I’ve been with roon a few months now. I did the trial and then the yearly sub.
So far I’m. So pleased with the software and sound quality.
My move to roon came about by accident.
I’ve been with aurelic for about 5 years with the aries mini.
Their lightning ds software is good but totally unstable. Firmware updates, Internet outage, power cuts can cause havoc.
Library’s can disappear. It’s great when it world. But every few months it’s a complete nightmare.
I tried roon with the aries and it was fine but I just wanted away from aurelic. So I went for the lumin u2 mini.
Those who say that all network bridges sound the same and the DAC determines all shouid really compare systems. The bridge is not benign. They do sound different.
So I’m With roon now and lumin and incredibly satisfied.
There’s not been a single core crash and it works fine on the note 20 ultra and iPad.
Aurelic is ios only.
Yes I recommend roon highly.
I doubt the Harmon take over will actually decrease sound quality.
Changes will inevitably come but in other areas which as using on the move and maybe with a more flexible core system.
I also have an aries mini in perfect condition for sale. They fetch a good price.
I also like this community. It’s friendly and convivial. A rarity these days on the Internet.
Long may that continue.
Long may roon continue.
I’ll have no hesitation in renewing when the time comes.
To roon or not to roon is a no brainier for me.
But please Harmon don’t try and fix something that’s not broken.
Not only that.
It’s also down to the people who post here too.
I use Adobe Lightroom and think the subscription is a bargain. Many new features last 18 months.
Roon I went with lifetime in part to support (in my mind) to support the future development.
Of course Roon and Adobe could not be more different in terms of scale.
And target audience: consumer - business professional
Same here.
I was an annual subscriber for 6 years and then last year bought a lifetime subscription. Hindsight says I should have bought one initially. I waited to see if they stayed in business. Lifetime subscriptions are to front load cashflow for development. Under the Harmon umbrella I can’t see them needing to sell them any more. Roon is a specific product catering to a specific market. They currently have no real competition and no one seems to be interested in challenging them for such a small market. I thought a lifetime sub made sense.
I suspect that most of us here would suggest that nothing comes anywhere close to Roon.
Hope you have plenty of headphones you will soon be getting the SWMBO “hints”. I my case she banned 70’s rock 
I retired 10 years ago now and still wonder how I found time to work . Enjoy it
Roon is an interesting beast to be sure.
I think they overestimate the value of their “it’s a music magazine” approach. Frankly I’ve discovered much more music on subreddits and blogs of genre interest than through Roon and the actual streamers do just as good a job, probably better, of doing “built for you” playlists.
I don’t find their search either quick or insightful and there is a price we are paying for that, the “always on Internet” requirement.
Having said that, It is the best slickest way to combine local files and lossless streaming content. Second to none. Playback to my Roon Ready Amp is flawless and an absolute joy to use. It’s an exceptional music player and the singular library paradigm is brilliant.
For this reason I’m a lifetime subscriber and I would say if you love Roon, get that while you can, I can’t see them keeping new lifetime subs much longer.
If I was a 100% local music user, I would not get Roon nowadays, The idea of requiring Internet for local file playback is a ludicrous limitation for that use case. That would be like saying I can’t read my apple books on my iPad if there is no wifi.
If I was a 100% streaming user I would not use it either, their search and metadata supplements are not compelling enough to pay for given you are already paying a streaming service.
If you want a singular library with 30/70, 40/60, or 50/50 local/streaming source list though - it’s brilliant. Just be sure to keep your physical media around for when the Roon heartbeat is unreachable.
Oh I still have my physical CD’s who occasionally get a spin in my CXCv2 
However I do have a backup media player (JRiver) which I can use. I’m using JRiver for my tagging and it manages my Media drive with movies and series as a home theatre in the living room. But it is also a very capable local music player as well.
But the bullet and today purchased lifetime. Unfortunately the same day one of my beloved vintage speakers (Philips mfb) decided to quit on me… 
70s Rock is becoming more of a goto genre for me than it ever has been 
I have 5 or 6 pairs of headphones but rarely use them anymore as I can move to any of the rooms to enjoy Roon on my own if that’s what she wants. I think normally the wife tunes most of the music out
It’s a sign of age 
I resemble that comment , I woz there when they did it I actually saw Led Zeppelin as they release Zeppelin IV , still addicted.
