New DAC or New Streamer?

@charles1dad

I own the Innuos Zenith 3 and can tell you that Sense sounds far better than Roon on an Innuos player. Roon sounds flat and dull compared to Sense. Sense is more open sounding with better inner detail retrieval and improved realism. Roon’s bass is thicker and has less articulation compared to Sense.

The Sense program is miles ahead of where it was when it was first introduced. I must say Roon is a slightly better interface in terms of available artist info, lyrics, navigation and such. It just is. Roon radio is a very nice feature not offered in Sense. It plays artists similar to the ones you know and love and is a great way to learn of artists you may come to really enjoy. As much as I like the Roon interface I simply can no longer listen to it after hearing Sense! This coming from a Roon lifetime member 😬  

I highly recommend getting the Network Acoustics Muon filter package with your streamer. It really improves the streaming experience by improving the realism and your connection to the music. It peels away noise that disrupts engagement. Wonderful piece with a trial period.

I have found that the better the dac the MORE important the server/streamer and other network tweaks become. You need a great server/streamer to hear all your dac has to offer. Upgrades like ethernet filters, ethernet cables, and linear power supplies on your modem/router and switch become more important with a better dac. That’s if you want to hear all your new and more expensive dac can deliver.

A less resolving dac with lower fidelity will not benefit as much from a high quality streamer/server and the various network upgrades.

Also, our playback systems are comprised of more than digital front ends so our amplification and speakers must also be up to the task. Oh my it never ends!

Charles, I am eager to hear your comments on the new dac! 

I have read arguments suggesting Roon is unnecessarily burdensome on processors. I really don’t know enough to have an opinion one way or the other. I do know the Sense program is far less demanding and with each update sounds better and better. Innuos keeps adding features while improving sound quality. I understand they are working on offering a Roon Radio type of feature. I hope soon. 

Roon is inferior sound quality wise on Innuos gear and certainly not in general. I am sure Roon sounds wonderful on other server/streamers. Innuos processing power is purposefully designed to be lower so as to minimize noise. That is one reason they sound so organic and natural. If one owns an Innuos server they have not really heard what it is capable of until they run Sense. Roon certainly sounds good on my Innuos, but falls pretty short sonically to Sense. 

One must know their goals and desires with streaming when deciding on a server/streamer. I don’t care about DSD or DSP and really like the linear power supplies and lower processing power design goals of Innuos. This keeps noise to a minimum. I have heard more detailed servers than my Zenith 3, but it’s hard to beat the natural tone and musicality on my Innuos for the money.

I still run Roon for background music only as I use Roon radio to learn about new artists.

If one wants to use DSP heavily and cannot do without some of Roon’s features, then Innuos would perhaps not be the best choice