'RoonReady' not coming to Devialet….

[octaviars]

Just for those who want a working solution today (which I use since yesterday)

1.) Get an Aries (go for the more expensive one with the LPS)
2.) Connect it to Your Devialet via AES connection
3.) Start Roon on Your PC/MAC
4.) Have fun using RAAT by selecting the Aries as the target
PS.: The sound is absolutely awesome on my D400 , clean, crisp and detailed
PPS.: Don´t wait for no reason, as time is always now!

This is exactly what I am using, apart from the AES I use USB.

Have you compared USB to AES.

[Zappydev]

And have you compared this setup to AIR?

[octaviars]

And have you compared this setup to AIR?

I have not compared it to AIR head to head but to me the Aries in Roon ready mode is really good and it works flawless just that is a big bonus.

[Hifi_swlon]

Roon is about UI with your stored or streamed music and intelligent meta data. So I understand why it is attractive for servers etc. (Dialog?) but I do not get why it is relevant to DACs including Devialet's expert line. ...

Because a Devialet Expert is a DAC that can be streamed to (via Air) so theoretically it could become 'RoonReady' - removing the necessity of a streamer from the chain.  The theoretical bit being whether RAAT could be incorporated into the Experts firmware.  RAAT also has some advanced features such as the ability to control volume, and as-and-when, deal with MQA (should that actually turn out to be something useful and not just hype).  And that's just at launch (bar the MQA bit). PSAudio DACs are planned to have it, as are many with networking abilities.

The difference between RAAT and Air being the Roon developers are experts (ex-Meriadian/Sooloos), and so there's a good chance it will work - not just for some - but for everyone, across all platforms, in all network environments, for all bit rates, and maybe even stay working after OS updates. These guys definitely know what they're doing, and more importantly are incredibly customer focussed.

[blair.athol]

For those that don't know, the RoonReady program allows manufacturers to incorporate the new Roon streaming protocol (RAAT, or 'Roon Advanced Audio Transport) into their devices firmware, supporting streaming up to 24/384 and DSD, as well as zoned playback, and volume control etc.  

RAAT is essentially 'Air', but more advanced, open to all manufacturers, and with more functions (such as proper manufacturer integrated volume control) and by all accounts stable (as far as we know from early developers/testers). And this is just at launch.  

A whole host of manufacturers (below) have been announced at CES this week, and we're told a lot more to come:

AURALiC, Audio Alchemy, Bel Canto, Bryston, Cary Audio, Constellation Audio, dCS, Exasound, IQ Audio, LH Labs, Lumin, PS Audio, Small Green Computer, Sonore, SoTM, and TotalDAC.

The reason hardware manufacturers seem to like it, is that they retain responsibility for getting the best SQ out of their device, while Roon is responsible for the front end and delivery of the audio data to the device in a format that requires minimal processing by the hardware.  For manufacturers that have their own streaming software, this instantly gives their customers another option, and takes pressure off their development. For those without, (or with failing ones), it gives them a big boost of a high-end UI.

Sadly, when I approached Devialet about adding it, I was told they're not considering it, and the main reason given was (paraphrasing) 'lack of interest'.  So while a large chunk of high-end audio gear will start to gain advanced streaming capabilities beyond that of Air, us Devialet users will get left behind. For me personally - having never managed to get Air working properly despite it being the main reason I bought into Devialet - it's another blow.

For anyone who uses Roon, or is even considering it, or even people who have given up with Air and are looking for an alternative, all I can suggest is that you to contact Devialet support directly and ask that they implement RoonReady into their next firmware update. Even if you don't use Roon, having it incorporated will do nothing to harm the resale value of your lovely Devialet…..

There's more information on the DAR website here: http://www.digitalaudioreview.net/2016/0...rtnerships.  And lots more over at the Roon forums.

Roon will also launch 'RoonSpeakers' this year, which is the software version enabling users to add the same thing to their computers - initially its thought Mac, Windows, Linux and lightweight devices like the Raspberry Pi will be supported.  This could of course then be connected to your Devialet via USB, but would mean missing out on the lovely minimalist connection direct to the network port, and also missing out on things like control of the Dev's volume, and whatever else they add down the line.

What do other Dev owners think?

Meantime, just for fun, a pic from Auralic of the Aries with RoonSpeakers enabled.

just a question, have you ever tried Air with iTunes and FW9.01 ? it really sounds perfectly for me and there are no dropouts or anything beside good music coming out of my D200.

[Hifi_swlon]

Blair, I don't use iTunes any more - it was OK as a stopgap, but it doesn't do what I get from Roon - which is pretty much what I'd been searching for for a long time - not least the advanced metadata features, discovery, and streaming integration.

I've grown up with Apple and am an Apple household, but I find their software just gets more and more dumbed down and apple-centric these days and I don't like it. All I use it for now is ripping and putting music on our phones (the auto conversion's great).

