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Looking for Some Music Server Advice

I have a 2020 Innuos Zenith music server (4TB) as well as a LUMIN T2 streamer I purchased at the same time. The Innuos serves as my Roon core and it houses my entire CD collection along with some digital downloads taking up nearly all of the 4TB capacity. The music is double backed up on two separate external hard drives. Lately I have been having some issues with the Innuos and currently it is not showing up on my network. As I work through this it has caused me to start thinking  about potential replacements.  This is where I can use some advice. It should be noted that I primarily listen to vinyl so streaming and listening to digital audio is secondary for me and something I do mainly out of convenience.  Accordingly, I don’t want to break the bank on a potential Innuos replacement.  I would appreciate any advice this community has regarding different options that would house my digital collection while continuing to allow streaming on Tidal, Quobuz etc. I wasn’t thinking I needed to replace the LUMIN also but if there is a one box solution I might consider selling it.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts folks may have.

puppyt
sns
3,953 posts
 

Personally, I'd not choose Innuos or Aurrender for running Roon, I've seen far too many reports stating their proprietary music apps superior to Roon. Antipodes and the SonicTransporters more suitable for Roon. Issue is Roon Core needs powerful processor for optimal sound quality, get a streamer optimized for Roon. Now if you're willing to go with proprietary music apps Innuos and Aurrender may be best avenue.

dgarretson
2,617 posts
 

If you don't mind travelling off piste from name brands and high dealer margins, I highly recommend speaking with Larry Mitchell at Pareto Audio.  Good reviews on Audio Style and Head-Fi and a thoughtful introductory conversation led me to his top custom Roon server with 16TB memory cards that have recently become cost-effective.

Larry's expertise is optimization of the Linux operating system and improved ground isolation across the network via single mode fiber optics.  If you move toward an I2S DAC, he also offers a bespoke node with upgraded internal clocks that converts fiber EN to I2S--which for me was a transformative transition away from USB.

He includes around eight hours of consulting and on or off site support.  That kind of attention to detail was really helpful and led me to retire lots of spaghetti on the network side.           

mswale
270 posts
 

If it's not all that important to you, it's not a primary source, just get a true RAID array NAS. Or if you can, put it all on a SSD drive, then hook up directly to your streamer. 

Did the NAS thing, then went to an external drive, honestly, with streaming, my HDD has had 0 use in the last year. Right now, it's disconnected and put away. 

puppyt OP
104 posts
 

Again, many thanks for these thoughtful ideas. This board is a wealth of information.  I really appreciate it.

@puppyt

puppyt OP
104 posts
 

@mdalton

@cfarrow

Would the Sonic Transporter or I7 simply replace the Innuos in my system allowing me to continue using the LUMIN as the streamer/renderer?  Would that be a reasonable pairing?

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