Appropriate Apple table for Roon

John,

the tablet CAN’T be the core for Roon.. you need a core and that has to be a Nucleus or PC etc..  the iPad can only be used as an interface to control/play Roon

I mostly am using a four year old regular iPad, but my phone works just fine as well.

If you are unfamiliar with Roon some of these answers will not be helpful. To run Roon you need four devices, some of which can be combined:

1. A Roon Core. This cannot be a tablet. It is usually an Intel NUC computer (of which the Roon Nucleus is one) but could be a Mac Mini. This device needs the Roon Core software on it and it needs to be on 24/7 and should ideally serve no other purpose than to run the Roon Core software. Your music library is often connected to this device or stored within it on internal storage. This Roon Core can be located anywhere in your home.

2. A Roon endpoint. This is a streaming device sited next to your Hi-Fi. You need one for each audio system you have. This cannot be a tablet either. It can be the same as the Roon Core if you site your Roon Core device next to your Hi-Fi, but most people have (1) and (2) as separate devices. It is often combined with a DAC and called a Roon-ready streamer. It needs a direct wired connection to your DAC if the DAC is separate

3. A DAC. This is often but not always combined with (2). It cannot be a tablet either.

4. An interface device to control Roon. This is often an iPad and is the main use for a tablet in a Roon system. This is how you view Roon and control it.

You can in theory make your iPad play music from Roon, in which case it is working as (2),(3) and (4) combined, but it obviously does not sound very good.

An 11" iPad Pro 2nd generation with 128 GB and magic keyboard works well for me.

I use an apple iPad Air 5th gen 256 gb works wonderful!

Just for completeness, you can also run the Roon app on a laptop. I find this much more convenient than a tablet as battery life is much better on the laptop.

I don't think you can simply run Roon with only a tablet (happy to be told I'm wrong). You can only run Roon with a computer set up as the Roon "core." A tablet only functions as a very fancy remote control. Almost any relatively recent tablet will work as this remote control... see this link https://help.roonlabs.com/portal/en/kb/articles/faq-what-are-the-minimum-requirements.

As for a Roon core, the cheapest option is an easily build-it-yourself NUC. I personally use a NUC with an i3 processor which is fine for running DSP in one location. See this link for would it takes to build NUC Roon core https://help.roonlabs.com/portal/en/kb/articles/roon-optimized-core-kit.

+1@larryincmh Windows machine runs the core. Streaming Tidal and my CDs ripped into iTunes using ALAC. Found out Roon sees Airplay devices and can read iTunes repository. Bought an old first generation Airplay device off eBay for $30, added it to my eero network, downloaded the core and was good to go. I thought I’d just do this quickly to see if I liked Roon. But it sounds very good, so I’m still using this configuration. 
 

Am using an iPad or iPhone or old MacBook Air for the client. They just control the core, which is what’s delivering the music. 
 

Gotta admit that even with a tech background, I was lost reading Roon’s online “help” about getting started. Nucleus and Bridges and Networks and Streamers. Oh my! Happy to find out about Roon, Airplay, and iTunes. 
 

Roon is pretty easy to set up. You can use an iPad or an iPhone or even a Mac as the users device to play music. You will need a computer to run Roon core, an old Mac mini with a ssd drive and 16G of ram will work. A $200 raspberry pi will also work.

You can use a network dac, or an Apple TV device as Roon endpoints

The iPad is just the interface. You could pretty much use anything but a phone is going to be more one-handed and convenient. The newer the better and that is just for efficiency, but you must have a Core device in your home in order to use Roon. A Core device is a computer, Mac, Windows that is stable and always on. So, you may think a laptop but as soon as you close the lid it will turn off. Sure, you could go into settings and have it not go to sleep when you close the lid... but just don't. I mean if this is your only option, sure, but I recommend you either buy a Roon Nucleus to give you the best experience or load Roon Rock on a dedicated Intel NUC. https://help.roonlabs.com/portal/en/kb/articles/roon-optimized-core-kit

I started by just running Roon off of my iPhone with the camera adapter.

I am very pleased with the Roon Nucleus+. It allows you to rip every CD and other digital files to its HD, plus stream high res audio. I operate it from my iPhone. From my experience the investment in nucleus is far superior to running the Roon software on a computer. But it is an investment. Another plus, the Roon Arc software allows user to access their Roon library from anywhere with an internet connection. I literally accessed mine today during a 4 hour drive. It’s awesome. 

My Core runs on a Windows PC which is left on 24/7. I access it via both iPhone and iPad. The iPad is the previous model with 16GB RAM and works just fine. Any modern iPad should work fine for you as long as you have an accessible Core. 

Hey John,

The heavy compute lifting is done in the core, so any tablet or phone will work, but definitely agree that physical screen size is the thing to consider.  How big is big enough for you to see and also not be too big that you don't like handling it?

The bigger the better. So, iPad Pro 12.9"

Sorry for the “table” typo in discussion title.  Thanks to all who have offered some advice here.  

The roon controller can run on any tablet or phone. I keep it running in the background on my PC but find it likes to run better on my phone ad many aps now are optomized for the phone because that’s how the 22 yr olds that develop them do everything.

The phone/tablet is just a remote control.  the work is done in the Core and Endpoint.  So any tablet will be fine.

Jerry

Any Mac Mini and iPad will work. The new models with the M2 chip are ridiculously quick and does a fantastic job as a Roon core. I use one with external storage (Thunderbolt / USB C connection) to store my local audio files. I control it with my iPad (any model works) or iPhone. A USB cable connects it to the DAC in my preamp. I stream Qobuz and Tidal. Simple and works great. 

Roon Core.  Need a Mac mini or computer or nucleus or many other roon core computers

Room remote.   Any iPad is good Choice. iPhones also work if you like the small display:  I like the ipad I am a Mac  guy. 

Roon endpoint  can be DAC w integrated streamer or dedicated streamer into DAC

I use a dedicated MacBook Air (M2) with a 2 TB hard-drive for both my Roon Core and for my music library.  I have a Roon Ready Moon 390 preamp as the endpoint (receives signal from my laptop).  I also have Roon on an old iPad Mini.  That works fine, but battery runs down after 4-5 hours.  MacBook Air is good for the entire day.

Finally, in another post, someone mentioned the lack of Roon tech support.  Agreed!  I'm not an engineer and the first 3-4 weeks with Roon were a challenge.  You're pretty much on your own studying (deciphering) the Roon Labs Help Center and/or asking the Roon community for help.  A really second-rate way to support your customers.

Not really sure about what I need to set up Roon but I know I need a tablet.  Whatever is required to get the best sound result.  Please advise.  I’m considering what streamer I would need as well.  

Are you talking about running Roon core on the tablet or Roon endpoint?