Glad Air works for you, but it never has for me. The best I got was crackles and pops most days, and while some call that acceptable, I didn't, I found it ridiculous. I'm not a networking professional, but I'm advanced, and can code and script and know my way around networks, switches, VPNs, firewalls, etc a lot of which I've done as an aside to my main job. I've never encountered a networking thing as frustrating and badly implemented and documented as Air - certainly not in something aimed at consumers who shouldn't need advanced knowledge and who just want to listen to music. So from my POV Air just isn't a viable solution in any setup, and I don't intend to change my whole system just to accommodate it. Devialet should drop it as marketed feature in my opinion, (or at least not block someone else having a go).

Now, FW 9.0.1 I can do!

[hk6230]

I had contributed my vote for RoonReady by writing to Devialet and below is their reply:

Devialet Support (Devialet)

Jan 12, 13:36

Dear Sir,

Thank you for your message.

We indeed have similar feedbacks from clients this week!

We don't have fixed news or plans at the moment for this but this topic is discussed internally at Devialet;

Should we have any announcement on it in the upcoming months we will of course let everyone know.

Please feel free to get back to us if you have any questions.

Best regards,

Océane Turpin

Customer Care

For more information, please visit our support site Devialet Support

[Hifi_swlon]

I'm wondering if it's even possible to run the required RAAT software package inside the Expert range.

For Phantom using the Dialog it should be no issue at all but there's probably not enough memory and computing power available on the DUET interface card, or elsewhere, inside our 'Experts'. There's only 32MB of memory and a lightweight FPGA (Altera CycloneIII EP3C5) on the DUET besides the DSP (Analog Devices ADSP-21488). Don't think this is powerful enough but mind you I am not an embedded systems developer (I'm not a developer at all. ) See attachment for a picture of the DUET card, mind you it's much smaller than it appears.
...

I posted the gist of these specs over at Roons forums, and heard back from Brian (CTO) today:

brian brian Brian Luczkiewicz CTO of Roon Labs
January 13
That's pretty tight. Without the exact details it's hard to say for sure, though.

We've crammed audio streaming into performance-constrained platforms before. It's no fun for anyone, and there's very limited headroom for growing/evolving the system over time. Alternative network stacks (basically, anything other than BSD, Linux, and Windows) have been a source of repeated trouble, too, so we are avoiding platforms built that way as a rule.

So, OK, not ideal, but I'm still not ruling it out.  

Even if worst-case its technically impossible on the Experts, I still think Phantom owners should have the option (I don't have Phantom).

I always think positive - "where there's a will, there's a way"….

[ogs]

I'm wondering if it's even possible to run the required RAAT software package inside the Expert range.

For Phantom using the Dialog it should be no issue at all but there's probably not enough memory and computing power available on the DUET interface card, or elsewhere, inside our 'Experts'. There's only 32MB of memory and a lightweight FPGA (Altera CycloneIII EP3C5) on the DUET besides the DSP (Analog Devices ADSP-21488). Don't think this is powerful enough but mind you I am not an embedded systems developer (I'm not a developer at all. ) See attachment for a picture of the DUET card, mind you it's much smaller than it appears.
...

I posted the gist of these specs over at Roons forums, and heard back from Brian (CTO) today:

brian brian Brian Luczkiewicz CTO of Roon Labs
January 13
That's pretty tight. Without the exact details it's hard to say for sure, though.

We've crammed audio streaming into performance-constrained platforms before. It's no fun for anyone, and there's very limited headroom for growing/evolving the system over time. Alternative network stacks (basically, anything other than BSD, Linux, and Windows) have been a source of repeated trouble, too, so we are avoiding platforms built that way as a rule.

So, OK, not ideal, but I'm still not ruling it out.  

Even if worst-case its technically impossible on the Experts, I still think Phantom owners should have the option (I don't have Phantom).

I always think positive - "where there's a will, there's a way"….

Thanks, good to know. Devialet might have to remove AIR from the Altera to make room for RAAT. Not very likely to happen....

[Tomthecat]

Just for those who want a working solution today (which I use since yesterday)

1.) Get an Aries (go for the more expensive one with the LPS)
2.) Connect it to Your Devialet via AES connection
3.) Start Roon on Your PC/MAC
4.) Have fun using RAAT by selecting the Aries as the target
PS.: The sound is absolutely awesome on my D400 , clean, crisp and detailed
PPS.: Don´t wait for no reason, as time is always now!

This is exactly what I am using, apart from the AES I use USB.

Have you compared USB to AES.

This is what I did. AES was far better on the Devialet, also on the Auralic VEGA. I use a very short cable for the interconnect. Enjoy! Today Roon as upgraded to fully support RAAT....just did the Update - GREAT!