You have to run this extension somewhere… You can run it on any computer, including an RPi. In my case, I have my Roon core running on a Intel NUC and some extensions on the same machine. Running extensions on an RPi is just an option.
Where is your Roon core installed?
Probably nothing
The amp will just wait for some piece of software that connects and sends commands, like this extension. I’m not really sure, I think the only networks features are controlling and updating, please correct me if I’m wrong.
I have the core installed on an ASUSTOR NAS and seems to be running fine on this, if it could be run on the NAS that would be ideal and problem solved!
OK, so I’ve been rummaging around a bit today to try and get the gist of this…
I have the Roon Server on my NAS, my initial thoughts were I would need to do all this in the NAS environment but that may prove complicated…
Do I actually need to do this or if I download and perform the directions on your GitHub page on my PC and then have Roon search for the extension, will Roon save that extension and not need to find it on my PC again?
You can run extensions on your PC (Windows? Mac? Linux?). Roon and extensions do find each other as long as they run on the same network. If you want, I can provide you a single executable file you can just run. Then you don’t have to do all this node, npm and git stuff…
Instead of doing my day job I kept rummaging around and found out how to put Docker on my NAS and used Portainer to somehow stumble through pulling the image of the Roon Extension Manager onto my NAS which miraculously was recognised first time!
Needless to say after firing up Roon and going into extensions it found it and then I was able to open your extension and all’s good - at least it is present and visible, I don’t yet have my new Rotel processor to test it on…
I did neglect to change the options to stop only on request and it shut my whole NAS down somehow and caused a mild panic I had killed it…
So there we have it, it can be installed rather simply on an Asustor NAS!
I have a Rotel RA 1570 Integrated amplifier. It does not have a network interface so your extension won’t do me much good. The amplifier still sounds good.
there are ‘RS232 over ethernet’ converters (not just a cable adapter, devices with some kind of server running on it). This could be a solution. But I didn’t try myself, so I don’t know if this would really work. Just an idea…
I’ve got a very old RA02/RB03 Pre/Power combo connected via chromecast and just leave the volume at 9 O’clock and use the Roon software to control it now.
Not really enthusiastic about Chromecast as it cannot be grouped with my other endpoints so ordered a Rasperry Pi and DAC Hat to tide me over until I upgrade and it will allow me to be able to group all my zones together.
I’ve got both an RC1590/RB1590, and an RA1592, with the volume extension installed via the roon extension manager – it runs happily. Note that the connection is RJ45.
In terms of what happens when you plug a network cable into the amp – not much. You can look for firmware updates, and IIRC there’s an almost useless iOS app from Rotel (I think just for the RA1592 – doesn’t see the RC1590). Some of the open source automation platforms will work with Rotel devices over the IP protocol, but I’m not smart enough to ever make any of them stick.
Short summary is that @Boris_Schaedler’s extension is really cool
Hi I have the Michi preamp/dac which is just Rotels higher end branch so would be interested in this project. I currently run ropieee on a allo usbridge signature which works very well.
Thanks
Tony
I found a way to install the Roon Extension Manager on Docker: Docker Hub
Once I had the extension manager running, I was able to find and install the Rotel Volume/Source control extension from the Roon App.
Now I can control the volume and switch-off the RA 1772 from the Roon app.
What I did not get to work yet is the source control. Can you please point me to a desriptoion how this works? I Like to switch between phono, coax1, Opt1 … Thanks, Karl
Hi Karl,
the source control feature is not meant to switch arbitrary inputs. You can tell the extension to which input Roon is connected to your amp. When you press play in the Roon app, the extension will automatically switch to that input and when you switch the input at the amplifier, the playback is automatically paused. That’s the source control feature…
Boris
I’ve added the RooNUMIO extension from @DrCWO to my setup and experience some strange behaviour:
When I dial-up or down the volume on the NUMIO device, the volume always jumps back to the initial setting ( as observed on the Roon app interface). The RooNUMIO extension works fine with other zones ( like Sonos), but this behavious appears when I use zones connected to my ROTEL RA 1572 controlled by your extension. One otther strange behaviour, I observers ( lower priority) is the following: When the Rotel uses a different source (e.g. Phono) and Roon command arrives to switch to the roon input (e.g. COAX 1), the source channges, but the ROTEL DAC seem to be not active ( no music, no sample rate displayed). I have to turn the ROTEL off and on to make it work… Any idieas/ help?
Thanks, Karl
Hi Karl,
What firmware version is your Rotel running? After switching to the roon input (coax1), is roon in the playing or in the paused state? Does it work if you manually switch to the roon input?
