Considering an upgrade

Take a look at the Innuos Zen and Zenith. 

Thanks for your reply. Have you used one or the other of these? The CPU performances seems fairly low. How do them do running Roon driving multiple zones, and/or using DSP functionality? Are these generally used as streamers (using the USB output) or just as servers?

Thanks.

The Innuos are some of the very best streamer/servers on the market. I'm saving my penny's for a Zenith Mk3. http://http//innuos.com/en/catalog/go/zenith-mk3-1tb-ssd-black

The Wyred 4 sound is very good as well. Check out the reviews on Darko Audio:
http://https//darko.audio/2019/02/a-short-film-about-the-innuos-zen-mk3/

and http://https//darko.audio/2019/11/innuos-zen-mini-mk3-review/
also http://https//darko.audio/2018/10/a-short-film-about-the-wyred-4-sound-music-server/

I don't know why but every time I post a link on this forum they never work? You may have to just copy and paste the address into your browser.

Jay: your DAC is fine. Get an Innuos, either ZEN or ZENith MK3, and run Roon there. You can also use it as Roon endpoint, feeding your DAC via USB.

Innuos is low powered on purpose. Basic DSP and relatively big size DSP work fine. It will choke with heavy DSP and huge library. I have the ZENith MK3

@sonicjoy, the links don’t work because the second occurrence of "http" in each link (or "https" in some cases, in that position) is not followed by a colon.

Also, the first occurrence of "http://" in each link should not be there, although it is not present in the actual URL underlying the visible link, which is what is used by the web browser program. That first "http://" appears in the visible link because the "insert URL" button above the response box inserts it by default (as you can see when that button is clicked), but although it is not the reason your links don’t work it would be best to delete it before pasting the URL into that box.

And in fact with modern browser programs it isn’t necessary to even use that box, unless you want to highlight some text in your post and make it clickable, like this. Otherwise, just paste the URL directly into the post.

Regards,
-- Al

The advantage of your PC is the Roon core. I'm not sure why you would want to replace the PC also, since you are already using Roon. I can understand asking about what might be an upgrade over the BDP-2 and/or Yggdrasil gen2.

The biggest change would come from changing your DAC. The Yggdrasil has a fairly distinctive sound in my opinion, and there are lots of other DAC options out there that might sound better to your ears. On the other hand if you auditioned a bunch of DACs before deciding upon the Yggdrasil, maybe you should just stick with it since you said you're happy with what you've got.

There are Roon Ready network streaming DACs, which would replace both the BDP-2 and Yggdrasil. My personal recommendation in that case would be to look at Lumin, for the hardware and firmware quality. Since you're already using Roon, the software ecosystem of any network streaming DAC would not be a primary concern.

Regarding your question about upgrading from a BDP-2 to a BDP-3, the majority of differences are around the feature set and software capabilities.

Thanks for all the comments. The only reason I was considering replacing the PC as the Roon core was to find something that could work in my stereo rack and eliminate the Ethernet cabling. The current PC is not silent so it's located in another room. I think I'd probably only consider replacing it if I could combine with a streamer. So the W4S or Innuos devices are definitely options too consider. 

My Yggy DAC is now my oldest component. I had a W4S Dac-2 prior to this and was never happy with the sound. I ordered the Yggy based on the positive reviews and liked the way it sounded so kept it after the trial period. So I haven't actually auditioned anything else in my current system. 

I went many years without making significant changes to my system. It's only been the past couple years that I've been working to upgrade my system to get the level of sound quality that I can be happy with for a while. 

I'm not sure that I want to upgrade the digital front end, but since these are now my oldest components, I thought I'd at least explore the options. This is also driven somewhat by my acquisition of new speakers which are much more revealing. 

@jaytor regarding a silent PC you could pick up something fanless like an Intel NUC for relatively low cost, and migrate your Roon Core onto that device. If you really like the Roon software.

I'd recommend checking out the user interface that you'd end up using with any other music management devices, if you're willing to replace the Roon Core. Besides the W4S and Innuos there is Aurender and Lumin (requires an external NAS).

But going with separates for the DAC and network streamer will open more options for a change (improvement) in your sound quality. Auditioning different DACs is what I'd recommend.

Thanks for the comments. I really like the Roon interface and have a lifetime subscription. I also have four Bluesound Node 2is that I use for other zones in my house, so I would like to stick with Roon. 

I've spent some time looking into the Innuos Zen Mk3 and it seems like a good value. For those that have used this as a Roon server and endpoint, does it have enough horsepower to handle a few zones (almost always playing the same music) and a little DSP work (such as a couple of parametric equalization filters)?

I have a couple of old Intel NUCs lying around from my business, so installing Roon ROCK on one of those might also be an option. Anyone have experience with this? 

I'm also interested in hearing about DAC recommendations in the <$6K range that would be noticeably better than the Yggy. Particularly in the smoothness of the midrange. The dealers in my local area don't seem to carry many of the "hot" DACs, so auditioning will probably require a purchase with return option, which I'm somewhat reluctant to do unless I feel there is a good chance that I'd keep it.

The three DACs that I've read a lot about that seem intriguing are the PS Audio DirectStream, the Lapizator Amber 3, and the Denafrips Terminator. 

I’d add the Metrum Pavane Level 3 DAC to your list. It’s also an R2R DAC like the Yggy, but the Pavane is a non-oversampling design that generally tends to sound smoother and more “analog” like, which sounds like it may appeal to you. I believe Hifi Heaven offers a purchase and return option, and it might well be worth considering if you haven’t yet heard a NOS DAC. People who love them, LOVE them.  FWIW, and best of luck.

Some people consider the Yggdrasil to be one of the absolute best DACs available, so recommendations really depends on what you personally might consider a noticeable improvement. Two of the three DACs you listed are in a different direction than the Yggdrasil, in my opinion. But is that why you thought they might be good options to audition? It's hard to know what "smoothness of the midrange" means exactly.

For what it's worth, these are the DACs we carry and recommend that are also within your budget: Lumin, RME, Prism Sound, Bryston, Devialet. Plus our own Neko Audio D100 Mk2. For R2R, I'd suggest looking at Soekris. If you want something with built-in room correction, there's the Trinnov ST2-HiFi.

@nekoaudio - I don't have much experience auditioning different DACs. I've heard a few other systems, but the only DACs I've had extensive time with in the past ten years is the Levinson No 39, W4S DAC-2, and my Yggy. I had owned the No 39 since the mid 90s when I started to get into computer audio. At the time, I was using a USB to SPDIF converter which wasn't very reliable, so I bought the W4S. Unfortunately, I found that I liked the sound of the No 39 more, even though it was 15 years old. A couple years later, I bought the Yggy based on all the positive reviews, and liked it much better than the other two. 

My interest in the three DACs is based on other's comments and reviews. I have not heard any of them. I'm curious about your comments regarding a different direction than the Yggy. Can you elaborate?

Thanks,

@jaytor replied via direct message.