SQ inferior to OPPO attached media

Describe Your Setup:

1.3 build 276, osx 10.11, MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Mid 2014) i7

Music on synology NAS ~45k tracks

Roon device: Oppo udp-205

Problem:

I’ve got aftermarket modifications on my oppo that take it to reference level and playing music through its FAR inferior interface results in significantly better SQ than using Roon’s interface.

SQ is even further improved if I play music from an SSD directly attached to the Oppo, which is only accessible through the Oppo’s UI.

Am I screwed? I love Roon’s UI, but right now it only serves as a utility for browsing which albums I want to manually add to my SSD

Have you tried Roon via the USB interface? I find the SQ better via USB than Ethernet both via Roon (stock 205). I don’t find the SQ is better than USB when using direct attached media.

My setup: PC running RoonServer (also have ROCK on old PC but it sounds identical to RoonServer PC) -> 205 > PS Audio preamp > PS Audio amp > Ascend Sierra 2.

I wish Roon could control my preamp volume.

How do I connect Roon via the USB interface? I use the USB out on my Macbook Pro running Roon into the usb-dac input on the 205?

My Setup:

Exemplar Audio:
Expo T205
Exception SE Line
Custom 300b SET monoblocks w/ outboard power supplies
Horns
Portal speaker cables, interconnects, and powercords
XPC-2 Power Conditioner
Karlson subs w/ custom crossover

Stillpoints:
Component stands under amps and speakers
Ess Rack for source, pre, conditioner, and sub crossover
SS for amps, conditioner, and speaker tops (4 under each amp and the conditioner. 3 under each top)
4 aperture panels

FIM:
Stands for amp power supplies

Room:
21’ wide, 37’ deep, listening position about 1/3 in from back wall (open kitchen)

Tweaks:
Porter Port AC outlet
SR Blue fuse in pre
Speaker cables lifted 3’ at midpoint using simple wooden dowels and electric fence spacers.

Yes. No drivers needed for Mac to see 205.

I used to have similar results with my BDP-1. Flash drives plugged into the BDP-1’s USB port and using MPD interface sounded better than Roon streaming to the BDP-1 over ethernet. I found replacing the stock power supply of the network switch with a grounded LPS (Teradak U9) helped a lot. I use stock Cat 6a SSTP cables with shields removed. Nothing else plugged into the switch except the bare minimum.

I prefer it to the USB connection. Now, both the USB hard drives and Roon via ethernet sound completely black. However, the last bit of grain to the sound that I find with the USB drive connection (electrical noise?) is gone with ethernet now. It sounds more liquid to me.

can you elaborate on your setup?

What network switch are you using.

Is it server -> cat6a -> router -> cat6a -> switch -> cat6a -> BDP?

iMac (connected by Wifi) -> ethernet cable -> Network switch -> ethernet cable -> BDP-1

I have 2 network switches that I can use interchangeably. They are D-Link DGS-1005 and DGS-108. They both need 5V. I only need one of the switches.

The iMac gets wifi from my router in another room wirelessly. This lets Roon and internet work. I use the ethernet port only for Roon and BDP-1 purpose.

I have a spare Linksys E3000 router that I keep near my switch. I plug that router via ethernet into the switch to get the BDP-1 and Roon connected. After that connection in Roon, I unplug the router and its power supply.

This way, when the music is playing I only have the one network switch and 2 ethernet cables to make it all work. No router or other devices plugged into the switch.