{"id":3198,"date":"2015-05-14T16:13:53","date_gmt":"2015-05-14T14:13:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hifi-advice.com\/blog\/?p=3198"},"modified":"2021-08-13T16:35:21","modified_gmt":"2021-08-13T14:35:21","slug":"roon-music-serverbrowserplayer-software-part1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hifi-advice.com\/blog\/review\/digital-reviews\/audio-software-reviews\/roon-music-serverbrowserplayer-software-part1\/","title":{"rendered":"ROON – The new standard in Music Server, Browser and Player software"},"content":{"rendered":"

Roon – the new standard in Music Server, Browser and Player software<\/h2>\n

After introducing the Sooloos system in 2006, the people behind this industry standard-setting system joined forces with Meridian to form Meridian Sooloos, later to be named Meridian MDMS, and working on the software side under the Meridian moniker.<\/p>\n

Very recently this group of people has gone solo under the name Roon Labs, and they have just released an exciting new software product, quite simply called Roon.<\/p>\n

Review software supplied by Roon Labs<\/a>
\nRetail price $119 USD per year or $499 USD for a lifetime membership at the time of review, see Roon website<\/a> for actual prices<\/p>\n

Background<\/strong><\/h3>\n

A summarized interpretation of the Roon introduction on their Blog<\/strong><\/p>\n

In 1999, a group of friends started thinking about how we listen to music. This was before streaming services and the iTunes Store. It was a time of tremendous promise. But as music became more convenient to acquire and listen to, its presentation became less and less compelling. In the 70s, a gatefold sleeve for a vinyl LP had huge full-color panels of artwork and photographs, plus inner sleeve panels for lyrics, credits, and other information. In the 80s and 90s, CD jewel cases cut the outer surface area of the packaging by 80%, and you needed reading glasses to make sense of the liner notes. By the time digital media players surfaced, music was reduced to a list of file names.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

The decline of user experience in music<\/strong><\/p>\n

Somewhere along the line, it was accepted that the world of music could adequately be represented as a spreadsheet of artists, albums, and tracks. The group of friends now known as Roon wasn\u2019t prepared to live with that.<\/p>\n

The early years<\/strong><\/p>\n

The group of friends kept their day jobs and experimented with software that they hoped would lead to their holy grail: the rich experience of browsing LPs combined with the emerging digital promise of access to all the music in the world. After two years, they succeeded and had created an immersive music browsing experience that didn\u2019t exist anywhere in the world\u2026 Unfortunately, it needed a small truckload of hardware to run on, because the consumer PCs of the day just weren\u2019t powerful enough. By 2003 they finished their first test system, a 19″ touchscreen kiosk with a gaming GPU, a ton of RAM, and a two terabyte array, built by hand from $20,000 of parts. They loaded their music collections onto it and dragged it around New York City to parties, where people would invariably huddle around it and get into heated discussions about music.<\/p>\n

\"sooloos<\/p>\n

In 2006 they launched Sooloos, and despite its hefty price tag of $12,900, it was received by customers and reviewers with open arms. The product was a distributed network system of control, storage, and player devices, which could be configured to provide up to 32 zones of music and multiple terabytes of redundant storage.<\/p>\n

Growing up<\/strong><\/p>\n

In 2008 the early Sooloos people partnered with Meridian Audio, because they understood that to further their plans for world domination, they needed real expertise in manufacturing, distribution, and above all, audio. Meridian\u2019s pioneering work in digital audio and innovative approach to product design made the two companies a perfect fit, and Sooloos was acquired by Meridian at the end of that year. With Meridian\u2019s help, they also took the leap into synchronized multi-zone streaming, high-quality sample rate conversion, and DSP. Sooloos had become the gold standard for high-end digital music systems.<\/p>\n

\"sooloos<\/p>\n

Getting to scale<\/strong><\/p>\n

As the cheap PC, NAS, smartphone, and tablet became ubiquitous, Sooloos took their distributed embedded Meridian\/Sooloos system and began to repackage it as a standalone piece of software. In parallel, Meridian had been introduced to HP, who asked Sooloos to develop a branded app based on Sooloos, which resulted in the launch of HP Connected Music in 2012. All at once, Sooloos went from serving thousands of customers a year to serving millions every day.<\/p>\n

Onward and upward<\/strong><\/p>\n

Today the world is changing yet again. Music services are expanding their offerings and there is more affordable high-quality audio hardware implementing streaming than ever before, and in February 2015, the original Sooloos team reached an agreement to spin out of Meridian to form Roon Labs, and this takes us to the present time.<\/p>\n

\"roon-logo\"<\/p>\n

The Glorious Present<\/strong><\/h3>\n

What’s Roon?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Roon is working with various manufacturers to (co) produce or license hardware, but right now, Roon is a Mac and PC app that helps you experience your music in a completely new way. Whereas one would need specific Meridian-branded hardware for each of the Sooloos\/MDMS system’s components, Roon software runs on everyday OSX or Windows computers. One could use a small Intel NUC or a Mac Mini, which would act as the “system core” in Meridian language, or simply “Server” in non-Meridian speak. This unit can run standalone as a server\/player combination, in which case it will stream audio via USB to any directly connected DAC. Roon supports any USB endpoint that is recognized via the OS, and via “exclusive” or “direct” mode, which bypasses the OS mixer. This allows a bit-perfect stream from our application to the endpoint. The software achieves bit-perfect playback using CoreAudio (Mac) and WASAPI (Windows). Roon will be certifying many products in this mode. Music on local or USB\/Thunderbolt connected harddrive\/SSD, or over the network on a NAS is all supported. All the common file formats are supported at 1x,2x,4x,8x sample rates, and soon also DSD over PCM.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

