@support
Chromecast Audio is not mentioned on https://kb.roonlabs.com/DSP_Engine:_Disabled_During_Zone_Grouping.
Is it possible to have different DSP settings on different Chromecast Audio devices in the one group?
If not, is there another way to stream the same music at the same time to two different Chromecast Audio devices with different DSP settings?
No, it’s not possible. With Cast grouping, we send one stream to one device, and Google’s infrastructure ships the audio around amongst the other devices. There is no technical mechanism available for us to synchronize different streams like we do with RAAT.
Ok, so what is the most cost effective RAAT and will I require two of them to accomplish the following scenario?
I plan to use Roon’s DSP to create crossovers for high efficiency passive two way speakers. Each speaker is connected to its own Chord Hugo where the Hugo’s L and R channels become Hi and Lo channels. Will each Hugo need its own RAAT? If I got two HifiBerry Digi+ this would not be expensive. Is this a good solution or can you suggest another?
Thank you.
I don’t recommend using RAAT for inter-channel sync. It’s designed for multi-room playback–where +/- a few milliseconds between zones is no big deal, and actually preferable to reduce the severity/frequency of drift corrections.
For inter-channel synchronization, you really want something more like +/- 1 sample between channels, at worst.
As far as I know, this has only been accomplished over networking using specialized hardware–a protocol like RAAT that is meant to run on lots of different non-specialized hardware won’t be able to make the same accuracy guarantees.
If you want the best result here–use a multi-channel endpoint to drive both speakers.
I’ve searched community.roonlabs and the wider internet and have trouble finding a Roon Ready multi-channel endpoint. Can you list some with digital output to feed the two Hugos. Wifi would be more convenient for me but otherwise ethernet is ok. With the right device can Roon’s DSP be used to create the crossovers?
I don’t think we have certified anything with a pair of digital outputs on the same clock–that would be a pretty weird product in a Hi-Fi setting. We have certified multichannel DACs from Trinnov, Merging, and exaSound.
If you’re dead-set on using the Hugos, I’d look around in the pro space for a USB audio interface with two digital outputs. I’m not as familiar with the options there, but they tend to make more swiss-army-knife-like products than the hifi brands we usually work with.
Yeah, I like to do things differently.
The Roon ready HiFiBerry Digi+ into MiniDSP nanoDIGI into two Hugos might be a goer.
If Roon crossover DSP can make it through that chain I can compare it with the nanoDIGI crossover DSP.
Yeah, that might work. I don’t think Roon crossover dsp would make it through, because Roon would only be outputting 2 channels to the Digi+.
That’s ok. I can use MiniDSP and REW for crossover duties. But I will still want to use Roon for more DSP like room correction.
I just saw that MiniDSP nanoDIGI is available with its own wifi adaptor and it can also take Chromecast Audio, which I already have, as input too. So I may not require a HiFiBerry.
Regarding RAAT which will be the preferred digital input device into the miniDSP, and what Roon DSP features can it offer that the others don’t?
Roon’s DSP all happens in the core, so it doesn’t really matter which digital output device you choose in terms of capabilities. I don’t generally get involved in recommending gear based on sound quality. The Chromecast audio would be a fine starting point.