I had Layla and Other Assorted Lovesongs for my 21 st
I don’t boogie as much these days the arthritis gets in the way
Well, I bought my lifetime at the beginning in 2015 and I’ve never looked back. At that time I saw buying the lifetime as an investment in a product that I wanted desperately succeed. There was a lot of beta testing back then, but it was all worth it. Allowing my 5000+ album collection (ripped vinyl, CDs, SACDs as well as main paid downloads) to intermix with Tidal and Qobuz streaming has opened the world of music in a way I could never have imagined before Roon. Likewise, the ability to integrate literally seven different listening systems (that’s right, seven different dacs ranging from several highend tube systems, dedicated music servers, desktop and laptop computers, to bluetooth headphones ) is simply amazing. I regularly use Roon on Mac, Windows and Linux! I wish them many more years of innovation.
Like @Jim_F I have three lifetime subscriptions, which I haven’t regretted for a moment.
One at home - where I have 7 zones (all ropieee with various HATs and DACs).
One in the recording studio - with a single zone - as a way to play demos, reference tracks, or anything else clients may want to hear.
And a third on my laptop for vacations / travelling etc. I
I bought my first just as my initial trial was ending - Roon was clearly much better that anything I’d used before (iTunes, LMS/ Squeeze box etc). I bought the mobile one in June this year when I realised I could no longer borrow the studio license when travelling (others now use the studio).
I have 30k tracks currently just under 1Tb - which replicates to the cores - and I use Qobuz to audition new music (at Home) and as a useful source for clients (in the studio).
I’m optimistic that the talented people who created the platform are going to continue to do great things.
This whole post is a great summary of Roon. I especially appreciate this part. Roon does so much but could do more around Artist information. They put a lot of stock in Valance but it fell short I think even of their expectations.
Given the perceived uncertainty of Roon and Roon Labs’ future post the Harman acquisition, the last thing you’d want to do is buy a lifetime subscription. I don’t understand why going month to month is not an option for you. I’m sure there are many services for which you pay monthly, likely including your internet and mobile phone services.
That said, I’m a strong advocate for Roon’s annual subscription. I’ve been on an annual subscription for the better part of a decade. Yes, I would have saved a little money by starting out with lifetime, but I’m glad that I did not. Each year, I get to ask myself if Roon added enough value to my family’s musical experiences to justify its subscription fee. If the answer is yes (and it has been every year so far), they earn my renewal for another year.
Imagine what would happen if the vast majority of Roon subscribers switched to lifetime? After a few years, Roon Labs would not have enough subscription revenue to support R&D or even ongoing operations. In less than a decade, they would close their doors. Lifetime subscriptions are “junk food” that may eventually kill Roon Labs. For everyone.
I happen to like Roon. A lot. I want to see new features and product improvements. Support for new devices. App updates. I would miss Roon terribly if it went away. That’s why I choose to support Roon Labs with my annual subscription rather than potentially stunting their future growth by going lifetime.
You said that Roon is helping you to reclaim the music experience. Only you can say what that’s worth to you, but $149.88/year is not a lot of money in this hobby. Works out to less than three Lattes per month from Starbucks.
I would urge you to consider the annual subscription. If Harman trashes Roon in a year or two (unlikely), you can walk away with nothing lost.
While I’m still on my soapbox, I’ll I’ve seen a few lifetime subscribers in this forum broadcast an entitled attitude. Like they are somehow heroes because they parted with $500 to $830 dollars one time and, therefore, deserve “better” support than the rest of us. That’s nonsense!
Quoting @danny:
The lifetime should not be an aspiration for Roon subscribers. It hurts us as a company and is not a viable business model for our future.
The real heros (besides the team at Roon Labs and the many manufacturers who have added Roon Ready support to their products) are monthly and annual subscribers. They pay employee salaries and cover the operational expenses that keep Roon alive and vibrant for everyone else long after the lifetime breakeven point.
One thing confuses me about roon, is it a cataloging/search software only or does it affect sound quality by applying some algorithm to model the sound something like mqa. If it somehow affects the sound i would be absolutely against it as i dont like software that changes sound quality.
Roon does not alter the sound quality but it does provide DSP functionality for those that want to use it.