You can control the software from an unlimited number of other OSX or Windows computers on which Roon is installed, or soon from an Android or iOS tablet. Unlike the Sooloos offerings of the past, the UI you see will be the same, no matter the device you run it on. One computer is used for managing the database (importing and editing) while all others are considered remotes. However, the app will look the same and offer exactly the same information no matter where you use it.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Alternatively, Roon can run as a server, streaming to compatible streaming endpoints via your existing home network. Hardwiring is recommended, but unless you have an aging access point, wifi also works just fine. A variety of audio endpoints are currently supported, including Meridian Sooloos products and Apple Airplay. On the Meridian part at the moment of writing, the MS600, MS200 and any of the 861, 808 or 818 devices containing a Sooloos ID40 or ID41 endpoint card will be automatically recognized by RoonRoon, and as Meridian issue updates, more of their devices will be supported. In the meantime they are working with several hardware manufacturers including Auralic, dCS, Linn, Meridian and PS Audio, to so expect more and more supported products in upcoming software updates. Updating by the way is a simple and wholly automatic process.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

From anywhere in the app, you can view the entire signal path from source file or stream type, through internal DSP processing (should you choose to enable it), to the type of connection to your audio equipment. My example above is very simple with only a source and destination but I have seen examples with several more steps, which is very handy in case of more elaborate setups. Roon will soon add features such as DSD Playback and MQA support.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

The above image is a composite of multiple screenshots I took while scrolling my way down.<\/p>\n

What’s more<\/strong><\/p>\n

Naturally, Roon is more than just music server and player software. In fact, it could be what will be the next industry standard. First off, Roon has moved away from the ubiquitous artist -> album -> track hierarchy and substituted this with a way of music handling that makes everything else look and feel ancient. Of course one can still view by Artist, Album or Track, but with Roon, that’s only the beginning.<\/p>\n

When first starting Roon, the app will ask where your library is, then proceed to index all your music on its own. Traditional info such as Artist, Album, Tracks and Cover Art are retrieved from both embedded ID3 tags as well as the folder structure, then matched to the data present in an online database. At this point it is important to note that Roon does not overwrite your laboriously added metadata; it adds to it, and leaves the original files and their metadata untouched unless one chooses to point Roon to a Roon-managed folder, after which Roon will manage the file structures to reflect its library changes. After this, Roon proceeds to enrich your music with rich context such as artist bios, lyrics, photos, reviews, concerts, credits etc. And on top of that as a user, you are allowed to add on top as many tags as you like, which are of course searchable and filterable. These 3 layers combined are formed into a graphical-rich database of your music that is browsable and searchable, just like one would surf the internet. Now you can really explore your music!<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

But it doesn’t stop there. The most powerful feature of Roon is how everything is linked and clickable. For example, you start with an artist to find that its music is categorized as Jazz-Fusion. With normal ID3 tags, this is where the genre field would stop, but with Roon there can be an infinite amount of tags. For the aforementioned file, its main genre could be linked to Jazz, Smooth Jazz and Jazz-Pop, but instead of having the genre field filled with those three categories separated by commas, Roon presents them as separate tags, all individually searchable, and more importantly, all individually filterable. Using the Focus Tool, one could for example zoom in on Jazz to start with, then subtract some jazz styles and perhaps add some other styles. The resulting selection can then be played, saved to a playlist, exported to a folder or excel sheet, or bulk-tagged.<\/p>\n

Every track, artist and album has like\/dislike buttons that enable extra filtering capabilities as well as ranking the selections higher or excluding it for radio playback (automated library shuffle after the last cued track ends). There are overall album credits, but also separate credits per track, as well as editing and exporting functionalities on every level. The latter importantly include all edits made in the Roon program.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Above:\u00a0Queue view – notice the heart symbol and thumbs up\/down icons<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

I mentioned click-ability on the previous page. When starting with the same example artist as above, when clicking “Credits” all band members and composers are listed. But also facts like the producers, the recording studio, an artist bio and lyrics. All these fields are clickable and lead to more information, in which there are new links that are also clickable and so on.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Above: Album Credits: all collaborating artists appear as clickable links, which allows further exploration.<\/p>\n

But just as useful is a section under each album or artist listing collaborating artists, for example, Bob James being linked to Fourplay. Naturally, Roon will immediately show all your albums of those artists, with links back and forth. But also very useful is the section that indicates which artists have been influenced by the artist that you are currently browsing, or the other way around, as well as linked music styles that are similar to, or derived from the current genre.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Above:\u00a0Discover view – a randomly chosen overview containing artists, labels, genres and more<\/p>\n

Another important advantage of Roon is the way it handles classical music. ID3’s limited tags have always been a disaster for cataloging classical music. Roon on the other hand understands composers, conductors, periods, works, instrumentation, and so forth, and catalogues your classical music in a clear and intuitive manner. In Roon, composers are people who create works, which are in turn performed by ensembles and soloists, with conductors. You can browse a composer\u2019s works, read information about where and when each work was written, and then compare recordings of various performances of the work, along with information about where and when it was recorded.<\/p>\n

