I’m rebuilding a streamer set up for headphone listening. The digital library is enormous and I’d like to bring it up to the same standard as my vinyl rig. I’ve heard streamers from Bluesound, Allo, Project and entry level Auralic, and they all have their advantages, but they’re not cutting the mustard. 

Has anyone here any experience with the Innuos Zen or Antipodes S30/40? Really difficult to travel for an audition at the moment with work, so any relatable experience will be greatly received.

All the best,

Mick.

Best streamer I’ve heard/owned was a C#### Stream X Signature. The sound was glorious but interface was an absolute shambles, so much so I eventually ditched it. I’m looking for a replacement too. I want to hear a N##m one next.

I have the Xa, rather than the Signature. Sounds great, but I was annoyed when, almost as soon as I'd bought it, they decided to do away with the nRemote (which talks directly to the streamer and displays metadata etc.), and started pushing their app instead. That doesn't work for me as they expect it to be used through a network, whereas I just want to use the streamer as a source or renderer, to play tracks from a local USB drive. The app does allow you to locate and select tracks, but it doesn't read the files' metadata (I don't stream music or radio from the internet).

They've just launched a new range of amps etc., but there's no streamer there - so maybe a replacement is in development.

https://volumio.org/product/volumio-primo/ - https://volumio.org/product/volumio-primo/

Glad to hear it wasn’t just me who found the app bloody annoying!

Really disappointing that a piece of equipment like that had an afterthought user interface. I tackled them about it about 18months ago lot of denial and general flannel. Made a great product utterly s####e. You could even create playlists for god sake. 

MICK.

I’m using Roon via a Prima## NP5 sounds excellent. The core is running on an old lap top. Are you advising an Inn#### and some other interface? A Nucleus is £1500. May as well just buy the Inn###s.

It’s simple and effective. Looks a million bucks. Sounds fantastic.

Mick,

I guess people are paying for the OS and a convenient all-in-one product here.

  I’m paying for a few things. Primarily the fact that I don’t have the knowledge or skill to build one myself. I imagine many people are the same. No WiFi is a good thing in my set up. It never sounds as good or is as reliable in my area as an Ethernet connection. I happily forego WiFi in pursuit of better sound. Only usb out is also perfect for my situation having a usb capable DAC. Done correctly it SHOULD be a better interface than optical or coax, and the company has put a lot of effort into getting that to be a very quiet connection. It uses 4G to buffer data before sending it out, isolating it from the electrically and mechanically noisy hard drive. It uses a processor that has just enough processing power to get the job done, drawing less power and creating less noise. To top it off, the industrial design is very much to my taste! 

And let’s not forget from our experiences with Graham’s wonderful linear supplies, they’re not all created equally! 

This unit really does sound spectacular and yes, the OS and upcoming app being a fully integrated system is a big selling point. I was an early adoption Roon user, but no longer. I like that financial saving, too. I’m also liking that there isn’t a laptop anywhere near my system. I miss Roon radio, but that’s all. I’m going for curated playlists on Tidal now. 

The best interface is currently Roon, but only until late May. 

Ash, I wish I had your know-how, but my skills lie elsewhere. I love this machine. Partly funded by selling my cd transport and associated cabling, so it wasn’t a huge outlay. And to top it off, the company offers lifetime free updates to the software, so I should be able to keep up with advances. 

All the best,

Mick.

(Still envious of your skills, though...)

Seems to me to be an ideal combination, it is the same form factor to sit on top of my Novo and streams reliable up to 192/24 (if required). And at a price that puts a smile on a Yorkshireman.  Sorted.

In all honesty it is not a problem as a) feeding the 96kHz into the Majestic produces a fabulous sound b) I don't have hearing selective enough to notice any improvement from 96 to 192 kHz resolution. However, for my  better understanding can anyone explain why there might be incompatibility?