Please help with Roon server/core issue

Thanks to all of you for very helpful responses.

@erik_squires Yes the Roon community forum might be better but, having posted there about this issue, I can tell you that AG is more helpful. And thanks for the advice re: DNS. We do occasionally have  Netflix dropouts so I am not eliminatingthe network problem.  I also suspect I need to do more testing in that locations.

@fastfreight did not know I could replace the wall plate couplers. I am going to order them pronto. We did run a couple of dedicated ethernet lines to the audio area but clearly still room for improvement.

@mapman ​​​​@audphile1 We live in Canada so have Telus as a provider. They ran fiber optic cable right to the box on the side of house. And, as we are a wired only household, we just have a modem connected to the fiber box. I did log into the modem to change the DNS.

Now off to do more testing!

@mapman Yes we do have streaming issues from time to time. Very irritating :) And our geographical location may be the culprit. We live in a small town up the coast of British Columbia about 80 km from Vancouver. Though we do have fiber optic to the house, the one other audiophile in town gave up on Roon - which may be a sign. 

@erik_squires I have done the ping test all over the house including from the switch with the Roon server. Always close to 1 gbps. 

@jbuhl I phoned the provider a couple of times. Apparently we have 1.5 gbps consistently into the house.... 

@audphile1 I just checked the modem. The fiber comes into it and goes out via copper ethernet. I ordered from Amazon USA a fiber to ethernet converter 5 minutes ago but it is going to take 10 days to arrive. 

@unsound No VPN except occasionally when I connect to my work server. But will make sure it is unconnected when streaming. 

@fastfreight I know what you are saying... just looked at a Grimm MU1 on USAM... expensive in CDN dollars especially as I just talked my partner into Focal Sopra 2s (arriving next week) 😹. But that might be the solution.

In the meantime, I have the fiber to copper converter coming and might even try and run fiber right to the streaming/tv area. 

One more question: when I went to the modem to see if it is converting the fiber to ethernet, I noticed that the core fiber coming in is just hanging there bare. No insulation. Is that normal?

Thanks again to all, Nadine

@audphile1 I am also starting to think that Roon is fine but I need a different Roon core/server. When I contacted SGC, he said that the problem is my router/modem. However the network is consistently fast when I test it through speed test.

I have ordered the fiber to RJ-45 converters and will invest in shielded RJ-45 jacks but might have to face the music and pony up for a Roon server like the Grimm MU1. Rats!

@audphile1 Yes, I thought I couldn't make any more mistakes in audio but here I am. Honestly it was so helpful to get the responses about the network because these changes are going to makes it more reliable - a legit problem.

@audphile1 Yes, I did that and they were crackly. Truthfully everything sounds better in the Lumin app but I prefer Roon. However, I did reseed the WBT connector on my SPDIF BNC to coaxial and that fixed the problem. So I am embarrassed to say that the whole problem might have been the cable. 

However, in the process of discovering that I found out that my Roon connection is very tenuous. So am going to implement all suggestions given here especially switching out the RJ-45 jacks and using the fiber to copper converter before the modem.

Thanks again to all for such great help.

@erik_squires OP is a total ignoramus 😂. I meant the internet speed.

@fastfreight I see the path pointing me to the Grimm MU1 :) I have a NOS DAC so that might be a good combination. However, strategically I feel I should wait - after having persuaded my non-audio loving partner that our music will be so much better with the Sopra 2 speakers. But two questions: are you using the stock power cable with the switching power supply on the MU1? And did you add a LPS? Oh, and do you use the AES output?

@audioman58 I would go to the Innuos. I love their philosophy but I am committed to Roon for music discovery and the feeling of being in a record store online. If Innuos were a Roon core, it would be a no-brainer. 

@adsell I am going to try that tonight. Honestly 96/24 is already such an improvement over Redbook!

@carlsbad2 Thanks for telling me a bit of your audiophile equipment history. I can really see myself going to the MU1 in the future. But focused right now on making my NUC/ROCK as stable as possible. It has a very cheap LPS which I plan to upgrade (from AfterDark) and also upgrade my network switch. 

Honestly adding my initial network switch was one of the biggest improvements I have made.

Enjoy the music ! Nadine

@zgas-music hey thanks for chiming in.

We do not have any wireless at all in the house. This is on purpose as we prefer a wired household. But interestingly, the most helpful solution came from Peter Lie at Lumin . He suggested that I change the DNS on the modem to 8.8.8.8. Weirdly that had a huge effect, and the problem is mostly resolved. However, as a result of investigating the problem, I am now thinking about getting a network switch with the clock is my current one doesn’t have a clock. And also rolling fibre out all the way to the music control center. :-)
Best, Nadine