Naturally, there’s an app-wide search box with Omni-functionality, meaning it will find anything matching your search term, be it an artist, genre, album etcetera. Bookmarking is another cool functionality that stores any view, be it Focused or not, as a searchable, filterable property.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Above:\u00a0Artists view with the fantastic Focus filtering feature<\/p>\n

Album Versions<\/strong><\/p>\n

Due to the limitations in ID3 tags, all competing products are prone to confusion when you have multiple versions of an album. For example one in CD quality and one in hi-res, or an original and a remaster, or even ones recorded at low speed and ones ripped at high speed. The latter would be me, as I am investigative like that. The cool thing is that Roon picks up these things even from additions added in brackets in the folder name, as I have done. This results in 2 albums in album view, one with “8 speed” and another with “max speed” tags under it, which of course are searchable and filterable. There’s a setting that can be set should one not want to see double albums in album view. In that case there will be one single cover in album view that leads to the other albums when clicked. From anywhere in the app, now playing Queue included, the other versions are always one click away.<\/p>\n

\"Roon16<\/p>\n

Above:\u00a0Selecting genres to include or exclude using Focus – the selection in the background shows the result immediately.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Above:\u00a0Main selection tool for Focus on Artists<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Above:\u00a0Main selection tool for Focus on Albums<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

There really is too much too mention… examples shown include selection by import date, Album release date, Performer, Composer, Label and Quality, the latter enabling selection by for example sample rate or bitrate, or file format. All these are selectable as include or exclude. Then there’s the inspector function, which allows a range of selection criteria such as Storage Location and various states such as Banned, Duplicate, Corrupt, Has Cover, has Large Cover and more.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

The result of selecting genres, release dates, import dates, and excluding some genres is a nice selection precisely tailored to your needs, which can be played, added to an existing or new playlist, exported to a physical folder or an Excel sheet and more.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Above:\u00a0Result from Artist Focus<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Above:\u00a0Result from Album Focus<\/p>\n

Multi Users, Multi Zone and Multi Devices<\/strong><\/p>\n

Roon can be used by all persons in your household, and because of its intuitive interface, anyone can use the system, technophobes included. Library wise, multiple folders on multiple networked devices can be used, and each user can have his or her own profile, so everyone in a household can have their own favorites, play history, recommendations, and playlists… as well as exclusions, which means that you won’t have to listen to your partner’s music choices. Keeping track of everyone’s music can be done from one PC or Mac, or from everyone’s own computer or tablet.<\/p>\n

Whether listening on a high-end DAC, on computer speakers connected to your laptop, on a computer with a headphone amp, or on an AirPlay streamer, Roon gives you a flexible, future-proof multi-room system without the need for expensive proprietary hardware, so you can mix and match to build the system that works for you.<\/p>\n

Roon has independent control for every zone that is added but can also transfer queues from zone to zone, and sync zones so they all play together.<\/p>\n

But most importantly the Roon architecture will allow its capabilities to grow as new functionality is added and new formats are available and supported.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Queue and Playlists<\/strong><\/p>\n

Roon’s Queue \/ Now Playing overview is a separate view that can be easily toggled to from any view. It shows a spacious display of all tracks, complete with artwork and of course links to all the rich (meta) data available in the database. The Queue is of the “consume” variety, where tracks that have been played are deleted from view, and placed on a separate history view. Clicking previous track will bring them back one by one though. A very useful feature is the “Focus on similar” button on the Queue view, which will show albums that are similar in style to the one playing. When clicking that button the music just keeps playing while you decide what to do with the albums just found: further refining or adding to the current queue? Adding to a playlist? Create a new playlist? Export to a folder physically or to Excel? It’s all possible.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Above:\u00a0Any selection can be played now, added to play next, or added at the end of the queue.<\/p>\n

Playlist functionality is implemented perfectly: all the functionality you need is there, and it all works superbly intuitively. Unlike with most if not all competitive products, the functionality is superbly intuitive. At any time, using any selection of music, either from the now playing queue, from library or from an existing playlist, one can create new playlists, add to existing playlists, or add to the playing now queue. The latter by the way is split into play now, add next and add to end.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Above: Saving a selection to a Playlist from the Queue view<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Above: Saving a Playlist to another Playlist<\/p>\n

So far all I’ve spoken about is functionality, but how does Roon sound<\/em>? This is not something that’s easy to address, because of the countless ways to connect devices and stream music. Read all about it on the next page.<\/p>\n

Next: Roon audio quality – sound via Meridian MS200<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Roon Sound via Meridian MS200<\/h3>\n

Audio Quality – Meridian MS200 endpoint<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Dutch distributor Viertron kindly loaned me a Meridian MS200 to test the Roon network streaming functionality. I have tested this little beauty before, see this extensive review. Just like when using the MS200 with Sooloos Cores, with Roon the connectivity is every bit as fool-proof and child’s play: connect the MS200 to the local network, and it will pop up in Roon’s audio settings immediately. You then have the option to name the zone, or just select it and start playing right away.<\/p>\n

