Innuos Zenith Mk3 or something else?


Hello There,

Hoping to tap into the collective insight of this group. I am planning to buy a music server+streamer combo and am thinking of the Innuous Zenith Mk3. And have some questions before i pull the trigger:


1. Any rumors/insights of a new version of the Zenith Mk3 launching soon? (hate to buy into this and have a new version pop up in short order. I think the Mk3 has been around for over 2 years now and so I thought i would check in with this group)


2. Any other music server/streamer combo I should consider at this price point? (the Zenith Mk3 retail is ~$4700)


My budget is to keep it under $5K. Thank you!


longinc
Yes. Buy the model below that one for 1/2 the price.
Darko review recommended this.  Spend the extra
$2,300 on something else.
I had the Zenith before I had an Auralic Aries G2.1 and I thought the Aries G2.1 had a cleaner sound. The Aries has a nice color display and the Zenith has a nice cd ripper…..if either of those features is appealing 
New products not on the horizon at all. All work being focussed on the Sense app and 2.0 and rightly so given the obvious improvements to UI and sound quality.

Yes, the Zen is very much a sweet spot but having heard all 4 products I went for the Zenith and love it to bits. The CD ripper is excellent on all their products and the lack of a screen utterly irrelevant once you’re using the app or the web interface. 
The only complaint I have is that I want to know how the heck they keep lowering the noise floor with each new OS update. The Qobuz integration is excellent. Tidal integration is next followed by ethernet compatibility. 
I agree the Auralic is a tad cleaner but there’s not much in it and for some it could be read as a little less emotional and all the usual adjectives. Pays your money. Takes your choice. Biggest compliments I can pay Innuos are that the hardware just works and they are a company led by what customers tell them. 
Thanks @mahughes for your sharing experience of the Zenith. Appreciate the extensive write up and comparison to the Auralic. Do you think adding a usb Phoenix would make a larger SQ improvement or spending some $’s improving the Ethernet chain (eg linear power supplies for the cable modem, router, audiophile switch/Ethernet cables/Ethernet noise filter etc) ? 
Thanks!