Is it me or does Roon degrade sound

I think you make an excellent point. I am currently demoing a product that Roon software built into it while I give my NUC and Nucleus+ a rest. My 14 year old son notices a difference.

There is this thread, were just clicking headroom from disabled to on with value 0 does make a SQ change. I wanted to try. Nothing. I can hear no difference. Ok maybe a different track. No nothing. Ok 3th time maybe there is a tiny tiny difference. After 5 times I’m convinced, there is a tiny tiny difference but I can hear. So I install blackhole and audacity. Roon plays to blackhole and audacity records. First track with headroom disabled, second track with headroom on set to 0db. With the generous help of @Marin_Weigel I learn to Invert one of the tracks and mix them together into a new track. Boom… Nothing, empty, so sound. So there is no difference between the two.

Those brain wires are a tough nut to crack. Tonight I’ll try to hear the seagulls and sleep by the warm breeze.

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I used the Moonies term before until someone suggested I look up what it means. Definitely not the clan you want to be in!:laughing:
We need to think of another.

There were also people convinced that having the DSP toggle on the on or off position makes a difference even if no filters are enabled, expect it’s just a UI graphic.

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The standard test is ‘wife listening from the kitchen notices a difference’…please stick to the established audiophile standard of measurement for SQ. We can’t just have people inventing their own standards for SQ measurement, that would be total chaos and cause endless arguments. :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

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Posts moved to another thread :+1:

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I had the LINN Selekt before the LINN KLIMAX DSM and I heard no difference either.

It was since the KLIMAX came into the picture that I noticed this difference.

I am curious as to what Roon does to the signal from Qobuz for example when using Roon as a source vs LINN.

They are certainly being processed differently.

This may interest you all

We think alike :slight_smile:

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Can you please show the signal-path so people can try to help you?

I was reading this from another thread on Headroom (same as volume levelling) and hadn’t noticed you beat me to it. :+1::rofl::wink::sunglasses:

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It occurred to me that the two options presented in the thread title are not mutually exclusive. If someone at Roon hates you, maybe it does degrade the sound – but only for you! :rofl:

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UPnP? Wow, they must have programmed that bit with their eyes averted.

To add to the discussion, I will share my own experience. I have owned several streamers over time (Bryston, Naim, Linn and HiFi Rose). All of these streamers except the HiFi Rose (more on that later) had lower sound quality when I used Roon instead of their own app. Lumin, with one of its latest updates where only Roon is in operation, demonstrates that manufacturers, at least a number, are aware that sound performance is not similar. I believe that the implementation of Roon in these different streamers may be one of the reasons for these sound differences. The other factor is the one I encountered with my HiFi Rose 250. When I use a wired connection (EtherStream - a modified Cisco switch with an external power supply + 6a unshielded cable as recommended by Lumin), it there is indeed a sound difference, at least according to my subjective assessment. However, when I use the wireless function of my HiFi Rose 250 (WiFi 5GHz), this sound difference is non-existent. Could this sound difference be explained by the quality or the material used for a wired connection? I don’t know the answer, but I like to learn!

There’s absolutely no difference on my 250 between wired and wireless connection.

Lumin can be safely added to the list of companies I would never do business with though at this point…

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Try to disable “Crossfade”.

I have never used that with my Linn Selekt DSM.

Torben

It only blends two tracks into each other though, it’s crossfade, not crossfeed :slight_smile:

OK :slight_smile: Never used that.

Strange signal path compared to what I have.

Torben

As mentioned turn off crossfeed and see if you hear a difference.