Playing to a network endpoint such as the MS200 reduces response times ever so slightly compared to using the computer’s USB output, but it’s still plenty fast. Importantly, this worked flawlessly: not once did I experience a hickup or any connectivity problems, not even when disconnecting the unit and reconnecting in another room. Each and every time the MS200 was discovered instantly by Roon.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

For this review, I assessed the sound in my new second music room (which was made possible by removing the big computer desk), in which I try to use less than esoteric equipment, while still aiming for the best possible sound balance.<\/p>\n

Contrary to my main setup, this room uses standard powercables, standard interlinks and standard speaker cables, and even the equipment is standard, apart from the refurbished Apogee Duetta Signature magnetostatic speakers. The funny thing is that the resulting sound is still very, very good, but just presented differently: smaller in scale but arguably more accurate and direct, and less richly layered, colorful, and romantic as the main system. The beauty is that I enjoy the sound of both systems.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

The MS200 offers queue control from a compatible IR remote control, such as the MSR+. Alas, I did not have one at hand but recall from the earlier Sooloos tests that this worked indeed, and I understand that the Roon Now Playing Queue can be controlled likewise. Endpoints from other brands will come, but for now, this makes the MS200 the natural partner for Roon when a decent DAC is already at hand. If not, an MS600 will be the better choice, even if it doesn’t offer Queue control.<\/p>\n

\"Room<\/p>\n

Above: The all-new Listening Room 2<\/p>\n

With Roon running on the main Windows PC, I used the MS200 in 88.2kHz mode, as I know from previous experience that this sounds better. Connected via Toslink to the humble-but-musical Marantz NR1501 amp, the MS200 sounds nicely upbeat, transparent and refined, with very good definition and focus. In this setup, I don’t notice the Toslink-typical softness, and even if the sound is precise, it is definitely not clinical or forced in any way, quite the contrary: the sound flows from the speakers, and is just as fluid as the sound from the Meridian 506.24 CD player that was used for comparisons.<\/p>\n

The CD player still sounds more rounded and a little fuller, but that’s typical for most CD players, and while I generally enjoy a little extra smoothness, this is not a sign of absolute quality, and in the case of the 506 is delivered along with a less than articulate bass, an area where the MS200 easily bests it. In fact, Roon via the MS200 sound bests the CD player in all technical areas, but what’s important to note is that this combination sounds every bit as involving and musical as the CD player, the soundstage is just as large, and timbre is also wholly natural. Focus, low-level detail, and imaging are even quite a bit better than with the CD player.<\/p>\n

\"Roon<\/p>\n

Above:\u00a0Editing album information, changing cover is easy: select from embedded or retrieved artwork, or drag and drop new artwork onto the window.<\/p>\n

The price of admission<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Roon software is free! Well, it’s free during the 14-day free trial, and it’s free after that if you take out a membership that comes in two flavors. Option 1 is the annual membership at $119 USD per year. Option 2 is a lifetime membership for $499 USD. Both options come with complete Roon data service, music managing possibility for one PC or Mac, and unlimited amount of remote devices )Mac\/PC\/Tablet). Considering that one will likely use the software longer than 5 years, going with the lifetime options seems like the best option. While 499 USD might seem like a lot of money, please consider that for this you buy *unlimited* endpoint and remote possibilities. Try that with any of the competitor’s products!<\/p>\n

\"roon-logo\"<\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/h2>\n

When reading all that I am explaining about Roon’s functionality it might seem complicated, but believe me when I say that it is all implemented so very intuitively, that anyone can find his or her way from the very get-go. The interface is clean yet colorful and full of information, making it both easy and fun to dive in and explore your music collection. It’s said that it is very hard work to make something very simple, but Roon has definitely succeeded!<\/p>\n

Features like Focus, as well as the extensive search-ability as described above, are made possible by the way that Roon manages their database, which by the way is constantly updated. For example, photos and bios of artists change as the artist ages, and the date of birth is accompanied by a date of passing away, where applicable. And all this is where the subscription model comes in. The power of Roon is made possible by means of a twofold system: first, it’s the smart software that you can download and install on any Mac or Windows computer, and second, it is the extensive library services and cloud-based database behind it.<\/p>\n

Importantly, Roon understands how important it is to retain the ID3 tags as you have them. Any edits you make are non-destructive and saved to your unique personal profile, but because Roon uses a multilayered system to catalog your music, and your edits are added to the central database, the system is ever-growing and ever-improving.<\/p>\n

I have extensive experience with Sooloos and although that system has rightfully been the industry standard for many years, I can wholeheartedly say that Roon takes what is good about Sooloos, and adds hugely to it, making it what well could be the next industry standard.<\/p>\n

Update November 2015<\/h3>\n

All reviewing so far was done using the first commercial Roon release. Since writing this review, lots has happened on the Roon front: several software updates have been issued, bringing countless added features, bug fixes, new hardware support and iPad control. Also, Roon is working closely with several hardware manufacturers to bring native Roon support. The known companies at this moment are: dCS, PS Audio, Elac, Auralic, and Meridian. And many will surely follow.<\/p>\n

There’s more<\/h3>\n

This concludes the main part of the review but my reporting on Roon doesn’t stop here. Next up you can read about Roon and 3rd party streaming endpoint products and Roon with Meridian audio equipment.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Roon and 3rd party equipment<\/h3>\n

