What does Roon do? And how do I know that Roon does it?
I have set Roon up to connect with my Tidal account. When I do search in Roon, I sometimes get direct hit, or are directed to get more results from Tidal.
Does Roon improve my sound “on the fly” or do I have to add to playlist first?
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Hi Svein,
Roon does two fundamental things:
- cross references your own digital music library and streamed content (Tidal) with hyperlinked metadata and editorial content in an intuitive interface; and
- sends digital music in a variety of formats over a variety of connections to equipment that can play it.
Roon has no effect on music played through another program on your computer.
People choose to use Roon because it is the best “front end” for a music collection. The only thing like it is Sooloos, which is where Roon came from. Roon helps you organise and discover music.
Roon supports hi resolution digital files and the sound quality it provides is second only to a very small number of other programs. It may become second to none after planned integration with HQPlayer.
You can happily use Roon as a front end for Tidal, but you should be pleasantly surprised if you make your music folder a watched folder and let it show you how your music is connected to other music.
To play music through Roon, select an available zone, choose an album or track and press Play or add it to the queue.
If you find yourself browsing for hours, making a playlist of old and new favourites, or quickly selecting and shuffling a pre made playlist or starting a genre radio playback (not internet radio yet) then Roon is doing what it should.
So basically, streaming my music directly from Tidal, or through Roon doesn’t make any difference on the sound quality?
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Probably not. I think Roon sounds better than Tidal direct, but it is only a subtle difference.
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Thanx for your input andybob 
I’m on a 60-day trial period, and so far I can’t see any reason to continue using Roon when it’s expired…unless someone can convince me that Roon has something to offer.
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I haven’t heard of a 60 day trial (not doubting you, just that its unfamiliar to me), the usual trial period is 14 days. You might want to check that because your credit card can be debited at the end of the trial period without any warning. That sounds worse than it is, because the devs will straighten out any account issues like that as soon as you let them know.
I think Roon is one of those things where people either say “this is amazing, where has it been my whole life” or they don’t understand what the fuss is all about. I was very much the former. The biggest Roon fans are those who have used other music library software.
You’ll work out for yourself if it’s a good fit for you; that’s what the trial is for. If you are mainly using it with Tidal, then check out the reviews and links to other music.
Is there something wrong with your existing sound? - if so spending money somewhere else first might be your best option.
Hello Svein,
I concur with andybob. While I never argue with perception, I am one of those lifetime licensees (by choice) who started into computer audio in 2011, purchased a brand new system, and ALL the software players available at the time rather than mess around with trials so I could compare software players without the trial ending and then having to remember if that is even possible what one player sounded like compared to another.
I eventually decided that Amarra Symphony was the best of them in so far as the sonic quality. That’s a subjective assessment. Others agree. Other disagree. Some had problems with Amarra Symphony, and some, like myself, had no problems. I was so enthused, I became a beta tester (voluntary) for Amarra Symphony. Over time many of the players improved their SQ, UI/UX/EM. But Amarra Symphony has remained for my sensibilities the best in the SQ category.
Enter roon Labs. Granted there are different models of the world and preferences for sound quality, user interface, experience and the consequential enjoyment of music, which is my highest priority. Presently, there is nothing available that offers what roon does overall for the UI/UX/EM and the information about music, artists, composers, and in particular the organization of one’s library. I am at over 6000 albums and growing. No other software server program manages like roon does; and that alone is a reason for me to ignore the trial period (which btw is two weeks for most of us – you may have a different arrangement) and go straight to a lifetime license. Again, my choice.
The remote app recently released is exceptional. Nothing like it in graphical interface and usability. The Zones, being able to install a Remote Client so I can play music in one room and music in another room that is a different album/track.
Soon roonSpeaker will be introduced. I own HQPlayer. I love HQPlayer. I love Amarra Symphony. To date, the SQ for Amarra Symphony is still the best. But roon with HQPlayer will have even greater reach into the conveyance of music enjoyment especially in the arena of down/upsampling and DSD Native play.
