I agree, at this level; it comes down to personal preferences and streamer component synergy with rest of your system.
Aurender N30 - To stay competitive in 2021
- Thread starter CKKeung
- Start date
Most intrigued, Doc76. Any listening notes on how you personally felt the N30SA compared with the Wadax or the Taiko Extreme? I am long-term looking at servers, and like keeping track of the key leaders in this pack. Thank you for any thoughts/listening notes.
Hi,
Sorry for the long delay in answering, I don’t visit here much. I enjoy listening to music so don’t post much.
With my system, room and to my ears I enjoy the N30SA more. While vinyl is still superior to streaming, the N30SA gives me the most satisfaction out of the streamers I listened too. For my tastes the WADAX sounds better than the Extreme, but the N30SA (using their Conductor V4 app, not the V3) sounds more real, genuine, and is just more enjoyable overall than either of the other two.
When I first received the Taiko it was by far my favorite. I was really enjoying it with XDMI. However, Taiko continued to make software changes that “later” I didn’t appreciate as much. The music just sounded off in my system and to my ears. I literally didn’t play it for a while and went totally vinyl. Fantasico!
All this is not to say that the WADAX or Taiko are poor streamers - not at all. They just don’t come as close to live music as my N30SA does “for me.”. If I recall Taiko’s goal isn’t to sound like live music at all but as a recording engineer would experience it. I think something to that effect was in Mono & Stereo sometime back. So their goal comes short of what I’m personally desiring. So, their newer software changes don’t work for me. The WADAX is excellent and IMO on some songs (classical) sounds better than the N30SA, but overall for me the N30SA is the overall winner.
Other people may have different experiences in their room and with their systems. For instance in a tube based system I may have come to a different conclusion. But for me tubes somewhat color the overall sound. IMO this is all very subjective. All of these streamers are excellent IMO. Every one of them is “the best.” It’s just a matter of deciding which “best” sounds superb in your system and to your ears.
Doc 76 when you say you prefer Conductor 4 over 3 is that just for streaming? Did you compare the 4 and 3 for listening to music stored on the N30SA? If so, which did you prefer?
Also interested to understand...I am definitely looking at this to play network storage not streaming.
Hi,
I do most of my streaming from stored network files that I ripped with a ACS10. For streaming from a service I’ve found that Qobuz sounds better to me than Tidal.
V4 is best for me. If V3 was all that Aurender offered I would have gone with WADAX.
I do most of my streaming from stored network files that I ripped with a ACS10. For streaming from a service I’ve found that Qobuz sounds better to me than Tidal.
V4 is best for me. If V3 was all that Aurender offered I would have gone with WADAX.
I have found that V4 sounds much better than V3 on my N10. I have NO experience with either Wadax or Taiko. I also haven’t heard the N30 SA and have not heard the W20 SE since introduction.
Correcting the above, I have heard the Taiko Extreme at THE Show in Costa Mesa 2024. It was in my favorite system this year. Understand that it was only used to play files - in other words no streaming was made available.
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The N30SA is definitely an excellent step up from the N10, but the N10 still sounds really good as well. The separate power supply does make a difference. It’s a lot more money for the N30SA as well, but for me worth it.
I heard the W20SE early on in my system before I chose my first N30SA. It is an excellent streamer, but I still like the color display of the N30SA when I use it. Of course you can turn it off for critical listening. But most of my critical listening is with vinyl, not digital.
I have an acquaintance who had both the W20SE and N30SA as well as the N20 in their system and they also chose the N30SA. I appreciate your feedback.
I've been asleep at the wheel and still using V3. I tried V4 after reading this thread today and I can hear a noticeable improvement in SQ.
Thanks for the info!
Happy holidays to fellow N30SA owners! Would greatly appreciate your experience with the following:
- the degree to which upstream audiophile network switches and filters have improved the sonic performance of your N30SA, OR have you found that the double isolation network filtering of the N30SA renders the positive impact of upstream audiophile switches and filtering di minimus?
- whether the playback quality of music stored on your N30SA’s internal SSDs was improved with better upstream network switches/filtering?
Reason I ask is that I own an etherregen and am intrigued by idea of upgrading it to a higher end audiophile switch (eg Network Acoustics Tempus, etc) if the sonic improvement warrants it, but before I go through the hassle of auditioning pricier network switch/filter options, it would be helpful to hear input from N30SA owners who’ve already been down this rabbit hole.