As I wrote in part 3, lots has happened on the Roon front since this review was published. Roon is becoming compatible with more and more endpoints, both software and hardware-based. There is a wide range of Roon-ready manufacturers already and I can only assume that the list will keep growing. Also, Roon now works on iPad. The app looks a lot like the main application and works exactly the same, with the same functionality. Please see the Roon website<\/a> and forum<\/a> for more details on functionality.<\/p>\n

Although it is mentioned on the Roon website that software implementations like Squeezelite are not supported, so far for me they do actually work just fine. This means that you can stream from Roon to any Squeezebox-labelled device as well as to devices that can run software emulations such as the Raspberry Pi and BeagleBone Black.<\/p>\n

This section will be open-ended, describing my experiences with 3rd party devices as they become available.<\/p>\n

Streaming in general<\/strong><\/p>\n

To my ears, any streaming method always sounds a bit thinner, less rich and colorful, less enveloping than a direct connection such as USB or SP\/DIF from a dedicated Music Server. With USB or S\/PDIF, when using a PC or Mac with an audiophile software player the sound will also usually be more accurate and vivid than when streaming. I have accepted this as a fact of life, but it seems that Meridian, Roon, and Devialet have found a way to squeeze the maximum out of their protocols.<\/p>\n

In the streaming category, Roon is definitely among the best I have encountered. If you want the comfort and affordability of streaming from any normal PC or Mac, then this can indeed sound mighty fine, but it won’t be state of the art. If you want Roon convenience as well as state-of-the-art sound, I think the best bet is to wait for Roon to become available on dedicated Music Servers.<\/p>\n

Do note that the location of the audio files also matters for the sound. Locally stored music sounds different from music played from a NAS, the latter attaining more of the “streaming” quality of a thinner sound. So, even when streaming from a PC to a Devialet, the sound will be better with the music playing locally on the PC than with it playing from a library on a NAS.<\/p>\n

\"Roon-Devialet-AAZ-550pix<\/p>\n

Roon to Devialet<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"devialet-expert-le-120<\/p>\n

Roon works well into Devialet products using Devialet’s own Air protocol. Once the\u00a0Devialet software is installed, you can select a Devialet (in my case a Devialet 120<\/a>) as an endpoint in Roon the same way as is done for local playback. The reliability of the connection is dependent on the Air connection itself, which is better with wired than wireless. Some people have experienced dropouts and white noise but with Ethernet, my connection is super stable and with wireless, I have only experienced dropouts, never any white noise.<\/p>\n

Devialet claims to offer bit-accurate playback over their protocol and Roon in turn always selects the best playback solution available, so this should be a very high-quality playback method and indeed it is.<\/p>\n

Roon via Airplay does have something of a jRiver sound to it, meaning that in the absolute sense it is slightly relaxed and forgiving in nature due to transients being slightly rounded, but of very high quality nonetheless.<\/p>\n

jRiver Media Center 18 to Devialet<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"jRiver-MC18-screengrab-550pix\"<\/p>\n

Compared to Roon, jRiver MC18 on the same PC using Wasapi and the same Devialet Air protocol sounds a little tighter and cleaner. It’s subtle but definitely an audible feeling of more speed and attack, especially in the lower registers. Midrange and treble, as well as ambiance and soundstaging, are comparable. However, there are tighter sounding programs around, such as Foobar for Windows (albeit too tight for my taste actually) and PureMusic, Audirvana, and Amarra for Mac.<\/p>\n

AudioAanZee Reference Flow Music Server to Devialet<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"AAZ<\/p>\n

The Reference Flow<\/a> is the best-sounding solution so far for Devialet in my secondary system. The sound playing local files on the Music Server via USB has more body and substance, as well as more impressive dynamics and more natural timbre.<\/p>\n

Roon to Aurender N10<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"Aurender-N10-550pix<\/p>\n

At this time (Jan 2016), the Aurender N10<\/a> only permits the use of Airplay (not to confuse with Devialet’s Air), and so far I am not very enthusiastic about this protocol. It’s probably also because, with the Aurender, Airplay runs over ethernet instead of a more direct connection, but I keep getting stuttering and dropouts, and when the sounds plays stably, it doesn’t sound very good, with what seems to be bandwidth limiting resulting in a sound that reminds of very low bitrate mp3.<\/p>\n

Roon naturally can’t fix the limitations of Airplay, but they have developed\u00a0their RoonReady protocol which\u00a0should yield much better results if only Aurender would choose to implement it. But even as it is, it’s already very nice to be able to create a second zone this way. The Aurender itself sounds simply fantastic when playing its internal files, so I can only dream of it hosting Roon. At this time (Jan 2016) no formal decision has been made by Aurender to implement it or not.<\/span><\/p>\n

Roon to BeagleBone Black by EC Designs<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"bbb<\/p>\n

The BeagleBoneBlack by EC Designs<\/a> is a BeagleBone Black mini-computer in a custom housing, running custom code. Mine runs Squeezelite with some EC refinements. As such it is compatible with Roon’s Squeezebox implementation. The BBB is extremely stable and does not introduce delays such as Devialet’s Air protocol does.<\/p>\n

Streaming to the BBB works very well and sounds very\u00a0good, but\u00a0at the moment of testing this initially (Jan 2016), just as when streaming to the Devialet from Roon, I did note a slightly\u00a0rounded\u00a0and soft quality to the sound. Not very detrimental, but there.<\/p>\n