So when you write there is nothing in it for you regarding roon and signing on, while I can appreciate you find nothing valuable about roon to keep you as a member, I wonder what your needs that are not met and even surpassed to expand one’s reach, access, use, organization of computer audio at a level not yet surpassed by any other program.
That other programs, i.e., TIDAL HIFI, Dirac Live, Amarra’s AsQ+with iRC (a variation of Dirac Live integrated into Amarra’s programs for impulse response correction) work with roon is yet another dimension and empowerment for roon and a user like myself.
Are you sure, there’s nothing you can’t see any reason to continue when roon’s trial expires? As a contrast frame given the foregoing I have described, I can’t see any reason anyone who loves music would not continue. That is not to dismiss your model of the world and what is worth your time and money. I think I have covered real reasons to enjoy roon and a future with roon’s development which, at times, seems boundless compared to where I started in 2011. Lord knows what the future for roon is. But I am thrilled in the Present.
Good fortune (truly),
Richard
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My 60 day trial came as a coupon code with the purchase of Audioquest’s Jitterbug. Therefore my thoughts were that Roon were some kind of software to improve the soundquality, whether streaming or playing any files on the computer.
I’m honestly still confused of Roon, but it seems to be an advanced form of musiclibrary, which I don’t need.
I am my own kind of audiophile, and my preferences are restrikted to two channels, that’t all I need. Even though I’m happy with the sound from my system, I guess we all crave for something better, and that’s where Roon came in.
Anyway, I will not make any negative comments about Roon, you either like/need it…or not.
AudioQuest ships 60-day trial coupons with some of their products.
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And you did find the reviews, links to other artists etc? That’s what Roon is about, an easy way to really ‘explore’ your music library and find references to artists you may not now about so you know where to look for new music next.
Of course, as you said: you either like it or not, that’s up to you 
I haven’t had any problems finding information so far, so I guess Roon won’t change my life
My initial response was similar to yours when I first tried Roon. I didn’t really understand what the fuss was about and why I needed to pay that much for it. Then I watched this walk-through video that showed me some things I didn’t notice in the beginning - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1LvfgOQ3JY - Note that it’s from the very first version of Roon so it’s a little outdated and the editing options are much more advanced now.
After that I decided to give Roon another try so I got a 1 year subscription. Fast forward to 2 months later, I didn’t see myself going back to a regular player, so I went ahead and subscribed for life.
So I recommend that you take advantage of those 60 free days you have and decide later
Also, if you use Tidal there’s a synergy here that’s greater than the sum of Roon w/o Tidal + Tidal w/o Roon.
@Onlyafrika Svein, let me add my description of the benefits. I have two perspectives:
When you say “you don’t have any problems finding information”, I think that means the real understanding of your library, the database if you will, is in your head. Once you know what you want, any system can find it for you: a phone can do that, my car can do it. But it is difficult to keep all the relationships in your head. I like Vijay Iyer, but then I noticed how brilliant the bassist is, and Roon told me who he is and which other albums he plays on. And the collaborations between Dino Saluzzi and Anja Lechner and Francois Couturier and Vassilis Tsabrapolous and Arild Andersen – I knew about all those guys, but I couldn’t know about all their relationships, too much for my brain. Some of those links are in the “Credits”, who plays on which album. Some are in the reviews. Some come from similar tags or genres.
My other favorite description is “serendipitous discovery”. Following those relationships, sometimes making an excursion to Wikipedia or Amazon or HDtracks, I keep finding new stuff. I have found a lot of new stuff in my own library. I get an initial nudge from somewhere (Paul Motian obituary in the Times), and I look him up, and I follow links, and I spend a whole weekend traipsing around. And with Tidal the discoverable universe is infinite (although the metadata there is weaker).
I actually think the value of Roon is entirely separate from sound quality. Most of us care about sound quality. But I would encourage an MP3 listener to use Roon. Those values are independent, sound quality and serendipitous discovery (“SQ and SD”). We can have both, they are additive, hooray. But they are independent.
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My first question about Roon is dated back to october -15. As of today april -24, I’m still here. I guess Roon somehow changed my life anyway 
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