Lumin X1: Enabling an Even Simpler Yet Better Sounding System

[tmallin]

Pokey77, I am still using the Lumin X1. I am even more impressed with it these days than ever before. The only thing I think it "lacks" is an AES/EBU digital output (it has a BNC digital output instead) and I don't need that output these days, now that I'm using the Sanders 10e speakers. The AES would have been handy when I was using the D&D 8c speakers since the digital input for those speakers is AES and to use the Lumin X1 I had to run the BNC output through a BNC to AES adaptor (a Canare model I got from Benchmark). The lack of AES/EBU output seems strange since lower priced Lumin models like the U-1 Mini have it. But then, why would anyone want to use the digital output from the X1 when its DAC is so splendid?

If you've read my Sanders 10e thread, you know I think the Sanders is even more transparent than the D&D 8c. I can tell you that I almost never use Roon anymore because the X1's version of the Lumin App streamer just sounds better, at least via the Sanders speakers. Roon has a yet-better GUI than the Lumin App, more flexible upsampling/resampling and it has DSP equalization available, but the Sanders 10e takes care of all the EQ, crossovering, time alignment, etc. via its Loudspeaker Management System, the dbx VENU360. For me, the better sound quality of the Lumin App wins the day, at least it has for the past several months.

The Lumin App and the X1 keep getting better sounding and more functional all the time via firmware updates every month or two. Lumin also is extraordinarily responsive to user requests for new features or solutions to problems users encounter. Check out the Lumin Forum over on AudioShark. Peter Lie (wklie), Lumin's Firmware Lead, is a constant participant and usually responds with a fix to any software problem or request within a few days at most. I have never encountered a company more willing and able to keep pushing the product features and performance forward and upward with zero investment by customers after the initial purchase price.

 

[tmallin]

Pokey77, as to the network side of things, since I switched to the Sanders 10e speakers, I am no longer been running the EtherRegen switch "backwards." I tried it both ways and sonically prefer the "standard" or "recommended" direction of signal flow with the Sanders 10e speakers.

My current system configuration is explained here. I now have the Lumin X1 connected to the "B" side of the EtherRegen as is the "standard" or "recommended" by Uptone way to do things. The ethernet input from my router first goes through the GigaFOILv4 Inline Ethernet Filter, then via a short ethernet cable to the "A" side of the EtherRegen, then from the "B" side of the EtherRegen via another short ethernet cable to the Lumin X1. The Roon Nucleus+ and dbx VENU360 are connected to the "A" side of the EtherRegen.

All ethernet cables in my audio room are Blue Jeans Cat 6. The long (90+ feet) cable from the router to my wall outlet is shielded CAT 6 because of its greater physical resistance to damage when being pulled through tight places. My old house is a nightmare for pulling cables. The router is on the first floor only about 8 feet directly below the ethernet wall jack in my second floor audio room. But because of the horizontal wooden fire-stops and other obstacles within the relevant bearing wall, it is next to impossible to run the cable upward from the router to my audio room. The only practical way to run the cable is down to the basement, across the basement ceiling, up a plumbing stack to the attic, across the attic, and then down from the attic into the wall where my audio room's ethernet wall jack is located.

I decided to run the EtherRegen "backwards" when I was using D&D 8c speakers since each D&D speaker needed a separate ethernet connection since each speaker has its own separate DAC in use, at least when the D&D speakers are set up in ethernet-connected Roon Ready mode. There was no easy way to run both speakers from side "B" of the EtherRegen.

By the way, with the Sanders 10e speakers I have tried bypassing both the EtherRegen and the GigaFOILv4, running the Lumin X1 from a direct connection to the router. The sound is quite clearly better with those two components in the signal path. It is not even close: the direct connection, by comparison, is overly bright with some gritty distortion overlaid, has less black background, and has much inferior three dimensionality of imaging and staging.

While this direct comparison makes the sonics of the direct ethernet connection sound trashy, it's only by direct comparison. Compared with a Wi-Fi connection from the router, the direct ethernet connection sounds better. Since Lumin streamers only work with ethernet input, before I had the fully wired ethernet connection installed, I used a Wi-Fi access point unit like this one to capture Wi-Fi from the router 8 feet directly below the floor of the audio room, then with the Wi-Fi device in Client Mode, ran a short ethernet cable to the Lumin.

 

[Pokey77]

Tom,

I really appreciate your insight on the X1. And glad to read of your even greater joy with the product since you purchased it three years ago. The fact that Lumin can continue to evolve the X1 via software is very nice and was indicated to me as a reason that the X1 won't be updated/superseded for a few more years.

