Is Aurender N10 still a good option


I am just getting into streaming and I am bewildered by the number of options. So many reviews etc. So I come here to get advice from real people (I hope).

I have decided on Aurender, because they seem to be a brand that people trust generally and have uniformly good reviews.

I have had good experiences (better prices for good quality) with buying used, but in this case the tech feels so new I am wondering if the N10 which seems to have come around starting in 2015/16, I am wondering if it would be better to get a new N150 for approximately the same price.

Also, not an expert, but I think IIRC I can use my Ayre C-5xe as a DAC even if eventually I want a dedicated machine for that purpose.

Any thoughts are appreciated.

saulh

The N10 is a really good streamer / file server.

 I used a Small Green Computer i5 with Sonore UltraRendu and UltraDigital for a while then switched to a Lumin U1 Mini ‘cos people were saying how good the Lumin is. And the Lumin is fine for the money I just never felt a connection with the music to the same degree as the SGC kit. So I bought an N10 and find it much more satisfying than either the Lumin or the SGC kit.

 There’s a review comparing Lumin and Aurender N10 here

https://www.audioresurgence.com/2023/10/aurender-n10-streamer-review-compared-to-lumin-u1-mini.html

Good luck.

Keeping some perspective, the Lumin U1 Mini sold for $2,100 while the Aurender N10 was at $8,000. Doesn't really seem like a fair comparison, there are higher end network transports available from Lumin.

@bill_k That’s entirely true Bill, but there’s a much smaller price difference on the used market which is how I acquired both my units. (About a $1000 or so). I think the N10 is a good player and definitely still relevant, to the OP’s question.