Core Machine (Operating system/System info/Roon build number)
Apple MacBookPro 2019 Network Details (Including networking gear model/manufacturer and if on WiFi/Ethernet)
Linksys WiFi
Audio Devices (Specify what device you’re using and its connection type - USB/HDMI/etc.)
Naim NDX 2 Streamer/DAC
Description Of Issue
New to Roon (and Naim). All my music files are on a 2T Samsung SSD drive plugged into the USB port on my Naim NDX 2. Naim NXD is supposed to be “Roon Ready”. So setting up Roon Core on my MacBook I want it to see the music files on my Naim USB SSD and put these into the Core library. I see no simple “1, 2, 3” instructions for doing this on Roon or Naim websites. All I have for the Naim server/streamer is an IP address; it is on my local wifi network, as is my MacBook pro.
Can you give me some guidance here? Thanks!
If you make the NDX’s storage available to Roon via network share, Roon should be able to add the NDX to locations it monitors. (Note: I’ve no experience doing such a thing with an NDX; I’ve done it only from a Win10 PC exposing a network share.) As for how to set up the NDX, I can only guess that the Naim app might offer the capability. (I just tried sharing out a USB stick inserted into my Naim Mu-So 2nd gen, but I found nothing in the Naim app to effect a sharing.)
Thanks for your quick helpful reply James. I did try to add the Naim as a “network share” device in the Roon menu, by inputting the Naim network address (e.g. 192.168…) but that did not seem to go anywhere. I think I need clear guidance on what the Naim’s network address is, in a format that Roon will recognize.
I think if you connect the USB drive to the Roon core machine (your Mac) rather than have it connected to the NDX. Roon will see and assimilate your music library. Then once the NDX and your Roon core are on the same network your NDX will appears as an audio output to play to.
You want the music to be local to the Core if
Possible. Otherwise, the music would first have to be steamed from the Naim to the core, processed, and then steamed back
You will have to also take action on the NDX side, where a share name of your choice (or maybe NDX will supply a default) must be supplied. Once that share name is exposed by NDX, you can use Roon Settings/Storage to supply the IP address (or may be IP name) and the share name you supplied.
This occurred to me, too. But I couldn’t think of a reason why one have Roon get the music from the NDX and then send it back to the NDX, unless the specific purpose of the arrangement were to gain advantage of Roon metadata and, maybe, shaping the sound.
In fact, other than those advantages, it’s a bit of a puzzle why “Roon Ready” would be desirable from the NDX point of view.
It makes no logical sense to have the drive on the ndx2 unless you plan to still use UPnP. Tt should be attached to the Roon core for best performance. But it should.be possible as long as it has a samba share. Can you access the drive over the network from a computer? If not then its not possible. I am not sure if the share is purely UPnP or network as well.
Try smb://ipaddress or hostname
Or \\:ipaddress or hostname
I think the NDX2 network functionality is essentially the same as my ND5 XS2. I’d suggest attaching the ssd to your MacBook. Roon will be able to see it, and you will be able to play music to your NDX2 as a Roon Ready endpoint.
It’s not the most convenient architecture (Roon is ideally run on an always-on box) but it will get you up and running so you can decide where to go next!
Hi Everybody – thanks for all the thoughtful replies. Here is the basic problem I still face: I put the Roon core on my MacBook pro because it has the required processing power. But this is a laptop computer that moves around my house with me – not practical to have a USB SSD drive hanging off the side on a cable all the time to play my music! A main reason I got the Naim NDX 2 streamer besides sound quality was that it had ports for attaching external USB drives/ USB sticks loaded with music. Great, that works. Also Naim said NXD was “Roon Ready”. Now a logical assumption is that Roon Ready would mean that running Roon core on my MacBook would allow me to control the NXD with the Roon app, and see the music on the USB drives attached to the NXD (after all – the Naim remote app sees all this music on the USB drives!). Then of course the Roon core could take the album info from the USB drives and put it into the Roon database, but leave the music files on the USB drives (there is not room for 1 plus terabytes of music on the MacBook). This is, after all, what Roon also advertises in its marketing – i.e. “incorporates music data into the core but leaves the files in their original location”. So I am sensing here that there may be some false, or at least misleading, advertising either by Roon, or by Naim (i.e. “Roon Ready”), or maybe by both. Short story: When you lay out $7,500 for a state of the art streamer/server/DAC, and $500 for lifetime subscription to a music management software program that is highly reviewed, and both manufacturers advertise these work together ‘seamlessly’, you would expect to have the FULL functionality of the Naim device available on the Roon managemet program on my MacBook (and also on remote Roon apps on ipad, etc). What some/many of the posters here seem to be saying is that this is simply not possible. If that is indeed the case it looks like I will have to cancel Roon, sadly, after trial period. Thanks again.
You quoted: “incorporates music data into the core but leaves the files in their original location” . But that’s assuming that the repository of the files will expose them properly. That would mean the repository would show itself and its file-containing drive(s) via a network share(s) (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shared_resource for some background). As far as I can discover (from digging into Naim user groups), there’s no way to get an NDX to do that sort of network sharing. If there is, then things might work as you wish . That would certainly save you from having to buy a third box (a NAS, to hold and expose the storage with the files).
I’m sorry to hear you’re likely to drop Roon. But Roon only ever works with enabled partners. Maybe a complaint from you to Naim would help Naim move in a direction that would help you.
Think your reading too much into roon ready and not doing enough research. Naim have always had their own way of doing things based on upnp, hence the unitiserve.
The Naim are roon end points not servers.
I got rid of my previous generation Naim streamer as it wasn’t roon ready. Now have an atom which is fully integrated including volume control.
I’m not sure I would fault anybody on failure to do enough research. I too am a Naim owner (Mu-So 2nd gen), and having poked into the NDX and the Mu-So before this issue came up, I would not give Naim good marks for documentation.
Maybe since you already have your system in place, you should purchase a Nucleus or NUC to run your core and attach your USB drive. Take your MacBook Pro totally out of the system.
Thanks guys for the replies; yes better documentation by Naim about what exactly “Roon Ready” means would help (including noting that Roon will not be able to see USB drives attached to the Naim streamer). And thanks James Fitzgerald for the suggestion of getting a Roon Nucleus to handle the whole issue (core, USB storage drive) which I could plug into the Naim NDX. This adds some $ to the equation but may be the easiest solution.
Greg McLauchlan
Moon Audio has the Nucleus for $1398. I ordered one last week but cancelled my order when I decided I wasn’t sure I was going to stay with Roon or not. I may order another one if I ever make up my mind.
Yes and no. A Nucleus will give you an always-on computer running Roon, but needs to be connected to your network rather than directly to the NDX2 unless you intend to use it only as a DAC, which isn’t really the intended architecture, and would require additional hardware in between.
Whether you intent to use Qobuz or Tidal, or have other music systems you want to use with Roon, all play into the decisions you need to make. I’d still suggest running with the music files ssd connected to your MacBook while you explore the possibilities. It’s a free option, and should help you decide what functionality you want. When you know what functionality you want, there will be much advice offered about how best to achieve it!
Bottom line - it might not work the way you initially thought it would, but it will work, and I don’t think you will have wasted your money…
Roon Ready means that the RAAT code has been incorporated into the device so that you can just connect it to a network and Roon will see it, set it up appropriately to use it as a Roon Endpoint.