So it sounds like you are running RJ45 rather than fiber optic into the X1? If I do wind up with an X1, I'll give both a try though I'd have to use a converter or move my ER into the audio room.

BTW, I've read parts of your other threads including the D&D thread, but I don't think I've read the Sanders 10e thread. I've heard the 10e's at least once in Newport Beach at one of the shows. They had them setup with the dbx preamp and I felt the sound was really really good. Hope you are really enjoying them.

 

[tmallin]

I did try a fiber optic link at one point as the final stage into the Lumin X1. Eventually, however, I did not like what I heard as light-weight bass and some brightness in the highs. The GigaFOILv4 inserts a fiber optic link in the signal path after my long ethernet cable and just a foot from the EtherRegen. Then the EtherRegen is connected with a two-foot link of ethernet cable to the Lumin X1. This path has all the pluses of the fiber link I tried (e.g., blacker background and lower high frequency distortion) but none of the downsides. It's a keeper, as is the EtherRegen.

 

[Pokey77]

Very helpful post Tom, thank you.

 

[DRBI]

Hi, I'm new to the forum. I have an X1 with an audiophile switch (Silent Angel Bonn NX) connected to it. Do you think it is worth connecting a world clock to the switch, does it make sense? Thank you for your answers.

 

[tmallin]

I use the Uptone Audio EtherRegen switch. Here is my path: GigaFOILv4 Inline Ethernet Filter powered by 5V output of Keces P3 LPS, feeding UpTone Audio EtherREGEN ethernet switch powered by 12V output of Keces P3 LPS,. However, I have never tried an external work clock with it. Some commentators do report hearing inprovements with external word clocks. See this review of the EtherRegen, for example.

While I hear improvements using the GigaFOIL fiber-optic link device upstream of the EtherRegen, I never cottoned to the sound of a fiber optic link feeding the X1 from the switch.

 

[DRBI]

I use the Uptone Audio EtherRegen switch. Here is my path: GigaFOILv4 Inline Ethernet Filter powered by 5V output of Keces P3 LPS, feeding UpTone Audio EtherREGEN ethernet switch powered by 12V output of Keces P3 LPS,. However, I have never tried an external work clock with it. Some commentators do report hearing inprovements with external word clocks. See this review of the EtherRegen, for example.

While I hear improvements using the GigaFOIL fiber-optic link device upstream of the EtherRegen, I never cottoned to the sound of a fiber optic link feeding the X1 from the switch.

Thank you very much. I also use a LAN isolator ( https://audiocable.hu/termek/hydra-finelizer-pro-ethernet-signal-lan-isolator-2/ ) but between the switch and X1, not before the switch. Maybe it would be more efficient before the switch?

 

[poonbean]

Re a clock on the ER, I initially added an afterdark clock, and there was some improvement with respect to clarity, stage, and especially bass texture. I then added the Mutec (sold the AD) and it provided a big jump up, in particular texture across the board and image stabilization, which was rather remarkable. I'm no longer using the X1.

 

[tmallin]

Perhaps this is either old news or obvious to others, but I'll cover it here now since it was not obvious to me. With the Lumin X1, and I suspect other Lumins (and I know this was true of Auralic streamers as well at the time I was using their G2), connecting any USB device to the unit degrades the sonic quality of what you hear.

In my case this applies, I've recently found, even to the 1 TB USB stick I was using as the storage device from which my music files were played. Now, I know from Lumin's instructions that many of the sorting and metadata features of the Lumin app require an NAS device to work properly. But for my needs, the sorting and metadata available via a USB connection were plenty.

What I didn't realize, however, was that any program played through the Lumin--whether from the USB stick itself, or from Tidal, Qobuz, Spotify, or internet radio--was at least subtly degraded in sonic quality by the fact that that USB stick was plugged into the Lumin.

Now, the trick is that you probably won't hear the superiority of ethernet connection of your music file storage unless and until you physically disconnect any USB-connected devices from the Lumin. You can't hear the superiority of the LAN-connected music library by switching back and forth between the same material on the LAN library and the USB-connected library. In fact, in my case, as long as the USB stick was physically connected, the LAN library often did not sound quite as pristine. However, once the USB stick is physically disconnected, it is quite clearly audible that everything sounds at least a bit better--not only the LAN local music library, but also all my other internet music sources.

