AIR

[GuillaumeB]

At least in theory, packet based data traffic with error detection and resending should provide perfect results in data transmission, making it superior to S/PDIF and USB. So anything external has an inferior
transmission route. This is partly why I'd really like to see UPnP/OpenHome support in Devialet itself.

What advantages are you seeking from UPnP/OpenHome over AIR? When AIR was not very stable, I expected the same thing. Now with stable AIR, I thought UPnP/OpenHome had no/little benefits. Of course, it would be nice for Devialet to support UPnP/OpenHome if resources are unlimited. However, given the limited resources at Devialet, I would expect Devialet to focus on sound quality improvement.

From my perspective UPnP helps me to simplify technology: I don't need to worry about computers, operating systems and software (well except when a new iOS comes along and my control apps don't work! ). I can access my music library at any time through my iPhone and iPad apps. I don't have to worry about my computer going to sleep, disconnecting from the network etc.

My music library is stored on a 4-bay NAS with RAID 5 (+1 additional backup) which gives me redundancy in the event of a hard disk failing. This has already happened to me once and it was relatively easy to restore. Apart from running occasional backups to the 4th drive I don't need to worry about it, everything just happens in the background. I occasionally copy everything to an external portable drive just to be safe though.

Now from a sound quality perspective I can only base this on some tests I carried out last year where I compared all the different inputs. At the time I found AIR to sound a little thin in comparison to USB and UPnP. Given that there have been a few software updates I should probably give it another go. I'm open-minded about this.

So for me it comes down to convenience, habit and sound preferences.

If I were starting from scratch I would probably put more time and effort into getting AIR to work, but I'd still want to be absolutely certain that I was getting the best sound quality possible out of the Devialet.

Guillaume

PS: I can also stream to two other locations in my house, accessing the same library from my iPhone or iPad.