I would be interested in hearing someone’s A/B comparison between the LANRover and the microRendu. They seem very similar in function, different in form. But I have to wonder how close they would be to one another, given the similar intent.
Not to hijack your thread, but I’d also like to throw the JCAT USB Isolator in the mix. Similar function, based on the Intona Industrial galvanic isolator. I have one and it’s staying in my system. Unfortunately the LANRover didn’t play well with my Esoteric K-03X and I had to send it back. Others have had great success with it.
Although many on the root thread (Keeping Things Simple) recommended the microRendu as being the most simple solution, I see that one has to set up modes on that device.
With the LANRover – which did great things for my sound, by the way – it was truly plug & play. Perhaps that’s to be expected, since the PS Audio LANRover is feeding a PS Audio DAC in my system.
I wonder if anyone has ever compared the two… or three.
The microRendu is plug and play…it comes pre-configured for RoonReady output by default. Besides selecting another output mode is just a click away on a web page. The microRendu uses less parts and cables. In fact, you do not even need a computer because you can utilize a NAS to send streams or use the internet for streaming.
IMO, this is comparing Apples and Oranges - The LAN Rover is used to clean and regenerate USB signal through two modules which are connected by ethernet cable. The microRendu is a USB player which takes a signal from an ethernet cable processes it, and spits out a music stream using a USB cable. You have several choices of formatted music (DLNA, Roon Ready, NAA, Squeezelite, AIrPlay) You can place a LAN Rover downstream from a USB player, and connect the LAN Rover to a DAC USB input. I beta tested the LAN Rover and had some connectivity issues. Everything with the microRendu has worked nicely. Only bug I found is with the uR involved the tempo of the music using NAA (HQPlayer) being a bit accelerated. A microRendu reboot immediately corrected the problem. These products fulfill different needs.
I was a LAN Rover beta tester (and had a few connectivity issues, and returned it). I did get it to work with my BDP-1 USB output, and it worked fine feeding my USB DAC. I’m in on the first lot of microRendus. I use the iFi power supply.