What I'm now doing is accessing my music files from my Apple Studio computer running MinimServer 2.2 which is connected to the same network as the Lumin. When I'm not using those local music files, I turn off the Apple Studio computer. That pulls the Music Library offline. If I really want to get anal about this, I then delete that music library from the Lumin. Deleting a music library shows up as an option in the Lumin App once that library is offline. That truly maximizes sound quality from all the ethernet connected sources--Tidal, Qobuz, and internet radio stations.

I don't think that Lumin's Online Manual about the Lumin App and USB storage mentions any sonic degradation. It does mention the lesser flexibility such music storage provides in terms of navigation and metadata:

"Due to extra reliability, browsing flexibility and proven compatibility, our recommended Music Server setup is LUMIN L1, a NAS (Network Attached Storage) running MinimServer or a computer running MinimServer, but many users have successfully used USB as their primary storage."

How does the sound change when the USB connected equipment is removed? Imaging and staging become more precise, the presentation gets larger and more enveloping, depth increases with closely miked images closer and more distant images further away. More ambiance--both from the recording site, if any, and aritficially created--is present. There is an apparent increase in background "blackness." And any given presentation just sounds more "relaxed," more "analog" and free from artifacts--more natural, less mechanical/electronic. I hear all these changes as not just different, but better.

The more I listen with nothing connected to the USB port of the Lumin X1, the more significant I think this change is. The sonic improvement on all material is quite significant. Basically every aspect of reproduction benefits.

 

[rado6666]

Perhaps this is either old news or obvious to others, but I'll cover it here now since it was not obvious to me. With the Lumin X1, and I suspect other Lumins (and I know this was true of Auralic streamers as well at the time I was using their G2), connecting any USB device to the unit degrades the sonic quality of what you hear.

In my case this applies, I've recently found, even to the 1 TB USB stick I was using as the storage device from which my music files were played. Now, I know from Lumin's instructions that many of the sorting and metadata features of the Lumin app require an NAS device to work properly. But for my needs, the sorting and metadata available via a USB connection were plenty.

What I didn't realize, however, was that any program played through the Lumin--whether from the USB stick itself, or from Tidal, Qobuz, Spotify, or internet radio--was at least subtly degraded in sonic quality by the fact that that USB stick was plugged into the Lumin.

Now, the trick is that you probably won't hear the superiority of ethernet connection of your music file storage unless and until you physically disconnect any USB-connected devices from the Lumin. You can't hear the superiority of the LAN-connected music library by switching back and forth between the same material on the LAN library and the USB-connected library. In fact, in my case, as long as the USB stick was physically connected, the LAN library often did not sound quite as pristine. However, once the USB stick is physically disconnected, it is quite clearly audible that everything sounds at least a bit better--not only the LAN local music library, but also all my other internet music sources.

What I'm now doing is accessing my music files from my Apple Studio computer running MinimServer 2.2 which is connected to the same network as the Lumin. When I'm not using those local music files, I turn off the Apple Studio computer. That pulls the Music Library offline. If I really want to get anal about this, I then delete that music library from the Lumin. Deleting a music library shows up as an option in the Lumin App once that library is offline. That truly maximizes sound quality from all the ethernet connected sources--Tidal, Qobuz, and internet radio stations.

I don't think that Lumin's Online Manual about the Lumin App and USB storage mentions any sonic degradation. It does mention the lesser flexibility such music storage provides in terms of navigation and metadata:

"Due to extra reliability, browsing flexibility and proven compatibility, our recommended Music Server setup is LUMIN L1, a NAS (Network Attached Storage) running MinimServer or a computer running MinimServer, but many users have successfully used USB as their primary storage."

How does the sound change when the USB connected equipment is removed? Imaging and staging become more precise, the presentation gets larger and more enveloping, depth increases with closely miked images closer and more distant images further away. More ambiance--both from the recording site, if any, and aritficially created--is present. There is an apparent increase in background "blackness." And any given presentation just sounds more "relaxed," more "analog" and free from artifacts--more natural, less mechanical/electronic. I hear all these changes as not just different, but better.

The more I listen with nothing connected to the USB port of the Lumin X1, the more significant I think this change is. The sonic improvement on all material is quite significant. Basically every aspect of reproduction benefits.

Wow, that is interesting. What about the remote control IR reader? Does disconnecting it from the USB port yield an improvement too?

 

[tmallin]

I do not and never have used the Lumin remote control IR reader. I adjust everything through Wi-Fi via an iPad Pro.

By the way, even with all USB connections broken, the Lumin App still sounds better on all material than Roon on the same material.

