New Aurender models; X100 vs N100 vs N10 vs S10 ?

[miro]

For me, important criterion now is who will be the first to integrate with Roon.
I have heard Aurender is working on it.

Sadly Devialet, Bryston, Moon, Weiss will be probably way behind..

I also do want to have a digital AES out (somehow do not feel comfortable with USB only output)..

The Bryston BDP-2 has AES/EBU out, and it is amazing, especially with the new sound card from mid May.

[Confused]

For me, important criterion now is who will be the first to integrate with Roon.
I have heard Aurender is working on it.

Sadly Devialet, Bryston, Moon, Weiss will be probably way behind..

I also do want to have a digital AES out (somehow do not feel comfortable with USB only output)..

The Bryston BDP-2 has AES/EBU out, and it is amazing, especially with the new sound card from mid May.

This is a good point, the AES/EBU input on the Devialet is supposed to be qualitatively the best, so all other things being equal (which they are not, of course), an AES/EBU equipped machine should be best for sound quality.  For me, I'd love to hear one head to head with a Melco, Aurender, 3DLab Nano etc.

[john_h]

For me, important criterion now is who will be the first to integrate with Roon.
I have heard Aurender is working on it.

Sadly Devialet, Bryston, Moon, Weiss will be probably way behind..

I also do want to have a digital AES out (somehow do not feel comfortable with USB only output)..

The Bryston BDP-2 has AES/EBU out, and it is amazing, especially with the new sound card from mid May.

Good to hear, I just ordered a BDP-2 for my D400.  Which AES/EBU cable are you using with yours?

[IanG-UK]

... and bear in mind that, in a year's time, there will be a raft of new and upgraded physical products and lots of new software, with each manufacturer (whether Aurender or whoever) extolling the improvements they have managed to extract.

So this year's product from many manufacturers will be out of date!

I suspect the best discipline during the developmental era for digital is to buy into a manufacturer's proposition (a manufacturer you really rate) and then don't stray from it.

Putting aside Devialet and my own preferences, Guillaume (for example) has bought into TotalDac and whilst he has tried Aurender and Melco and ... I suspect it would be tough to persuade him to move elsewhere - which is a good attitude to have in my opinion. And ultimately one that saves money.

[Womaz]

... and bear in mind that, in a year's time, there will be a raft of new and upgraded physical products and lots of new software, with each manufacturer (whether Aurender or whoever) extolling the improvements they have managed to extract.

So this year's product from many manufacturers will be out of date!

I suspect the best discipline during the developmental era for digital is to buy into a manufacturer's proposition (a manufacturer you really rate) and then don't stray from it.

Putting aside Devialet and my own preferences, Guillaume (for example) has bought into TotalDac and whilst he has tried Aurender and Melco and ... I suspect it would be tough to persuade him to move elsewhere - which is a good attitude to have in my opinion. And ultimately one that saves money.

This was my idea too with the Devialet brand, he says waiting patiently for Dialog with the expert line

[miro]

For me, important criterion now is who will be the first to integrate with Roon.
I have heard Aurender is working on it.

Sadly Devialet, Bryston, Moon, Weiss will be probably way behind..

I also do want to have a digital AES out (somehow do not feel comfortable with USB only output)..

The Bryston BDP-2 has AES/EBU out, and it is amazing, especially with the new sound card from mid May.

Good to hear, I just ordered a BDP-2 for my D400.  Which AES/EBU cable are you using with yours?

Make sure that the BDP-2 that you receive has the new sound card installed (integrated audio device, as Bryston calls it)---you
can email them the serial number of the unit to confirm this, as the BDP-2 with the new sound card is the same price as that with the old sound card, and the new sound card is a significant improvement.

I am using Kubala-Sosna Elation AES/EBU 1m: it is the premium Kubala-Sosna AES-EBU, and is also a big improvement relative to the Kubala Sosna Emotion AES/EBU (the next model below) that I had before.
The Kubala-Sosna Elation AES/EBU 1m has MSRP of $2,700 in the US, but you can probably negotiate a better deal with your dealer.
It works great for both PCM and DSD streaming, and in fact DSD streaming over this cable results in much improved sound compared to using the Kubala-Sosna Realization USB 1m (MSRP of $3,500).

Also, I highly recommend upgrading the fuses of the BDP-2 to the following kind:
Platinum Reference “More Than a Fuse”
   http://www.audio-horizons.com/pages/fuse.html
This improved the performance easily with 7 - 12%.
Further improved details and depths of the soundstage.
(I am not affiliated with that company, just a happy customer.)

Both fuses should be 5x20mm glass fuses,

rated 250V and slow acting (time lag) types

These are for use in the US, and so the voltage should be 120V.

The first should be rated 250 mA
The second 500 mA

Enjoy!

[samurai7595]

For me, important criterion now is who will be the first to integrate with Roon.
I have heard Aurender is working on it.

Sadly Devialet, Bryston, Moon, Weiss will be probably way behind..

I also do want to have a digital AES out (somehow do not feel comfortable with USB only output)..

The Bryston BDP-2 has AES/EBU out, and it is amazing, especially with the new sound card from mid May.

Good to hear, I just ordered a BDP-2 for my D400.  Which AES/EBU cable are you using with yours?

For my Bryston BDP-2 AES/EBU connection to my Devialet 200, I'm using an Atlas Mavros AES/EBU digital cable.
http://www.atlascables.com/mavros-110-ohm-aes-ebu.html

I too found that the new upgraded sound card (IAD) made a positive impact on the sound!

[rwjr44]

If you own a Bryston BDP-2, please start your own thread.  I will read it as I almost bought one BUT this is an Aurender thread.  Thank you. 

[rwjr44]

Does anyone have an update on the N10?

[ekovalsky]

Does anyone have an update on the N10?

My black N10 arrived yesterday.  I've only had a little time to listen to it so far, and at low volume as it was night time when I finally unpacked it and the family was already asleep.  My initial impression - it sounds fantastic.  I'm using the AES/EBU output to an all digital system of TacT RCS2.2X & S2150 amps.  The hardware and software work very smoothly together.  I'll report back after more serious listening this weekend.  I have the unit plugged into a PSAudio P10 regenerator and digital links are Acoustic Zen.

The Conductor app is very fast and seems quite capable, although it will take some getting used to after relying on Peng 8 with a (heavily modified) Slim Devices Transporter.  I picked up a new iPad Air 2 with an iPort case/stand which makes a nice looking interactive 'remote' - it protects the iPad and enables wireless charging in landscape or portrait orientation, I have the iPad locked in landscape mode.

The N10 is expensive an unit for sure, particularly compared to the lower range models.  It is very solidly built and quite heavy, uses all linear power supplies, and has a full complement of digital outputs.  Compared to the much more expensive W20 it is missing the external clock output and the battery power for the output (probably needed in the W20 since it does not use all linear power supplies like the N10).  

Initially I thought it was quite expensive but after pricing out a custom C.A.P.S. Pipeline v4 build and figuring in necessary profit margins for the manufacturer, distributor, and dealer, I think the purchase price I paid was very reasonable.  And of course one must expect to pay a premium for a well conceived and integrated hardware/software solution and the resulting simplicity in setup and use.