Is The Nucleus the Best Buy ever?

Couldn’t agree more Martin. I could have continued to use the NUC8 I built but after purchasing the Nucleus I have been very happy. I have not found it to be any more pricey than many other music servers being offered.

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Agree the Nucleus is a plug and play, I had mine for several years and then started having power issues, Roon replaced the unit after a few back and forth emails, I then sold the Nucleus and built my own NUC (built for the future) and used the Asaka case it looks amazing (its been in place over a year and zero issues with it.

Exactly! Nucleus is ideal for those of us who like plug-and-play. And when I read about all the problems people have with Rock and NUCs and what have you, I’m glad I bought the Nucleus and it works seamlessly with my Synology NAS.

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For me, yes. Great value, as it is plug and play. Upgraded ram and put in ssd and worked ever since. I am quite computer savvy, but in my hobby I try to avoid diy as much as possible.

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How would a Nucleus integrate a Dirac DRC? I am considering one, but its restricted usability is a problem.

Out of interest, why should Nucleus (or any other device running the RoonServer) have anything to do with Dirac DRC?

This may be more relevant: A guide how to do room correction and use it in Roon

Plus one and some more characters

This is one of those odd threads where there’s really no answer to the question as posed. Yes, if you want a turnkey solution, it’s a great buy. If you understand how to install Rock on another device, it’s not a particularly attractive option because it’s expensive - in comparison.

In my case, I’m not interested in a Nucleus, nor ROCK, because I like to run Roon on my Mac mini, because I’ve worked with Macs for the last 30+ years.

Horses for courses.

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Not sure if this is the right place to ask, but I was curious what the Nucleus affords that other generic solutions do not. For the last three years I was running RoonServer on my Synology NAS and admittedly occasionally I had some lag issues connecting with the app, but never any playback issues. The recent Synology update affected quite a few things and I decided to change things up. I purchased a Dell Optiplex quad i7 Micro Desktop (cute little thing), moved my Roon database over after installing and its been great since. Media is still on the NAS with the db on the internal SSD and it works great for about $300.

Wondering what the Nucleus would get me?

Martin, I’ve had my Nucleus+ for nearly 3 years too. It seems pretty bulletproof. The custom software and the fact that it has a single function without multitasking makes it a winner in my book. I always wonder if it’s going to “boot” if I turn it off (which I rarely do). Not having a display attached means you have to just trust that it’s doing its thing. And it does!

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Peace of mind

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I totally get this but it’s a considerable premium for the 2 hours it takes to get a NUC core up and running. Again, it’s nice that there are options to suit most folk. I did think that the Nucleus case is more aesthetically pleasing than my Asaka Turing case, but again not so much nicer that I’d feel it justifies the price for me.

I think a M1 Mac mini is a much better choice than a Nucleus at half the price or less! It will run HQPlayer which the Nucleus will not.

I think every opinion has its place here. I have a Nucleus and am very satisfied.

What I find a bit strange is that hi-fi fans are discussing here, some of whom invest 10 times as much as a Nucleus costs - or even more - in every other component of their system. I understand that DIY is equally good or better, but I didn’t want to do it myself. So I thought the price was high, but so is the user experience. :slight_smile:

Peace!

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Interesting question - once there is a native version of RoonOS & Core for Apple M1 (Std, Max & Pro) and M2 silicon in a similar dedicated ROCK install, will a suitably powered Mac Mini going to be better value than an Intel based platform?
The M1 silicon gives better performance for less power, than an Intel CPU.

Perhaps this why there is no ROCK support for NUC11 !! :smile:

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This needs to come a way yet before I’d consider M1/M2 hardware.

https://screenrant.com/install-linux-m1-mac-shouldnt-why/

Though I’ll confess every dabble with Apple hardware post my 5th gen iPod classic has left me coloured unimpressed,

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I am happy for you…

The M1 Mac mini is running both HQPlayer (with difficult to handle DSD settings) and Roon perfectly with zero issues and super easy maintenance. It could not be any easier or better…

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Same, same: the Akasa fanless case is awesome and cheap enough to be a deidcated server rather than multi use. Easy to build. Cheap trick - it was heaps cheaper buying a silghtly older Akasa case for an older NUC rather than the latest version of everyhting and still overpowered (for my use level anyway.)

I don’t know that a Roon Nucleus is the best buy ever, but I have been pleased with mine. I got it directly from Roon for $1119 on a Black Friday sale over 2 1/2 years ago and it has worked perfectly. I did not want to fool with building a NUC and wanted a “turn-key” device.

I’m sure there are other core devices that are just as good. It’s just a matter of what you prefer. Not everyone wants to spend the money for a Nucleus, and not everyone wants to build a NUC.

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I know nothing about Linux and have never built a computer but 3 years ago bought all the components to build a NUC, read stuff online and watched videos and within a couple of hours had the thing up and running and it’s performed perfectly every day ever since. Not once have I had a problem. I also bought a NAS case and HDs and set it up just reading online guidance and it immediately linked to my NUC (at opposite ends of my house) and has never failed. I understand the desirability of plug and play but it’s an expensive option and doesn’t give the satisfaction you get from creating a system that actually works.

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