Roon ROCK: Placement of NUC

Roon Software Discussion ROCK
1

Looking for some objective advise here from Forum members that have actually either the tech inside OR the previous direct experience on the subject, Thanks!

The QUESTION: Should I place ROCK NUC (Fanless AKASA PLATO case) on listening room close to Endpoint (Auralic Aries) or on the office where the NAS resides, in order to optimize audio performance?

The EXISTING SETUP as is:

  • Roon ROCK running on dedicated NUC in fanless Akasa Plato case, connected low-power metal case 5 port switch, that also connects to Auralic Aries and Teleste MoCa adapter, all powered from HDPlex dedicated Power Supply and all located on listening room;
  • NAS on remote office room, connected to above via Teleste MoCa adapter, powered from iFi dedicated Power Supply.

The ALTERNATIVE SETUP I am considering:

  • Placing Roon ROCK also on remote office room, powered by a new dedicated HDPlex Power Supply that also will power Teleste MoCa adapter, thus getting it far from the actual listening room.

I ALREADY ACCESSED DIRECTLY BY EXPERIENCE:

  • MoCa connection vastly superior to PowerLine and similar, as PowerLine induces audible deterioration just by being plugged; Nothing to do with the “bits” themselves, but on the analog part of the audio setup;

Thanks!

3

I have moved mine about. I have used it located with the internet router and NAS, and in the room with the rest of my gear. The biggest concern is both electrical and mechanical noise. A NUC in a Plato enclosure takes care of both. It is fanless and in an aluminium enclosure that is well made and eliminates any electrical emissions. As a consequence, I am not able to distinguish between the two locations using a normal 19v laptop PSU. That is using Tidal, NAS sourced files and files held locally on the NUC. So my experience is it doesn’t matter so much, go with what you prefer. I would also advise against a costly linear PSU if you are putting the NUC away from the system. I would suggest that if you have isolation in place that cleans up what you hear then it may not be prudent to use a clean power supply there unnecessarily. That last bit is, however, an opinion and not proven fact! :slight_smile:

4

Thanks Henry, that was the feedback I needed, greatly appreciated!