Question: If I want a way to play Apple Music losslessly to my DAC, what are my real options?
I am thinking of an Apple or Android device connected over USB to my DAC.
The issue is the remote (which Eversolo and the Fiio R7 seem to have a solution for).
I would love for Apple to come up with an “Apple Connect” like Spotify or Tidal, but that doesn’t seem to be in the cards.
Just an idea:
Integration of Roon ARC to their Car Audio systems, portable Audio devices etc.
And/or as a value-added option to their high-end systems (like for example the inclusion of Dirac Live licenses to certain products - they could add Roon licenses as well)
Roon is super niche, and Roon Arc does not work great at all.
I’m pretty happy with the Eversolo, the iOS app is decent, rather reminds me of my BluOs remote app for NAD. Test drive with a dealer who has a good return policy.
Plenty of good options available currently in the marketplace.
Quite a product that hardly would be missed. From the few home HiFi freaks that value Roon (still a niche) only a fraction really requires what ARC may deliver.
It would be hilarious if Apple announced an Apple Connect feature when Spotify finally rolls out cd quality streaming.
What are those options?
Amazon has an Android 13 tablet for $119!!! And there are apps to mirror Android to an iOS device (I am an Apple fanboy).
That is the thing: Apple is so incredibly conservative on their tech choices that they did not include such a handoff feature in Airplay 2. I was soooo hoping that they would when Airplay 2 came out. Instead, what they did is make Airplay 2 lossy so that playback would be much less likely to drop.
All the overhead of trying to stream a local library from your home network to your automobile or vacation home……….boggles my mind. I use a iPod in my truck plugged into a pioneer head unit………dinosaur mode huh?
Yes, I agree. Ideally, our information should be kept private. That’s the ethical thing to do. However, the reality is that most everyone with an online presence has at least some of their information floating around. All that these companies care about is your purchase history for marketing purposes. Is it ethical? No. Is it the reality that we’ve been living with for around 20 years? Yes.
So, why have a hissy fit over something that won’t change?
Roon Arc is absolutely terrible (sorry @danny - it is). I have gigabit service at my beach house in Long Island, 800 mbps down / 25 mbps up at home where the Roon core runs. It simply does not work. If the answer is you need gigabit up/down everywhere, then my answer is take it away please.
You know what I use Roon Arc for? To see if I own a particular album in my local library. That is ALL it is good for. I wish the Roon team would have spent some time developing the many asks that me and others have requested over the years instead of this “solution”. I suppose the development was intended to make Roon more attractive to a buyer, and maybe that is why Harman bought them. They will find out soon enough that it simply does not work.
Still, lots of effort for a minority within a small group. I get the idea but is it worth the resources spent?
The Eversolo is android but everything else I have is apple so I use my iPad primarily. But using a dedicated el cheapo tablets is a great idea 
Bernd and @miguelito , I know a good spot in the Mojave Desert where a proper (deep) burial spot for ARC is currently available 
What’s wrong with Arc, again? When I’m out an about in NYC, Arc works without issue and I have access to my entire library (most of which is my personal collection of recordings).
Is it unstable for people outside of major cities?
It makes sense for Harman, Roon is probably already partnered with most of their brands, they don’t have a competitive platform themselves for controlling all their devices and for a company the size of Harman it makes sense to just take control of this dependency. Even if all non-harman brands drop Roon, the harman ecosystem alone is big enough for Roon to exist and even become a big player in the market. Some people here don’t seem to get how big harman is but they have a global market share of +25% in audio and infotainment and I’m guessing if you go to OEM level, more than 50% of the brands use harman products or licenses in their products. they are HUGE.
Roon has some challenges for the future, additional growth in both features and partnerships require more effort than before and Roon, as a niche player, would have a very difficult time taking the next big steps and probably end up in some status quo state. With the backing of harman, Roon gains access to knowledge, resources and negotiating power that they could only dream of. Given Harmans history of supporting brands and pushing them next level, I have good hopes for Roon.
But, like many, as a lifetimer I hope they don’t fork a paid 3.x and leave us lifers licensed for 2.x. Anyways, I don’t see that happening within 2 years so probably enough time for my lifetime to break even.
I live in NYC. It works 90% of the time. It needs to work 100% of the time like Tidal, Qobuz, Spotify, or Apple.
Roon has, maybe, 300k users. Of those, I bet you only a small fraction are active users that really care. It is a drop in the bucket. Add to that that Roon is not cheap to maintain. And on top of that, add that the Roon team’s motivation to innovate and maintain the platform running as smoothly as possible is, essentially, not there anymore. They are now employees of a company that decides what the direction will be.
I am not hopeful and I am already thinking of alternatives.
I would assume it’s next to the plot for Roon Radio…
Partnered? You mean RoonReady is integrated in their devices? That is basically a one-time project.