 

[DeadWax]

Lumin recently released a firmware update for USB. I'm using a U1 streamer and connect via USB to my Lampi DAC. The sound seems a bit smoother and organic but perhaps I'm imagining it. Anyone else evaluating this update too? Not exactly sure what the update was expected to do.

 

[tmallin]

As long as your equipment supports connection via ethernet, that is the way to go. Just connect each piece to your ethernet switch with no direct connection to the Lumin of any equipment via USB. This is NOT a subtle difference. As I said above, however, you still have to pick between Roon's much better metadata and the Lumin App's significantly better sound quality.

Lumin is now on Firmware updates in the Version 16 family. The only change in 16 is enabling Plex streaming, unimportant for me and I suspect most other Lumin users.

 

[tmallin]

I recently added a Lumin L1 device to act as my local library of music files for my Lumin X1 in place of any USB-connected media. The L1
is ethernet connected to my Lumin X1 streamer via my network switches. At first, the L1 was attached directly to my Xfinity xFi Advanced Gateway in another room via a five-foot length of Blue Jeans Cable Cat 6 Patch Cord and the signal from the L1 thus traveled to the Lumin X1 via the same streaming path as do internet streaming sources (Tidal, Qobuz, internet radio). That streaming path is now as follows:

Xfinity Gigabit internet service, feeding Xfinity xFi Advanced Gateway, feeding 90 feet of CAT6 shielded ethernet cable, feeding 4 feet of Blue Jeans Cable Cat 6 Patch Cord ethernet cable, feeding GigaFOILv4 Inline Ethernet Filter (powered by 5V output of Keces P3 LPS), feeding the “A” side of UpTone Audio EtherREGEN ethernet switch (powered by 12V output of Keces P3 LPS) via 1.5 feet of Blue Jeans Cable Cat 6 Patch Cord ethernet cable, feeding my Lumin X1 from the "B" side of the EtherREGEN switch via 2 feet of Blue Jeans Cable Cat 6 Patch Cord. Since my system only had the Lumin X1 attached to ethernet in my audio room, I did not “need” an ethernet switch in my audio room. However, listening tests convince me that the streamed sources sound more convincingly real with the EtherREGEN in the signal path as the final step before the Lumin X1.

Yes, this was a better-sounding solution for local music file listening than USB-connected music solutions I have tried.

However, attaching the Lumin L1 to the system in this way still degraded the sonics I hear from the Lumin X1 on Tidal, Qobuz, and internet radio stations. This was most noticeable in terms of three dimensionality of images and the soundstage and tilting the overall frequency balance just a bit toward the high-frequencies instead of the quite tonally neutral presentation I heard without the L1 connected. Detaching the Lumin L1's ethernet connection from my router instantly restored the sound quality on the internet-connected sources.

Now I'm using the Lumin L1 sited in my audio room. I placed it and its external power supply on my rack atop A/V Room Service EVPs. This bypasses the long run of ethernet and the GigaFOIL. It also takes advantage of the dedicated power line and power treatment of the audio room.

This is the ticket. I now have extremely high quality sonics from my local network's music files on the L1 with no impairment that I can hear to internet connected programs from Tidal, Qobuz, or internet radio.

I realize that the Lumin L1 has been discontinued in favor of the not-yet-available L2. The price of the L2 is much higher, however, probably about $5,000 and has features I don't think I need, such as fiber-optic connections and another (internal) ethernet switch.

 

[tmallin]

At least temporarily, I have swapped out my 11-inch iPad Pro (M1 version) for my iPhone 14 Pro Max as the control device for the Lumin App. While the screen of the iPad is obviously larger and thus doesn't need the three-window display of the iPhone, I don't find that to be an issue.

The system is at least as responsive with the iPhone running the Lumin App. Sonically, if there is a difference in performance, it favors the iPhone.

Using my iPhone to control the system is also handier since I usually carry the iPhone with me throughout the day. I don't need to pick up the iPad, or be in the audio room or at my computer (I have the Lumin App installed on my desktop Mac as well) to control the volume or switch programs which are playing on the audio system.

The iPad, with its smaller glass and metal area, is less reflective than the iPad. I also have an Apple rubber case for my iPhone, covering its metal parts. Thus, it does not interfere with imaging/staging when held in my lap the way the iPad does. My hands can easily cover all the glass and other surfaces of the iPhone. It is also just easier to handle and operate during play. I find it nice to be able to hold the control device in my hands for "channel surfing" internet radio stations, for example, knowing that this practice is not impairing the sonics. With the iPad, I am forced to put the device down on the floor leaning against my chair, screen side toward the chair, to avoid issues caused by the glass or metal chassis reflection.

