No DSPs or upsampling and they were both accessing the same track on networked storage. Yes, microrendu in RoonReady mode. Yes, AV+ using dlna.
I am not personally convinced that A+, and many other pc based audio players, actually send ābit perfectā data as their baseline. Not when their developers state things like āsound quality has improved in this versionā! How did they do this? did they somehow reduce the extra noise leaving the usb output?!# More likely in the case of A+ there are direct and integer mode settings that affect the rounding/precision of the outbound data and could impact the baseline SQ. Some other players, like Amarra, obviously apply an in-house filter to all music to get their own āhouseā sound.
Anyways, just wondering if you are hearing the difference between ethernet and usb (via an endpoint) or if you are hearing the difference between A+ and Roon ā¦ have you tested sending A+ output to dlna/upnp on the Mrendu and compared that to RoonReady on the mRendu? I think that would help determine how much A+ and Roon are affecting the SQ, separate from any ethernet/usb differences.
I like it too and it would look good in the right sort of room (wouldnāt fit anywhere in my house unfortunately) and so tidy looking for those bothered by such questions as āDo you really need all that equipment and cables dear?ā. Ruark make great sounding equipment too.
Good call. Yes, thatāll help narrow things down. Will have a play around with that later.
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I too will try this test more rigorously again. Before I was using an endpoint (SMS-200), I tested A+ vs Roon output over USB directly from my mac to my Dac. A+ sounded better, or at least much different. I still donāt understand why and it really bugs me that no one can explain why two bit-identical outputs from different sources could sound different over the same output ā¦ likely because the output is actually not bit-identical.
Regardless, while very interesting, itās really hard to do apples to apples comparisons on this stuff!
What about those beryllium limited edition Cardas nails?
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Not even āNine Inch Nailsā?
On my last UK visit earlier this year, the number of āaudio furnitureā options (as in furniture that plays audio versus equipment racks) was something that registered in my consciousness.
One thing that hasnāt changed is that middle class pursuit of HiFi remains a viable retail option in the UK as opposed to the US where ā¦ well, good luck with that ā¦ at least in my case Phoenix is a desert in more than just the climate sense.
I was happy to move from Phoenix to San Diego a few years ago. 
I lived in London for three years and know what you mean about Hi-Fi furniture. Lots more and better book stores too.
I did a little A/Bing of my own today. Playing Tidal through the Kef app, through Roon and Apple TV, and via Roon to USBridge to the USB port. USBridge was the best but Apple TV via HDMI to Samsung one connect box to optical on Kef with iFi SPIDF purifier was surprisingly close.
Iāve done some more A/Bing between Audirvana+ and Roon going into a microRendu->USB on the Kefs. My test track is Giorgio by Morodor (Daft Punk) as itās a reasonably complex track with Giorgio narration over the top of a background rhythm. I honestly canāt tell the difference. In fact, the major difference is the user experience. Audirvana is slow, keeps crashing whilst Roon isā¦ wellā¦ the Roon we all know and love.
So, to make sure that I wasnāt listening through a beer filter last night, I went back to Audirvana+ directly into the ethernet on the KEFs compared to A+ and Roon via. microRendu to USB. And, yes thereās a difference: Giorgioās voice is a little lost in the background sounds with A+ to ethernet. via. USB the sound is more layered and Giorgioās voice is more prominent and far more natural sounding.
So, at this stage, I suspect that the difference in sound quality Iāve heard is not down to the software but rather the connection type.
I had talked myself into 2 reasons not to buy the KEFs and instead update my current system, first is only one year warranty for (most of) the speakers, second is that KEFs would sound best with Ethernet but then I canāt control volume from Roon (through Windows).
But now I just saw a Swedish dealer offering 5 year of warranty on these speakers, and also hearing that sound through USB is equally good as Ethernet, means I ran out of arguments against buying them 
Now I just need a Dynaudio Excite 14 skin for them, so I can buy and listen to them without my wife realizing I (yet again) āwastedā money on HiFi!
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Thatās pretty funny Magnus 
I had the original version of this in my home a couple of years ago - I was reviewing it for a friendās publication.
It was bloody lovely. Did everything bar make the tea, well made, sounded really nice (OK not to audiophile sensibilities but unlike many lifestyle products it had some substance). And as for the looks; ohhhhh so chic.
It took ages for Ruark to get one to us - mine was brand new - which I think was a reflection on how well they were selling at the time. This one looks like a sensible update, Roonifying it with a discretely connected Rpi on the optical inputs would work well. Maybe Ruark should get a matching Rpi case made up!
Yes, I can see it now, all gleaming in Teak veneer, excellent ideaā¦
So weāre now a few weeks since CEDIA was a thingā¦ any news on this update? iPeng crashes almost immediately for me on iOS11 so Iām really hankering for this update more than ever
I use iPeng daily with iOS11 and Iāve not hadnāt any problems.
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Interestingā¦ it crashes within moments of starting up if it doesnāt have a connection to my Roon server (usually takes a few attempts). Guess Iāll remove/reinstall to see if that clears things up.
To clarify I had iPeng installed on iOS 10 before migrating. Didnāt need to reinstall but I agree with you, worth trying it. Also worth checking the move to iOS 11 hasnāt reset any of the iPeng player settings.
So I tried this exact same test, but with an SMS-200 instead of an mRendu. I am not hearing much difference and maybe even think the A+ -> ethernet sounds a tad more controlled. I will give it a longer listen though and report back ā¦
Did you ensure that they were playing at the same volume? I realized that the LS50W is maintaining separate volume levels for the ethernet/wifi input vs usb. I had to use an SPL meter to ensure that they were set to the same level - and software based volume control needs to be disabled of course.
As best I could. As I understand it the Kef volume decrements/increments in 1db so I turned the volume right down on both the Ethernet and usb input (I literally pressed the volume down button 100 times - yes itās tedious) and then back up for 60 vol up presses on the remote. Volume was fixed.