I am going to be moving home and therefore have an opportunity to take stock and make improvements.
My setup is as follows:-
Windows 10 Intel i3 9th Generation i3 fanless PC with 8GB of RAM and 1GB SSD hard drive
Roon 1.7 build 667
Virgin SuperHub 3 – Cat 8 Ethernet cables connected to PC and Devialet Expert Pro 220 with SAM to Sopra N2 speakers
Following problems with dropouts with 24-bit music even after the latest Devialet update, I have switched to using Roon Ready through a wireless connection. There are still occasional dropouts but not to anything like the same extent.
Roon database and control (via a TV to provide a monitor) on PC hard drive, as is music library. Qobuz also connected.
In addition, I will be using a B&W Formation Wedge wirelessly, controlled either via Android phone or a laptop.
I really struggle with much of the technical language used by savvy community members and therefore would appreciate simple explanations avoiding too many technicalities.
My understanding is that a setup with all Roon functions and the music library on the same PC hard drive is not recommended. However, I do not know whether the benefits of making any changes will be more than marginal.
In principle, I am happy to put the Roon operating system or interface elsewhere or move my music on to a separate hard drive. For reasons that are probably obvious, I would prefer this to be SSD and since the current library size is around 350 GB, that should be manageable.
I would start with looking up the Virgin SuperHub 3 online and reading the reviews. I did and found it less than satisfactory for a robust internal Network. A separate modem and Router would give you much better performance and that is needed for Roons heavy Network usage.
Streaming hi-res music via Roon RAAT to a Devialet Expert Pro using gigabit ethernet still has occasional dropout issues for many despite the recent Devialet update. I deal with this by using a 10/100 mbps in front of my 440 Pro. If you have a stable WiFi network, that should also work. And, of course, using Roon AIR works fine over gigabit ethernet.
I can tell you what I use, and works perfectly, but there are many combinations that would work just as well.
My modem is a Motorola MB8600 and the router is ASUS GT-AC5300. The router has 8 Ethernet ports and 3 wifi bands. Whole house wifi coverage is good and it reaches out to my shop about 50 feet from the house.
All my entertainment system components are wired to the router with an 8 port Ethernet switch for the rest of the house. My closest neighbor is over 100 yards away so I don’t have any problem with interference and that probably helps with the wifi coverage and reliability.
Again, there are many others that work just as well.