Easiest way for computer audio streaming- Auralic Aries?

Mike said:
Not really. An Auralic Aries is $2500. MSRP. Similar pricing for some of the Aurender products. Less with discounts.

Build and setup is only half the battle. Dealing with Windows and all the other nonsense like JRiver vs whatever new program is a pain IMO.

I've had a full blown CAPS with red wine PSU. It wasn't worth the PITA factor to be honest. Minimal gains if any compared to an all-in-one solution like Aurender, Auralic, etc.

YMMV.


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Thanks!
 
Mike said:
Defend? Am I on trial? LOL. The purpose of upsampling PCM to DSD on the Lampi was because the Lampi has, as I understand it, completely separate sections for PCM and DSD. The DSD on the unit I reviewed was well broken in and sounded incredible. So, to see if I could apply that magic to PCM files, I upsampled the PCM to DSD and the improvement wasn't subtle.


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Ha no. but you did write that upsampling or converting was a discriminator. Can you tell us why you think that is a discriminator?

Most DAC chips (ESS and TI) have both DSD and PCM sections, and if it is a FPGA, even better.
 
KeithR said:
I have used an AppleTV for years to stream audio from my Mac Mini. I'm turning my attention back to digital now that the Aries has been released. If I understand correctly, this basically allows me to use my hard drive attached to my Mac Mini in another room as well as streaming services off my iPhone (including hi res if I ever want to go that direction), right?

Is there any reason for people to build music servers and other complication now that such a product is out there? What is the Aries weakness as compared to its competitors.

Thanks!
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The weakness I found is that the Lightning App doesn't search Tidal music and the local music at the same time, much like Sonos does.

The Aries is one of the easiest ways to stream computer audio at all bitrates.
 
o0OBillO0o said:
Ha no. but you did write that upsampling or converting was a discriminator. Can you tell us why you think that is a discriminator?

Most DAC chips (ESS and TI) have both DSD and PCM sections, and if it is a FPGA, even better.
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It really comes down to the old listening test. Some prefer the results of upsampling, some don't.


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Mike said:
It really comes down to the old listening test. Some prefer the results of upsampling, some don't.
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Mike, I understand that it is a preference or opinion. It's much clearer, if one prefers to upsample and upconvert in real time, the Aries does not currently have that feature.

If it were a fact that upconverting made a difference, especially with sound quality/enjoyment, your point of no upsampling or converting PCM to DSD on the fly would be a drawback to the Aries.

Now, not everything has to be done in real time. Users can convert their music into DSD using software. Of course file size and storage will increase- and there is talk of better precision conducting offline conversion, but I have no definitive answer to sound quality/enjoyment other than the clue that some DACs may function with less of a load with much of the conversion done already for it. Here is a BLOG post for more info.
 
Absolutely Bill and I converted my DSD to PCM as well a long time ago. But, it's really dependent on the DAC as you said.


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Sight and Sound in Georgia is selling the Aries for $999 including shipping.

Does anyone here know about how long does it take to catalog and make available the contents of a large attached external hard drive (e.g. 4TB)?
 
From Auralic:

From the Press Release:

AURALiC will present the following new technologies during the Munich show:


Lightning DS V2 for iPad – The V2 of Lightning DS for iPad is a complete new design based on a new structure with much faster running speed and new functions such as vTuner integration, portrait view, mixed local and online playing queue, AURALiC Lightning Server and etc.

Lightning DS for Android Phone – The full function Android version of Lighting DS is finally coming, after a long waiting. This cell phone version of App is not just a smaller screen size of existing software but a complete re-design, for best user experience on smartphone.

Wireless DSD256 streaming – Both ARIES and VEGA are getting new firmware for DSD256 playback support right now. The free new enhancement is available for existing customers. We will demonstrate some stunning original DSD256 recordings streaming wirelessly though ARIES and VEGA.

The next BIG thing – Prepared to be blown off by something new? Come and see us during the show at Atrium 4 2.0G E211.
 
rbbert said:
Sight and Sound in Georgia is selling the Aries for $999 including shipping.