What’s so great about the Roon team is that they never seem to stop improving their product. As I would later learn, their transport protocols have improved to the point where they can be considered to be among the best achievable. Read on below!<\/p>\n

Update 21-5-2016<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"Roon_BBB_550pix<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Roon has implemented changes in the underlying protocols, and when listening to Roon streaming to the EC Designs Beaglebone Black (with USB converted to Toslink using an EC Designs XTOS) into a Wadia 521 DAC, I have a strong feeling that the sound is now indeed more articulate and more transparent.<\/p>\n

To properly assess this, I connected the BBB directly to the Meridian 818 using an AudioQuest Diamond USB cable, and compare the sound between Roon streaming to the BBB running Squeezelite versus Roon streaming directly to the 818 using proprietary Roon\/Meridian protocol. I must admit to being unsure whether or not RAAT is in any way used for the SqueezeLite transport but I do know that it is not in use for transport to the 818, instead, another proprietary high-quality transport is used. In any event, either method shows up as being Lossless.<\/p>\n

\"Meridian<\/p>\n

Already during the first track during the comparison my hunch is confirmed: streaming to the BBB Squeezelite endpoint does indeed sound much better than before, and it can now be considered to be more or less in the same league as when streaming directly to a Meridian 818v3<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The most important thing to note is that the aforementioned transient softness is now nowhere to be found! In fact, the BBB sounds slightly more articulate and forward than when streaming directly to the 818. The latter is likely the more natural portrayal but we’re now in “cable differences” territory, and either device can likely be easily tuned to one’s personal preference using the appropriate cable. Very impressive for sucha super low cost endpoint indeed.<\/p>\n

Roon and Apple TV<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Roon_AppleTV_550pix<\/p>\n

Speaking of low-cost endpoints, the Apple TV also seems to offer a lot of value for money. It looks sleek, operates smoothly, and offers what I think many regards as an industry-standard Airport zone. A third-generation Apple TV was borrowed from a friend to assess the audio quality when used with Roon. Selection from within Roon is effortless, and the connection is indicated as being of “High Quality”. Note that when streaming to a Meridian 818 or the Beaglebone Black, the indication was “Lossless”.<\/p>\n

\"Roon_AppleTV_550pix<\/p>\n

The Apple TV is connected to a Wadia 521 DAC via an optical TOSlink cable. Not the best standard to use, but earlier experience with the standard in the context of EC Designs DAC and BeagleBoneBlack seem to indicate that the cable interface itself need not stand in the way of high quality sound. In any event, this is the best way to connect an Apple TV, outside of HDMI on a home cinema receiver perhaps.<\/p>\n

\"Roon_AppleTV_550pix<\/p>\n

Apple TV offers the benefit of showing Artwork and other track info on a connected TV or computer monitor.<\/p>\n

\"Roon_AppleTV_550pix<\/p>\n

Alas, to put it mildly, the sound quality with the Apple TV is not of audiophile quality. Sound using Airplay in generic is decidedly more soft and rounded, and less dynamic, than any of the other methods tried, and the ATV is no exception.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Roon and Meridian<\/h3>\n

Meridian review samples kindly supplied by Dutch distributor Viertron<\/a><\/p>\n

Ever since Roon<\/a> came into existence I’ve been wondering how it would compare to Sooloos soundwise. Well, the wait is over! Marijn Nederlof of Dutch distributor Viertron was so kind to supply a Meridian 818v3<\/a>,\u00a0an\u00a0MC200<\/a> and a pair of DSP 5200 Special Edition<\/a> speakers for two weeks. With anticipation, I set up the MC200 right next to my main Windows PC, connected it to the same power outlet and loaded a lot of test CD’s on it from the same source as I use for Roon, and the Aurender N10<\/a> and AudioAanZee Reference Flow<\/a> music servers. The network connection utilizes two network switches, one next to the main PC and one next to the main audio system, connected directly with a CAT6 UTP cable. The 818v3 is powered by a Reference Tweaks Gold Label powercable, which is a Furutech Alpha 3 cable with T T L treatment<\/a>. This worked great last time I had the 818<\/a> (v1) in-house, and with the v3 version it turns out to work equally well.<\/p>\n

Last time that I compared various Meridian Sooloos components in the context of my own system a few years back it was mentioned in the comments that I had not extracted the maximum from the Sooloos ecosystem until I used a Merdian-only system. The 818v3 + MC200 + DSP 5200 SE are here to prove their case.<\/p>\n

\"Meridian<\/p>\n

Roon technology<\/strong><\/p>\n

When I wrote part 1<\/a> of this review, Roon was already serious Sooloos competition, but still in the early stages. Roon are issuing updates frequently and Roon is getting better and better. I can’t begin to list all the new features since my initial review, for that please have a look on the Roon site. But what is important to note is that their list of available proprietary software, as well as the list of hardware partners, is ever-growing.<\/p>\n

Roon’s excellent audio quality is achieved by streaming using an in-house developed streaming protocol called RAAT. This protocol does not enforce a clock on the audio stream. It allows the Output device to focus on a simple thing: copying an audio stream from the network interface and playing it back asynchronously using its own clock source. RAAT is available via Roon software packages<\/a>\u00a0and embedded in\u00a0Roon Ready devices<\/a>\u00a0from their partners.<\/p>\n

