Experience with Lumin L2?

Great to hear. Thanks for the feedback!

Just received and installed the L2 in my system; it was an instant upgrade. Music flows more easily and with greater separation and detail compared to my previous setup listed below.  I agree with Wojciech Pacula (High Fidelity, Poland) who said it works best as a combined library and switch. Keeping everything within the Lumin ecosystem (I have an X1) has tangible benefits. Chris Connaker of Audiophile Style came to the same conclusion.

Prior to using the L2 as a switch, I had an etherRegen switch with an attached AfterDark OCXO clock with digital filter and digital cable and linear power supply.  All that is now gone.

I was also accessing my stored music via a Synology NAS and, as a secondary approach, SSDs inside a Roon NUC.

I’m using all the network ports on the L2: fiber from my router and fiber to the X1. The RJ45 connections are to the Roon NUC and a TV.

Now, I mainly use the JPlay for iOS app to play music through my X1, specifically Tidal streaming and stored music on two 2TB Samsung SSDs that I installed without a hitch.  I rarely use my Roon setup, preferring it primarily for music discovery.

It's going to be impossible for anyone to say.
The only way to find out for sure would be to get a home demo from a dealer or owner, so that you can listen to it in your exact setup and compare.

Even if I was confident in an improvement, putting a value of $4000 on it is entirely subjective, especially as you have a system you already like and is already addressing some of the problems that L2 aims to fix.

So, I guess I need to ask this again.

I am very skeptical about paying $4000+ for an item (Lumin L2) that is essentially an external hard drive.

I have my Lumin X1 (it has a direct fiber input) connected via fiber from the EtherRegen which is connected via a short Ethernet cable (WireWorld 8) to my modem. I stream Qobuz.

I have copied (24/96,192, DSD) via a high Rez Tascam recorder my entire music collection LP’s, CD’s downloads, etc. and have that material on an 8tb hardrive (with several extra copied hardrives just in case).

I connect the hard drive to my Lumin with a short USB cable. ALL of my music is available via the Qobuz/ Lumin format.

So, what if anything, sound quality wise, would the Lumin L2 provide beyond a fancy case and $4000?

ozzy

brianbonf,

How did you run fiber from your router without the etherregen?

Many of the cheap fiber converters degrade the sound.

ozzy

I have found the L2 to be convenient and it improves the clarity of my streaming.   I was able to run fiber optic from my router to the L2 (35 feet) and fiber optic into the X1.  I no longer need an EtherRegen.  I connected my Apple TV module to the L2.   This is where the improvements in audio quality is must noticeable.  With the X1 streaming signal through the L2, there is an improvement in clarity but it’s subtle at best.  The investment feels worthwhile and I would recommend it.  

@kairosman
Great to hear! Thank you for the feedback. Are you copper to L2 then fibre to P1, or some other config?

I own the Lumin X1 and I have an 8TB hard drive attached to it. I really don't see anything that would suggest that the sound quality would be better with the L2.

ozzy

@brianbonf had mine for 1 month now and it is by some distance the best sonic upgrade to my system since I went digital 5 years ago. However, and this is an important caveat, I have an all Lumin front-end now, the P1 and U1 in separate rooms, the L2 serving up local files from its internal SSDs to both streamers via the network. The L2 is also the main ethernet switch for both streamers. The upshot is the maximum sonic benefit is derived from the L2 used as the hub of an all Lumin ecosystem. I make zero claims this is true for any other setup, which is not to say there wouldn’t be some sonic benefit, but I suspect the $4K L2 is only good value within a Lumin-based system.

@thingswelike 

Many thanks.

Thanks.  I have seen the reviews.   What has your experience been with the unit?   That's all the the information I'm seeking.    

L2 has been available for a couple of months now.
The first LUMIN L2 review has just been published.

Translated into English:
http://tinyurl.com/lumin-l2-high-fidelity

In Polish: https://highfidelity.pl/@main-4607&lang=

Some quotes:

"LUMIN L2 is a device that solves many problems when configuring a system based on audio files."

"compared to the Synology drive, L2 is two steps ahead when it comes to the ability to extract small information from the signal"

"The difference was clear from the very beginning, but the belief in the correctness of this solution grew over time until there was no going back."

"formulating a conclusion was simple: a) L2 works best when used as both NAS & LAN system and b) it is really, really good at what it does."

"Together they create a highly resolved, accurate device that clearly shows the differences between file types."

"I have found a new device for the "High Fidelity" reference system."

(Associated with LUMIN)

What is supposed to be released ?

Just got word release date is September in US

Antipodes K41 is a pure server, just like Lumin L2
But twice as expensive.

I wonder if it worthes the price ´s difference .

I am also interested on Lumin L2  comments.   
Is it a bit over priced for a server only ?

Any other ´´ server only ´´  on the market.    
I haven’t found any .

I got a T3 hooked up on my C220 with XLR and very satisfy with.  Power amp MC7270 and Monitor Audio 500 silver.  I have used LUNA cable (orange) for my XLR and classe 8 Ethernet cable.  I tested the NAIM next to the t3, and found that Lumin was much more precise.  For example on a classical musique, Clavcin was much more precise in the violin string and brass momentum.  The Naim was un accurate there.  So it made me go with Lumin product and seems to be their specialty (streamer kind)

maybe worth a look and try..

I’m interested in the two optical fibre SFP ports

brian there is no spdif on this device