Lumin U1 vs. Sonore SE

Thanks for settling that one for me. I’m comparing the sonore signature se with the optical se version and out of the box the clarity is there. Must give it a few days to burn I.  but man oh man it’s worth the 1k upgrade. So happy with the recent changes.  

Very Cool.  Thanks for the reply.  I'm anxious to hear your outcome.  My Sonore SE Optical is still at my dealer's.  He is demo-ing it on a system, which is fine.  That is also breaking it in for me.  I'm not ready to do all the cabling and reconfiguring just yet, so I own it, it is just a matter of when I want to have it delivered (or picked up).  Would like to install it all together when I get my new DAC.  I'm pretty confident that I am going to be quite happy when it is up and running.  The difference between my Pro-Ject and the Sonore will be like night and day.  The streamer is the weak part of the system.  Listen to any good recording lately?

I am curious to hear if there are any other recent comparisons between the Lumin U1 and Sonore SE w/optical upgrade?

I’m interested in that comparison as well. I have the OpticalRendu which I really like. I have thought about upgrading to the Signature Rendu SE which now comes with the same optical module. But there just isn’t enough info out there. Another product that is highly recommended is Wolf Audio Luna R. 

hi @pgaulke90 

can I ask if you have gotten your Signature rendu and how does it sound?

what do you connect it to (front end)? do you need a music server or just a NAS drive or  ??

sorry am no good at digital/tech stuff :p

Regards
Ben

@thegreenman 
 
Yes, I do have the Sonore all set up.  Not sure I have all the correct names for these things but here it goes.

(1) I have a ethernet switch close to the stereo. It is amazing how many places it goes to;
(2) but in this case I run an ethernet cable from the switch to the Sonore Optical Rendu (optical converter);
(3) from the Optical Rendu, which converts the internet signal to an optical signal there by reducing all kinds of "noise", there is a double wired optical cable (not the usual toslink cable) that runs to the Signature SE Server.
(4) From the Signature SE it goes straight into my stand alone DAC via USB, if I remember correctly.

All my streaming is via ROON with a Tidal subscription behind it, and all my personal digital collection on an internal SSD in the Roon Nucleus.  I am a very happy Roon & Tidal Subscriber.

In my mind, it sounds lovely.  I'm quite satisfied.  Very strong soundstage and the dynamics are only limited by the source recording.

I have now heard a couple different set-ups that use this optical conversion and it always sounds great.  The A-B comparison between a signal optically converted versus a straight ethernet connection always showed the Optical Conversion being a superior sound.  The $15K Lumin X1 Streamer/DAC provides this optical option, which in my mind shows that it should be taken seriously.

Hope this gets to your questions

(2) but in this case I run an ethernet cable from the switch to the Sonore Optical Rendu (optical converter);
(3) from the Optical Rendu, which converts the internet signal to an optical signal there by reducing all kinds of "noise", there is a double wired optical cable (not the usual toslink cable) that runs to the Signature SE Server.

I’ve been wondering how different / better this might be over using something like a GigaFoil in front of a non-optical Rendu (like a uRendu)?