Thanks,
Blake
- the degree to which upstream audiophile network switches and filters have improved the sonic performance of your N30SA, OR have you found that the double isolation network filtering of the N30SA renders the positive impact of upstream audiophile switches and filtering di minimus?
- whether the playback quality of music stored on your N30SA’s internal SSDs was improved with better upstream network switches/filtering?
Reason I ask is that I own an etherregen and am intrigued by idea of upgrading it to a higher end audiophile switch (eg Network Acoustics Tempus, etc) if the sonic improvement warrants it, but before I go through the hassle of auditioning pricier network switch/filter options, it would be helpful to hear input from N30SA owners who’ve already been down this rabbit hole.
Thanks,
Blake
Hey Blake,
I’ve had the N30SA even before I became an Aurender dealer, and I’ve had a lot of time to dial it in. In summary, streaming is now my primary source, even over local files.
Further upstream, I, too started with an EtherRegen, which made little noticeable difference. I started the upgrade by adding a Farad Super3 linear power supply with a very good aftermarket power cable to power the EtherRegen, and to my surprise, the performance improved more significantly than just the EtherRegen on its own.
A number of months later, I unfortunately fried the power supply due to a stupid mistake in using it on another piece of equipment. Rather than replace it, I decided to try using the Synergistic Research Ethernet Switch UEF. What an improvement it made, even over the EtherRegen and Farad LPS. Presentation was smoother, more effortless, while improving on clarity and dynamics.
I had already been an advocate of Synergistic Research for about a decade, and I became a dealer for them in spring of 2023. One of my first purchases of demo equipment included the SR Router to build on to the switch. The Router had a different effect, improving harmonics, density, and liquidity to a point where it started to sound like I was listening to master tape. I’ve continued to build on that chain with no regret, and honestly, for some reason, I truly believe that streaming signal sounds better than some of the high resolution files stored in my Aurender. Part of this is likely due the exceptional management of electromagnetism that SR is known for.
My chain today, for reference:
Netgear Orbi Mesh Satellite
SR Atmosphere SX Reference Ethernet
SR Router UEF
SR Atmosphere SX Reference Ethernet
SR Ethernet Switch UEF
SR SRX Ethernet
Aurender N30SA
SR SRX AES, Coax and USB (for demo purposes to different devices)
I also now use the Aurender MC10 master clock, which further improves the clarity, focus, snap and texture. It makes a difference on the N30SA on its own, but it’s even better if you have a DAC or other digital equipment (eg Theoretica Applied Physics BACCH-SP) which can take a master clock.
I’ve had the N30SA even before I became an Aurender dealer, and I’ve had a lot of time to dial it in. In summary, streaming is now my primary source, even over local files.
Further upstream, I, too started with an EtherRegen, which made little noticeable difference. I started the upgrade by adding a Farad Super3 linear power supply with a very good aftermarket power cable to power the EtherRegen, and to my surprise, the performance improved more significantly than just the EtherRegen on its own.
A number of months later, I unfortunately fried the power supply due to a stupid mistake in using it on another piece of equipment. Rather than replace it, I decided to try using the Synergistic Research Ethernet Switch UEF. What an improvement it made, even over the EtherRegen and Farad LPS. Presentation was smoother, more effortless, while improving on clarity and dynamics.
I had already been an advocate of Synergistic Research for about a decade, and I became a dealer for them in spring of 2023. One of my first purchases of demo equipment included the SR Router to build on to the switch. The Router had a different effect, improving harmonics, density, and liquidity to a point where it started to sound like I was listening to master tape. I’ve continued to build on that chain with no regret, and honestly, for some reason, I truly believe that streaming signal sounds better than some of the high resolution files stored in my Aurender. Part of this is likely due the exceptional management of electromagnetism that SR is known for.
My chain today, for reference:
Netgear Orbi Mesh Satellite
SR Atmosphere SX Reference Ethernet
SR Router UEF
SR Atmosphere SX Reference Ethernet
SR Ethernet Switch UEF
SR SRX Ethernet
Aurender N30SA
SR SRX AES, Coax and USB (for demo purposes to different devices)
I also now use the Aurender MC10 master clock, which further improves the clarity, focus, snap and texture. It makes a difference on the N30SA on its own, but it’s even better if you have a DAC or other digital equipment (eg Theoretica Applied Physics BACCH-SP) which can take a master clock.