\"Meridian<\/p>\n

RAAT is not implemented in current Meridian products, but the technological approach is the same, since the same team made it. No wonder then that they\u00a0perform so well.<\/p>\n

\"Meridian<\/p>\n

Roon and Sooloos using Meridian DSP 5200 SE speakers<\/strong><\/p>\n

First tests are\u00a0carried out using the DSP 5200 SE speakers, connected with Speakerlink to the Meridian 818v3, which itself is fed by the MC200 core\/server. From first play, connection with either Roon or Sooloos is\u00a0quick and painless. I can have both “cores” active simultaneously and after enabling the 818’s ID41 card on Roon, the app\u00a0where I hit “play” simply starts playing music to the 818. If I stop playing on Roon and hit play on Sooloos, the music starts playing from the MC200 instantaneously. In the reverse situation coming from Sooloos, I have to re-enable the ID41 card in Roon before I can continue playback from it on the 818. But this is easy peasy because enabling Roon zones can be done from both the desktop interface as well as from the iPad app. So thumbs up for the functionality both ways, great integration!<\/p>\n

\"Control<\/p>\n

Above left: Sooloos Control:PC application, Above right: Roon PC application<\/p>\n

This was to be expected because the Roon guys are, after all, the same people who wrote the basis for the Sooloos software, but in practice, them being separated parties, I guess it remained to be seen. I need not have worried. Not only do both software sides play perfectly to the 818, but the latter’s front panel buttons, as well as the MSR IR remote control, can also both control the play queue. The volume buttons on the Roon software side (either iPad app or desktop app) can control the 818, and because the latter is connected via Speakerlink, this in turn controls the DSP 5200 speaker’s volume. Speaking of which, Speakerlink turns out to sound best in my tests using the “Home Run” method with each speaker having its own cable to the 818.<\/p>\n

\"Meridian<\/p>\n

Above: Sooloos iPad interface<\/p>\n

Sooloos + DSP 5200 SE<\/strong><\/p>\n

Although I needed some time to find the best spots for the speakers, I was reminded from the first notes\u00a0why I was originally so fond of Sooloos. The sound really is timbrally highly\u00a0convincing, and not at all computer-esque. The presentation is confident, solid and for a lack of a better word, very real. Audiophile qualities such as imaging, focus and soundstage layering are all present on a very high level. What impresses me most is the natural percussive sound of piano and keyboards, which is one of the first things to give away the use of regular computer audio.<\/p>\n

\"Meridian<\/p>\n

Above: Roon\u00a0iPad interface<\/p>\n

Roon + DSP 5200 SE<\/strong><\/p>\n

Switching from Sooloos to Roon marks a pleasant surprise because the two sound very similar. Bass remains full and solid, with spot-on PRAT and treble is still fluid and decidedly un-digital. It’s in the midrange where I hear a small difference though. I find that the MC200 with Sooloos sounds a little more forward in the midrange, resulting in slightly more expressive percussive sounds as if transients are slightly sharper, or more immediate. Roon playback sounds a little more fluid, with a slightly warmer midrange. Which of the two is the better will very much be dependent on the rest of the system. In the case of the quite full-sounding DSP 5200’s I find that the more forward sounding MC200 made for a slightly better match.<\/p>\n

I need to stress that the effect that I am talking about, while audible for experienced listeners, might not\u00a0be meaningful for many.\u00a0It really is a subtle difference\u00a0of the sort that I think most listeners would say that it falls in the nuances category, similar to a change of a different type of power cable\u00a0from the same brand\u00a0on a preamp or DAC. Some listeners don’t believe in this and happily use standard cables, others do find it matters considerably and fine-tune to their heart’s content.<\/p>\n

I’m sure that this difference is not due to the transport stream or any protocol for that matter. More likely the difference stems from my using an ordinary Windows PC that is not optimized for audio, and for me at least this makes a very good case for looking out for a dedicated Roon server, for Roon’s convenience definitely trumps Sooloos.<\/p>\n

Read more about the DSP 5200 SE in the separate review<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Meridian<\/p>\n

Roon + Meridian 818v3 versus Aurender N10 + Wadia 521<\/strong><\/p>\n

My current personal system consists of an Aurender N10 music server and a Wadia 521 DAC, connected with a Mad Scientist HDC Plus digital cable and driving the preamp with a Cardas Hexlink Golden 5C XLR interlink. The 521 is unusual for a Wadia because it sounds considerably\u00a0less dark than its predecessors, but still, when switching to Roon + Meridian 818v3 with the same Hexlink interlink, the presentation is slightly more open and airy. Interestingly, in this context, the midrange sounds spot on and there is absolutely no evidence of the lessened percussive effect noted with the Meridian speakers. Rather, the Roon + 818v3 combination sounds even slightly more articulate and upbeat than the Aurender + Wadia combination.<\/p>\n

Read more about Sooloos, Meridian 818v3 and Aurender in the separate review<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Sooloos + Meridian 818v3<\/strong><\/p>\n

Switching from Roon to Sooloos as a source in the main system, transients are indeed\u00a0more instantaneous and midrange is more pronounced, but the sound is also a little drier than with Roon and I’m not so sure anymore if it is better, or just different. Importantly, both sources sound timbrally correct and are equally engaging.\u00a0This just goes to show that it’s all about the combination that is made with the components at hand, and that there is a place for both Roon and Sooloos.<\/p>\n