Using my general purpose iPhone for controlling the audio system eliminates one other device from the Wi-Fi load on my Xfinity router. This also allows me to get rid of the Apple charger in the audio room which kept the iPad charged between sessions. I no longer have to bother plugging and unplugging the iPad from the charger. Sonics are a smidge better when either the iPad or iPhone are not charging.

One function of the iPhone or iPad which definitely needs to be disabled for best sonics from the audio system is Bluetooth. Turn Bluetooth off in the Settings. Background App Refresh also should be turned off from Settings. Turning off the Cellular Data and the Phone functions also can make an improvement. I don't hear any sonic difference disabling other functions. I was using the iPad in a very "stripped down" mode, turning off or eliminating all apps and functions I did not need to operate the Lumin App and stream audio. Surprisingly, despite the fact that the iPhone is not dedicated to this system and thus has a lot of other functionality operating, as long as I turn off Bluetooth, Background App Refresh, Cellular Data, and the Phone, controlling the system with this general purpose iPhone sounds at least as good as controlling it with the dedicated iPad.

 

[surfing_dude]

I recently added a Lumin L1 device to act as my local library of music files for my Lumin X1 in place of any USB-connected media. The L1
is ethernet connected to my Lumin X1 streamer via my network switches. At first, the L1 was attached directly to my Xfinity xFi Advanced Gateway in another room via a five-foot length of Blue Jeans Cable Cat 6 Patch Cord and the signal from the L1 thus traveled to the Lumin X1 via the same streaming path as do internet streaming sources (Tidal, Qobuz, internet radio). That streaming path is now as follows:

Xfinity Gigabit internet service, feeding Xfinity xFi Advanced Gateway, feeding 90 feet of CAT6 shielded ethernet cable, feeding 4 feet of Blue Jeans Cable Cat 6 Patch Cord ethernet cable, feeding GigaFOILv4 Inline Ethernet Filter (powered by 5V output of Keces P3 LPS), feeding the “A” side of UpTone Audio EtherREGEN ethernet switch (powered by 12V output of Keces P3 LPS) via 1.5 feet of Blue Jeans Cable Cat 6 Patch Cord ethernet cable, feeding my Lumin X1 from the "B" side of the EtherREGEN switch via 2 feet of Blue Jeans Cable Cat 6 Patch Cord. Since my system only had the Lumin X1 attached to ethernet in my audio room, I did not “need” an ethernet switch in my audio room. However, listening tests convince me that the streamed sources sound more convincingly real with the EtherREGEN in the signal path as the final step before the Lumin X1.

Yes, this was a better-sounding solution for local music file listening than USB-connected music solutions I have tried.

However, attaching the Lumin L1 to the system in this way still degraded the sonics I hear from the Lumin X1 on Tidal, Qobuz, and internet radio stations. This was most noticeable in terms of three dimensionality of images and the soundstage and tilting the overall frequency balance just a bit toward the high-frequencies instead of the quite tonally neutral presentation I heard without the L1 connected. Detaching the Lumin L1's ethernet connection from my router instantly restored the sound quality on the internet-connected sources.

Now I'm using the Lumin L1 sited in my audio room. I placed it and its external power supply on my rack atop A/V Room Service EVPs. This bypasses the long run of ethernet and the GigaFOIL. It also takes advantage of the dedicated power line and power treatment of the audio room.

This is the ticket. I now have extremely high quality sonics from my local network's music files on the L1 with no impairment that I can hear to internet connected programs from Tidal, Qobuz, or internet radio.

I realize that the Lumin L1 has been discontinued in favor of the not-yet-available L2. The price of the L2 is much higher, however, probably about $5,000 and has features I don't think I need, such as fiber-optic connections and another (internal) ethernet switch.

The Lumin L2 just sounds fantastic connected to the X-1 through the optical network. Excellent music server!
I had the L-1 before, and the improvement is big. Also, to my ears, there is no need for all the network filters/isolators any longer. I threw away the Gigafoil V4 and the Jcat isolator out of the system (Although both are great products that served me well over the years, and I'll probably continue to use it on a different setup), but the Lumin L-2 is way! better solution and outperform it easily. Musicality, bigger and taller soundstage, amazing ambience and all other superlatives.
Believe me - My Vivid audio speakers reveal it all