiting on the bench.

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I understand the great love for the LP and also the heritage of the CD, tapes, cassettes…because I myself have maintained it for decades, but my fallback looks different after many happy gift today.

Streaming via multiple providers simultaneously and large own collection doubly secured and freely playable (Roon, Foobar2000, Cantata, Lollypop…) via multiple solutions. It is simply more convenient and no longer dependent on the old technology.

Yes I still have a Dual turntable and tracking devices for all other media, but I use you only for digitization.

The 582 was a great deck, I moved on to the CR7e an even greater deck

Nostalgia ain’t what it used to be :grin:

yes.

https://community.roonlabs.com/t/who-has-a-turntable-in-their-setup/89833/646

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I would, seamlessly, go back to using jriver and not miss a beat.
While the interface is kinda clunky and the owner/forum moderator is horrible about responding to questions (but not much worse than my experience with Roon), the difference in price would be worth it.

Ah a JimH fan club member :joy:

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I have a very large library and, for me, the best part of Roon for which I know of no substitutre is the metadata allowing users to explore the world of music

Backup Plan(s)

  1. Spare ROCK server (older NUC5i3 with 8GB and 240GB SATA SSD) - built and just needs plugging in.
  2. Spare NUC as another ROCK server (another NUC5i3 as above) - just needs imaging with ROCK, which is on a USB stick ready
  3. Roon Core backup taken every 4-days, max 10 copies to RAID1 volume on NAS Backup #1, which is also backed up to another disk on NAS Backup #2
  4. Music Library - stored on RAID1 volume on Primary NAS, with daily backup to RAID1volume on Secondary NAS - library exists on 4 HDDs. Backup is also taken monthly to off-line backup on RAID 0 on USB enclosure (3 volumes being simultaneously checked for consistency in WinMerge). Annual Snapshot on Library taken on 2 HDDs (JBOD format) stored in fireproof cases.
  5. Alternate UPNP Bridge running on RPI2 in case SonoreUPnP Bridge running on UltraRendu with UltraCap LPS1 fails
  6. Asset UPnP Server also accesses Music Library on Primary NAS and can feed Naim Network Player in the event that Roon is down.
  7. LPs with Orbe/SME V/Lyra Skala, Bakoon Reference Phono
  8. CDs stored in plastic sleeves with Merdian 200 CDT feeding Naim Network Player. 9. Tag MacLaren DVD32 transport can also play CDs, through Tag MacLaren AVR32
  9. Non-presently used 3-channel AV amp (rears and centre) that could be used for Fronts, if main Amps fail
  10. Non-presently used MiniPod speakers, previously used as rears, bought back for use as fronts.

I have no fallback plan as such. I have redundant hardware that can be pressed into service if required, to recover Roon. A spare M.2 SSD and a spare silent NUC. But as my Roon experience has been largely trouble free I don’t see the “fraught with potential issues” aspect of this. I’ve gone to a certain degree of trouble to ‘make Roon work’ and I’m pretty sure my Lifetime Membership is my lifetime and not that of the company. That said, there will be a few super yachts on the market soon and the Roon boys might want to retire! Until then I am considering a tinker with HQPlayer but the engine will still be Roon.

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I wonder if instead of a second Roon Nucleus, would a 14 inch MacBook Pro M1 be a better investment (expense)? It could run Roon core, Audirvana 3.5, and Apple Music lossless high resolution. It will do Apple Music 24/96 natively without an attached DAC.

If you own a Lumin device, their bespoke app is a good option. Not as user friendly and lacking a lot of the functionality of Roon but it has excellent SQ.

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