· None of the above quite fits
· None of these quite match
· Sound quality is low. Even hearing music in my Mac Mini with Roon server installed there, the music is shallow, with less depth and bass
· Mac Mini M4, 32Ram with Roon server connected with Ethernet to my Router.
Before chasing anything in Roon itself, it is worth checking what the Mac Mini is actually sending out. macOS will happily resample everything to whatever rate Audio MIDI Setup is parked at, and on an M4 that often sits at 48kHz, so a 44.1 library gets converted on the way out and can sound flat and bass-light. In Roon, look at the Signal Path on a playing track (click the little coloured dot next to the volume) and see whether it says Lossless or whether there is a sample rate conversion or DSP step in there. Also check Settings > Audio and whether the Mini’s output is set up as System Output rather than an exclusive-mode device, since System Output goes through the macOS mixer and you lose bit-perfect playback. If Volume Levelling or any DSP EQ/headroom adjustment is on in the zone, try it with those off for a track or two. If the Signal Path already says Lossless end to end, then the difference you are hearing is more likely the DAC or amp stage after the Mini rather than the server, and posting a screenshot of that Signal Path will make it much easier for people here to narrow down.
Before suspecting the Mac Mini itself, it is worth checking the Signal Path on that zone: if the Mini is playing to System Output rather than an exclusive-mode device, macOS gets in the way and you lose bit-perfect playback. Also try a track or two with Volume Levelling and any DSP EQ or headroom adjustment switched off. If the Signal Path already reads Lossless end to end, the thinness is more likely in the DAC or amp stage after the Mini than in the server.
Hello @Ilan_Dvash
Helen has pointed you at the right thing. Before looking anywhere else, we need to see what your Mac Mini is actually sending out.
Please send us a screenshot of the Signal Path. While a track is playing, look at the bar along the bottom of the screen and find the small diamond icon just to the left of the playback controls. Click it.
The panel that opens says the verdict on its very first line, for example Signal path: Lossless, and then lists every stage between the file and your output.
Reference, with examples of each result:
What the first line means:
Lossless nothing is touching the audio
Enhanced processing you asked for, such as Volume Levelling or DSP
High Quality something is converting the audio
Low Quality the source file itself is lossyHigh Quality is the interesting one for your setup. If you are playing to System Output, the audio passes through the macOS mixer, which can resample it or apply its own volume adjustment. Roon reports that as High Quality and names the mixer in the path. That would match what you are describing.
Please send two screenshots if you can, one for a local file and one for a streaming track, and tell us which zone you are listening to and what the Mini is connected to.
If it already reads Lossless from end to end, then nothing in Roon or macOS is altering the audio, and what you are hearing comes from after the Mini, in the DAC or amplifier. That would move this somewhere else entirely, which is why the screenshot comes first.
Hello @Ilan_Dvash,
Following up on our last exchange, have you had a chance to grab the Signal Path screenshot we asked for while a track is playing? We’d especially like to see the first line, plus two examples if possible, one from a local file and one from a streaming track, and it would help to know which zone you’re using and what the Mac Mini is connected to. If you can send that along, we can tell whether Roon or macOS is doing any conversion before the audio reaches your DAC or amp.
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