\"Meridian<\/p>\n

Roon + Meridian Conclusion<\/h2>\n

The Meridian 818v3 makes an excellent case for indulging on the endpoint side. Used with a reference-class endpoint such as the Merdian 818v3, Roon sounds fully mature and need not hide from dedicated reference music servers. The 818v3 sounds worlds better than when using Roon with a SqueezeLite endpoint (in the shape of a Beagle Bone Black<\/a>) into either the Wadia DAC or the DAC section of the 818. But not only that, the Roon\/818 combination actually comes close to the overall sound quality of the Aurender N10 + Wadia 521 DAC. Further, combining Roon and Meridian adds the benefit of complete system compatibility, meaning centralized control of most functions including front panel buttons and infrared remote control, for both Sooloos and Roon.<\/p>\n

Next: incremental updates as Roon develops and I gather more experience<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Update 15-04-2017<\/h3>\n

Roon via Airplay and Euphony\u00a0Audio Transport<\/strong><\/p>\n

With the 818 gone and using the EC Designs Beaglebone Black<\/a> in another setup and faced with needing an endpoint in my main system to be able to listen to Roon, I remembered that Airplay functionality was made more stable recently so I tried it again using the Aurender N10<\/a> Music Server. Yup: after tapping the audio setup link, the Aurender Airplay option popped up right away. Seconds after enabling it the music played. It sounded ok, but not great, with a certain thinness and a loud midrange.<\/p>\n

\"roon_and_euphony_img_0672_550pix\"<\/p>\n

That made me think:\u00a0Roon is also compatible with Squeezebox and the AudioAanZee Reference Flow<\/a> music server has SqueezeLite at its core. I had tried this before and it sounded very good.<\/p>\n

After connecting the Reference Flow and adding a HiFace EVO<\/a> USB to S\/PDIF converter as the Wadia 521<\/a> does not have USB, I went back to the Roon audio setup screen. There I was\u00a0greeted with a big Roon symbol followed by Euphony, hiFace and ALSA.<\/p>\n

\"roon-and-euphony-audio-setup_550pix\"<\/p>\n

Roon works natively with Euphony Audio Transport<\/em><\/p>\n

Ah yes, that’s right: I swapped the Reference Flow hard disk for the Euphony Drive<\/a>! At the time of the Euphony review, I hadn’t tried the endpoint option but since Euphony is Roon certified, Euphony is natively compatible with Roon and this works both ways.<\/p>\n

\"euphony-reference-flow-and-roon_550pix\"<\/p>\n

Just look at all those zones available at my fingertips! The top one labeled AAZ Euphony is the AudioAanZee music server hardware running the Euphony Drive software. These labels can freely be renamed and any endpoint options that are not needed can be left off the list.<\/em><\/p>\n

It’s great having these zones at your fingertips and Roon makes swapping between them child’s play. It works smoothly and quickly and again the music plays. This time around the sound is great. Nay, it’s excellent! In spite of the USB to SPDIF conversion, this is a sound that is on par with what I am normally used to from other high quality streaming endpoints. A quick switch back to the Aurender with Airplay confirms that the Airplay protocol definitely performs at a lower level.<\/p>\n

\"roon_and_euphony_img_0677_550pix\"<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Roon keeps expanding its functionality and compatibility. By now the list of possibilities is becoming positively endless, now even including DSP. At the pace that the Roon team is developing, it is just impossible to keep this review up to date. So for the latest, please head to the Roon website.<\/p>\n

I will keep adding reviews of Roon-compatible devices and I will always compare the Roon playback to the other means available. Here’s a recent addition where Roon also sounds marvelous:<\/p>\n

PS Audio Directstream DAC and Directstream Memory Player<\/a><\/p>\n

Update 08-05-2017<\/h3>\n

Euphony\u00a0Buggy\/Zotac<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"euphony_buggy-zotac_img_0708_550pix\"<\/p>\n

Euphony’s Buggy\/Zotac\/P8<\/a> hardware solution performs even better than the Reference Flow with Euphony Drive! See the extensive review<\/a> for the complete story.<\/p>\n

\"euphony_buggy-zotac_img_0749_550pix\"<\/p>\n

Buggy\/Zotac is the computer containing the Euphony Drive, P8 is the optional fully regulated linear power supply. Other power supplies are also available.<\/p>\n

\"euphony_buggy-zotac_img_0714_550pix\"<\/p>\n

Update 21-05-2020<\/h3>\n

Roon never stops developing and to this day it keeps getting better and better. At this stage, though, I think that the review is long enough already and so I have stopped adding updates. I do still use Roon as the default streaming application for all my review work and so, my reporting has continued in these individual reviews. Below are a couple of links to start you off on that continued journey.<\/p>\n

Associated Equipment<\/a><\/p>\n

Try out Roon for yourself<\/h3>\n

Get Roon 1 month for free<\/a><\/p>\n

Read Also<\/h3>\n

Antipodes DX\u00a0Music Server and Roon Ready Streaming Endpoint<\/a>
\nAntipodes DS Base Music Server and Roon Ready Endpoint<\/a>
\nBricasti M5 Roon Ready Streaming Endpoint<\/a><\/p>\n

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