Does anyone here know about how long does it take to catalog and make available the contents of a large attached external hard drive (e.g. 4TB)?
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That's not a freebie - that's simply the list price of the LE version . The Deluxe with the upgraded power supply and Femto clocks is the one to go for.
 
Bobolaclune said:
That's not a freebie - that's simply the list price of the LE version . The Deluxe with the upgraded power supply and Femto clocks is the one to go for.
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Yes and the Deluxe costs $1600 retail.

Perhaps more important than the Femto-ness of the clocks is that USB and SPDIF dont share a common clock, as they have different processing rates and clock sharing is too much of a compromise. Thus the extra $600 buys clock separation, something that getting the LE and a quality LPSU cant compensate for....
 
what's not as promising is Tidal- this company may not last 12 months. the relaunch has been a PR disaster and they only had 540k subs as of March 31st.

it seems the Aries is best for streaming home audio from a server, but the streaming service thing is still up for discussion.
 
KeithR said:
it seems the Aries is best for streaming home audio from a server, but the streaming service thing is still up for discussion.
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The Aries is an excellent solution with a tidy interface. I totally understand why some prefer to use it. You can even test drive the app with a OpenHome or DLNA server and endpoint.
 
KeithR said:
what's not as promising is Tidal- this company may not last 12 months. the relaunch has been a PR disaster and they only had 540k subs as of March 31st.

it seems the Aries is best for streaming home audio from a server, but the streaming service thing is still up for discussion.
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Keith,

Tidal rocks. I'm hoping they can keep it up. 540K subscribers is NOT bad, AT ALL. For an online services that deals with intangibles, I bet they're making more than pocket change there :)

I like to have Tidal around, even though my own library has 14000+ albums. They complement each other, and it's a great way to discover new music/artists. They have a crazy amount of obscure stuff, which I love! I freaked out a friend of mine the other day when I showed him that Tidal had Invisible (his favourite band), this rock group from the 70s, from Argentina!

The way it's implemented in the Aries is very straightforward, so you can jump from library to Tidal (and back) quickly.

alexandre
 
This is all confusing to me.
I want a stand alone unit I can plug an ext HD (or transfer to an internal HD) containing music files into a Devialet 200. I was considering the Aurender N100. Will the Aries work as well with comparable sound quality? Wireless just seems fragile to me, asking for drop outs, but is the sound superior to USB? The lifespan of these units is relatively short given the pace of improvement, $1600 trumps $2500. Thanks
 
Smile,

The Aries will do the job. You just plug the USB drive in the back, let it scan the contents, and you're all set.
I haven't done A x B on wireless x direct USB, but if I had to guess, I'd say wireless would win. Of course, you're going to need good Wi-Fi (latest spec.), but I haven't experienced dropouts yet with the Aries, even playing hi-res files (24/192, DSD, etc).
As for the lifespan, AFAIK, the Aries hardware is very capable, so much that they're issuing updates, with new features and adding new formats (DSD256, etc).


alexandre
 
Smile said:
This is all confusing to me.
I want a stand alone unit I can plug an ext HD (or transfer to an internal HD) containing music files into a Devialet 200. I was considering the Aurender N100. Will the Aries work as well with comparable sound quality? Wireless just seems fragile to me, asking for drop outs, but is the sound superior to USB? The lifespan of these units is relatively short given the pace of improvement, $1600 trumps $2500. Thanks
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I guess we'll need more information from you on what your setup is. Why would you buy an Aries when wireless streaming via Devialet AIR is already built-in? Easiest thing to do is to just hook up a Mac Mini to a HD & stream over your network. You must have a computer somewhere in your house with your Music library? That's all you need. According to Devialet - there should be no sonic differences between SPDIF, USB , Ethernet or AIR. I have my 400 connected via Ethernet to my Airport Extreme & experience no dropouts .
 
Eero routers run on dual bands 2.4 and 5 ghz and create a mesh wifi network. Available in the Summer, it sells for $5o0 for 3 units and promises enterprise class wifi with fast setup, automatic self-monitoring and self repair, plus one touch guest wifi access. Google it for more info...
 
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