For just streaming Tidal : Lumin or Aries or Aurender?

Dguitarnut

Dguitarnut

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Being on the lazy side I only listen to Tidal music streamed thru my MacBook Pro thru Regen thru Yggdrasil Dac.
That being said why would I want to spend more$$$ on a Lumin U1 or Aurender N10 than on an Aries so I can skip the MacBook?
Difference between a transport and a streamer? Does a transport mean it can be connected to hard drive and retrieve music? I don't need that I think.
Thanks'
Larry
 
Hey Larry - I have a Lumin U1 here you can come down and borrow. I think you will love the Lumin U1 and it's app.

The U1 will give you better connectivity options to your DAC. For example, your Yggdrasil has AES/EBU. That's a superior connection to USB.

Mike
 
Dguitarnut said:
Being on the lazy side I only listen to Tidal music streamed thru my MacBook Pro thru Regen thru Yggdrasil Dac.
That being said why would I want to spend more$$$ on a Lumin U1 or Aurender N10 than on an Aries so I can skip the MacBook?
Difference between a transport and a streamer? Does a transport mean it can be connected to hard drive and retrieve music? I don't need that I think.
Thanks'
Larry
Click to expand...

Larry, around this time last year I bought a brand new Mac Mini with the most powerful processor available and a 1T solid state drive. I had it sent directly to Uptone Audio to have the stock SMPS power supply removed and a separate custom (box) JS-2 power supply to attach. This power supply is much larger and far more weighty than the MM. I also had Uptone install its fanless kit in the MM.

I reasoned that a computer is a computer and this tricked out MM would sound just as good as any other computer, read music server. Boy was I wrong.

Later I took Mike up on his offer to send me one of his Lumin demos to try out. It took about five minutes of listening to realize that with the Lumin it move my system up several notches and I got to hear what my speaker sounded like for the first time. In fact I have had a chance to hear head to head what several other famous music servers sound like in my system and none of them to my ears come that close to what the Lumin does.
 
Odyssey said:
Larry, around this time last year I bought a brand new Mac Mini with the most powerful processor available and a 1T solid state drive. I had it sent directly to Uptone Audio to have the stock SMPS power supply removed and a separate custom (box) JS-2 power supply to attach. This power supply is much larger and far more weighty than the MM. I also had Uptone install its fanless kit in the MM.

I reasoned that a computer is a computer and this tricked out MM would sound just as good as any other computer, read music server. Boy was I wrong.

Later I took Mike up on his offer to send me one of his Lumin demos to try out. It took about five minutes of listening to realize that with the Lumin it move my system up several notches and I got to hear what my speaker sounded like for the first time. In fact I have had a chance to hear head to head what several other famous music servers sound like in my system and none of them to my ears come that close to what the Lumin does.
Click to expand...
Oh oh
Mike has made me the same offer...........not good news for the wallet!
Thanks so much for your input!
 
Lumin supports gapless playback of Tidal.

Regarding the meaning of "transport" in the context of Lumin products: Lumin U1 transport does not have analogue outputs, but other Lumin players do (using built-in DAC).

Using an audiophile network player/transport usually beats a typical computer as a source for sound quality.
 
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Peter

Does that mean Lumin does not suggest the U1 for this application even if the potential buyer has a DAC they prefer? Would Lumin rather they buy a D1 instead? I am in the same situation as the OP and went with the Aries as I already had an Aqua R2R DAC I prefer and didn't need a redundant DAC. In this situation it would seem that Mike's trade-in U1 would be the best solution.
 
If users prefer their own DAC to the internal DAC from the Lumin players, then the Lumin U1 transport may be used. U1 is created specifically to satisfy this demand.

(I've edited my previous post so I hope it's not misleading.)
 
So the question that begs to be answered is the DAC in the S1 worth $4K or can you get a much better standalone DAC for that kinda money? Like maybe the new Lampizator?
Larry
 
Dguitarnut said:
So the question that begs to be answered is the DAC in the S1 worth $4K or can you get a much better standalone DAC for that kinda money? Like maybe the new Lampizator?
Larry
Click to expand...

Larry - you will hear the U1 and Lampi Atlantic soon! See you soon.
 
If one already owns a capable dac, just stick to it with an addition of U1. I've heard Lumin A1 and most recently S1, never was a fan of the ESS dac chips, much prefer well implemented R2R dacs


从我的 iPhone 发送，使用 Tapatalk
 
I got Mike's' demo Lumin U1 home and hooked it up. Talk about an overbuilt work of art! Made my Pass Labs amp feel wimpy!

As I went thru lot of my favorite tunes I didn't think it was doing much till I played some tunes that I was previously disappointed with my system thru the MacBook Pro. I was attributing it to just bad recordings or perhaps my Dac wasn't performing well enough.
Then the OMG moment .....they seemed to come alive like I remembered them from decades ago.
I'm surprised how the glare in the offending tunes had been lifted.....sounded analog instead of so digital. Like having cataract surgery.....only more expensive...LoL.
So I took the demo right back and put my entire system on Craig's List. Kidding, Mike made a sale!
 
Dguitarnut said:
I got Mike's' demo Lumin U1 home and hooked it up. Talk about an overbuilt work of art! Made my Pass Labs amp feel wimpy!

As I went thru lot of my favorite tunes I didn't think it was doing much till I played some tunes that I was previously disappointed with my system thru the MacBook Pro. I was attributing it to just bad recordings or perhaps my Dac wasn't performing well enough.
Then the OMG moment .....they seemed to come alive like I remembered them from decades ago.
I'm surprised how the glare in the offending tunes had been lifted.....sounded analog instead of so digital. Like having cataract surgery.....only more expensive...LoL.
So I took the demo right back and put my entire system on Craig's List. Kidding, Mike made a sale!
Click to expand...

Hello,

I'm running the same amp as yourself and considering a new DAC. That Schiit DAC is on my list to try. I've been demoing the PS Audio Directstream DAC for the week and it has been great.

However, I'm also using at times SPDIF from my Oppo (for Tidal) and connect a Macbook via USB. My question is the improvement that you are experiencing using the Lumin Transport.

Are you using the AES connection to the DAC instead of USB?

Thanks
 
I sold my PS Audio PWD2 (not directstream) and got the Schiit Yggy. To my ears it's more resolving, have not looked back. I am using USB from my MacBook Pro into it. I have ordered an AES cable for when I get the Lumin U1 next week. Mike says it's smoother than the USB.
 
The Lumin app is simply wonderful on its own and for Tidal.

I never thought Tidal would sound so good. My previous experience with Tidal via usb from my computer had a lot of dropouts. But not so with a network connection to my dac.

With the Lumin app which is essentially the same as the Soundstream for my Esoteric dac, browsing through the whole Tidal catalog is a breeze and the SQ with the HiFi sub which gives you CD-quality Flac files is as good as my own Redbook Flac files.

So getting the Lumin transport provides the pleasure of the app experience that comes with it. As has been said, it's all about the app.

J. :)
 
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