I’m running an endpoint on a Raspberri Pi 4 using 5ghz wifi. Works great.
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I use an old iMac from 2009. Used it as a core and now only as a remote control. Works very good! Just make sure you get a Mac with an i-series processor. My iMac is an early i5.
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Hi Julius,
Thanks for the reply - that’s good to know. I live in a rural area so not sure if my WiFi is as good as yours is, but I’ll give it a go!
If you use 5ghz roon will work fine.
I’m in a dense residential area with lots of wifi from my neighbors. So a lot of distortion. In a rural area it must be a lot better!
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2010…sorry fixed that now. Any Mac will do wifi but the issues with wifi speeds means that the newer Macs can do better / faster wifi speeds and this important…2014 and later should be fine.
I still cant see why spend £500 when for ~20% of that you could get a RPi
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Another option would be to re-purpose the old Mac as a music file manager (and run the Core on the Mini, co-located with your HiFi gear). Put the old machine anywhere in the house where it’s convenient (preferably with an ethernet connection, but WiFi could work, too). Set it up in Roon as a network share, so that the Core service is watching the old Mac’s hard drive for new files. Manage HD Tracks downloads, etc., with screen sharing.
It may make more sense, however, to buy a relatively inexpensive streamer now, instead of the Mini. A Bluesound Node 2i goes for about $550 and has roughly the same footprint as a Mac Mini. Then you could move the old Mac out of your listening room for continued use in running Roon Core.
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Are we talking about the same thing here? WiFi ‘quality’ depends on your router, and the layout and construction of your building. Your achievable internet connection speed (and reliability… ) may depend on where you live.
To be sure we’re not missing something important here - what is your WiFi router?
Hi Tom,
Thanks for your reply. Do you know if the USB slot on the Bluesound is for audio out or is it an input for an external hard drive? (One of my issues with a lot of streamers is they don’t do USB audio out. I spent over £100 on a nice USB cable for my DAC so I’d really like to continue using it!)
Hi Andy. I’m not sure of the make / model of our router, it’s pretty generic. I’ve just run a speed test and we get 6.8 Mbps download speed.
The USB connection on the Bluesound Node 2i is not for audio out, only for an external USB hard drive (or memory stick). For audio out, these devices support coax, toslink, or analog RCA.
Another, pricier option would be a Sonore ultraRendu for ethernet in, USB out. I have both the Node 2i and the ultraRendu (and a Mac Mini); each has pros/cons.
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Yep that’s what I thought. I don’t quite understand why these devices support Toslink but not USB. From my (limited) understanding I thought Toslink had quite a bad reputation as an audiophile connection. I’m loath to spend any more than £500 for what will be a stop-gap solution which is why I’m not keen on the Sonore products. (I also like that the MacMini does WiFi which that does not.)
So I’ll probably get a secondhand Mini at first and then in a couple of years upgrade to a really good streamer like the dCS Bridge or a streaming DAC like the Linn Selekt or something.
My MacMini is connect to the WiFi network via WiFi. No ethernet cable required. No issues streaming Roon.
I connect directly from a MacMini (Roon Core) to a USB DAC via USB. No additional device.
I’m curious to know why you state connecting via ethernet, and an additional device are necessary?
PS - Love the drums avatar. I have a 1977 Ludwig Blue Vistalite kit complete with original hardware, Speed King pedal and Zildjian cymbals. Original owner. Yes, I am old. LOL
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I use a 2008 MAC Mini that I run on 12 VDC and I have a 1TB SSD for Roon Server and a 1TB for Back up all from the same Mac Mini. I use and AudioByte Hydra (run on 5VDC) as a USB bridge that supplies AES to my DAC. I also use a iMAC to be able to input my Convolutions for Room Correction.
Because that’s what Roon recommends and it prevents many of the problems some people have using WIFI.
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Because that’s what Roon recommends and it prevents many of the problems some people have using WIFI.
Thanks. Yes, I understand that to be the case.
It’s worth simply trying WiFi. If that works, then it negates the necessity to place a WiFi node close to the MacMini, or running a long ethernet cable. This is assuming the MacMini and DAC are not located in close proximity to the WiFi router or parent node.
Why do you make the following recommendation?:
Then, you will need a Roon bridge to connect to your DAC. A Raspberry Pi 4 running RoPieeeXL is perfect for this and can be purchased for $74 from Amazon.
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Because, if he puts his Roon core device in a different location than his sound system, he needs a Roon bridge.
Would you please just make your suggestions and let me make mine? The OP can decide how he wants to proceed.
Sure.
I was genuinely trying to learn from your recommendation. Your reply clarified it.
Thank you.
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… but it does help if the assumptions and rationale are clear. And sometimes questions from other users will prompt whole new lines of thought!
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Read the thread. It’s clear. People sometimes dive it at the end of a thread and want you to explain it all over again.
Well. Maybe. You are well versed in Roon architecture… but if you are not already familiar with how it all hangs together the thread is a bit ambiguous. There are many instances where the advice given - including my own - might be inappropriate to @Chris_I situation, but why it’s inappropriate might not be clear yet to Chris!
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