@battles
My experience with high-end switch like Telegartner M12 Gold Switch with JCAT LPS or NA Muon Filter has been minimal. While I heard a very slight improvement it wasn’t quite worth the investment to my ears. The M12 combo with cables set me back $6500. The N30SA’s Ethernet port is already galvanically isolated and Aurender does not recommend using any sort of filters ahead of N30SA. The 2-chassis design is very robust in delivering absolute noise-free performance.
You’re going to get a better return on your investment with a quality external master clock over audiophile ‘dubbed’ switches or filters ahead of N30SA.
After hearing N30SA with my Merging +clock…I couldn’t go back to listening N30SA by itself.
My experience with high-end switch like Telegartner M12 Gold Switch with JCAT LPS or NA Muon Filter has been minimal. While I heard a very slight improvement it wasn’t quite worth the investment to my ears. The M12 combo with cables set me back $6500. The N30SA’s Ethernet port is already galvanically isolated and Aurender does not recommend using any sort of filters ahead of N30SA. The 2-chassis design is very robust in delivering absolute noise-free performance.
You’re going to get a better return on your investment with a quality external master clock over audiophile ‘dubbed’ switches or filters ahead of N30SA.
After hearing N30SA with my Merging +clock…I couldn’t go back to listening N30SA by itself.
Thanks, gentlemen. Greatly appreciate your thoughtful replies and sharing your individual experiences. The external clock option seems like it produces excellent results, but from an ROI standpoint I believe that path requires investing in expensive AES/EBU+ BNC cables, a high end clock+PSU, and accepting limitations on file playback resolution, if I’m not mistaken. And, since MSB’s Cascade has an excellent femto clock, I imagine I’d need a pretty pricey clock to exceed its performance. Please let me know if this isn’t a fair conclusion.
I also wonder if in my particular situation where my N30SA SDD stored files are only a smidge better sounding (perhaps a tad more organic and quieter) than streamed files, whether upgrading my upstream network hardware is good bang for the buck, especially at $5-15K in incremental cost? @Bliss Hifi, from what I can gather, the retail price of your upstream network component chain is not insignificant! If it were the case that making this investment yielded a sonic improvement noticeably better than locally stored file playback, I’d be inclined to bite the bullet, but I’m unsure that is a result
I can count on?
I also wonder if in my particular situation where my N30SA SDD stored files are only a smidge better sounding (perhaps a tad more organic and quieter) than streamed files, whether upgrading my upstream network hardware is good bang for the buck, especially at $5-15K in incremental cost? @Bliss Hifi, from what I can gather, the retail price of your upstream network component chain is not insignificant! If it were the case that making this investment yielded a sonic improvement noticeably better than locally stored file playback, I’d be inclined to bite the bullet, but I’m unsure that is a result
I can count on?
@battles
Fortunately, Aurender allows external clock integration, where it can slave off excellent MSB internal clock, very similar to Merging +clock. I would go into advance settings in Aurender app and turn on external clock. A quality AES or BNC cable is a worthy endeavor before you do anything else.
How is your N30 connected to your MSB…USB?
If you have any questions on how to slave off MSB clock, reach out to Aurender support.
Fortunately, Aurender allows external clock integration, where it can slave off excellent MSB internal clock, very similar to Merging +clock. I would go into advance settings in Aurender app and turn on external clock. A quality AES or BNC cable is a worthy endeavor before you do anything else.
How is your N30 connected to your MSB…USB?
If you have any questions on how to slave off MSB clock, reach out to Aurender support.
Thanks @zebo67. I have experimented with the N30SA serving as master clock to the MSB Cascade via the MSB’s AES+BNC Word Clock input (I have some reference SR AES+ BNC cables on hand as loaners) but until now, no one had recommended allowing the N30SA being slaved to the clock of the MSB. I’ll definitely give this a shot, as I googled an audiophile who did the latter and was smitten by the sonic improvement. Quick question for you: if I do as described, can I continue to use the asynchronous USB output of the N30SA or am I limited to using the NA30SA’s AES digital output when the N30SA is slaved to the MSB clock (so, yes, I am using the N30SA’s USB output > MSB’s ProUSB/ISL module > MSB Cascade Digital Director’s ISL input interface)
Will do. I will be away from my system for a little over a week, but I’ll report back once I have conducted the experiment. What I can tell you is that when the MSB was slaved to the OCXO clock of the N30SA the sonic quality was equivalent to that of the USB/ISL interface that is slaved to the MSB clock.
