Roon is a multi-room, multi-user networked audio platform built to the exacting standards of audiophiles, so it offers features like bit-perfect playback, DSD and PCM upsampling, and multichannel playback, and signal path display. But Roon also incorporates tens of thousands of album reviews and artist bios within its user interface.
As a software platform for music lovers, Roon has two main components: Roon Core (the brains) and Roon Remote (the nerve endings). The Roon Core can reside on any device capable of running the Roon software (a Mac or Windows computer, or a NAS), or on a NAS that has been optimized for that purpose by Intel.
The Roon Remote app runs on any smartphone, tablet, PC, or Mac. For those who want to control music over their home’s existing audio system(s), Roon’s hardware partners offer one-box solutions that run the Core software internally and output audio via digital or analog connections to an amplifier.
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The best time to buy consumer electronics is usually when companies are just starting to sell their newest models. That’s because they often discount their previous-generation products to clear them out of inventory.
1. Geekplus Intel NUC Intel NUC 10 Mini PC
The interior of the NUC 10 is designed to facilitate easy upgrading. Pull two tabs, slide off the plate that covers the RAM and storage, and you can access them. The NUC 10 uses a G.Skill Ripjaws DDR4-2666 SO-DIMM module for our review system. It comes with one 8GB stick, but you can install two sticks for up to 32GB of RAM in total.
The SSD slot supports both M.2 SATA and M.2 PCIe drives; our review unit came with a Kingston A1000 480GB drive. That’s more than enough space for Windows 10 Home, which is pre-installed on the drive, along with a 30-day trial of Office 365 Personal (with fully working versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Publisher).
For those who need a little more oomph than integrated graphics provide, there’s room inside the NUC 10’s case to add a low-profile PCIe card with an HDMI 2.0 port. For my tests, I used an Asus GeForce GT 1030 graphics card.
2. Intel NUC 10 Performance Kit
The Intel NUC 10 Performance Kit – NUC10i3FNH1 is built with a quad-core 10th Generation Intel Core i3 processor. So you’ve got the performance to turn the Intel NUC into a powerhouse of productivity and play, streaming your favorite movies and music, or running analytics. With dual-array front microphones, you can take full advantage of Windows 10 and Cortana. Add a keyboard, mouse, and monitor for a fully functioning workstation!
Intel Iris Plus Graphics gives you immersive, amazing visuals. And when paired with the optional Intel Optane memory, you’ll get near SSD performance without sacrificing the storage of your traditional hard drive. The Intel NUC 10 Performance kit includes new features such as a VESA mount bracket and a replaceable lid, making it easy to customize your NUC with 3rd party lids.
The Intel NUC 10 Performance kit – NUC10i3FNH1 features an active fan for cooling and has room for up to 32 GB of DDR4 RAM as well as both an M. 2 SSD slot and 2.5-inch drive bay for additional storage (drive not included).
The Bluesound Node is a high-resolution multi-room wireless streamer designed to bring your digital music collection to life.
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Simple to set up and use, the Node can stream virtually any digital audio format available, including hi-res formats for audiophiles, as well as play music from streaming services including Tidal and Spotify. It also has support for Apple’s AirPlay 2 technology.
With a powerful 1.8GHz quad-core processor at its core, the Node can process even complex files with ease and without compromising sound quality. It features 32bit/384kHz DAC design, HDMI eARC input, and optical, coaxial, and USB outputs. Its MQA technology enables it to deliver studio master-quality audio in a file that’s small enough to stream or download.
The Node also comes with HDMI eARC input and output which lets users connect their TV’s soundbar directly to the streamer so you can enjoy your favorite shows like never before. You can also easily integrate the Node into your existing home audio system thanks to its support for optical, coaxial, and USB audio outputs.
Despite being a relatively new name in the audio business, Andover Audio has carved out a strong reputation for itself with products that offer a great combination of sound quality and value. The company’s latest product, the Songbird Hi-Res internet streamer, is no exception.
The Songbird looks like a compact music speaker, but it’s an internet streamer with built-in Wi-Fi and Ethernet networking capabilities. So, you can use it to stream music from your smartphone or computer over Wi-Fi or Ethernet connection. You can also play music directly from any USB drive.
The Songbird supports high-resolution audio, so you can enjoy 24-bit/192kHz FLAC and ALAC lossless music files as well as 24/96 DSD files. The streamer has a lot of connectivity options besides Wi-Fi and Ethernet — there are two USB ports (one of them for USB sticks), coaxial digital input, optical digital input, and analog stereo RCA inputs that you can use to connect to a CD player or turntable. And to top it all off, the Songbird also has Bluetooth with aptX support for streaming music wirelessly from any smartphone or tablet.
5. Beelink SEi8 Mini PC 8th Generation Intel i5-8279U Processor
Beelink SEi8 Mini PC 8th Generation Intel i5-8279U Processor is a high-performance mini PC that provides your visual home entertainment, streaming video, web browsing, and games with an exceptionally smooth experience. With a smart design and user-friendly interface, Beelink SEi8 can be used as a computer that supports multiple media and enables you to enjoy a sophisticated social life.
With the latest 8th generation Intel processor and Intel HD graphics, Beelink SEi8 will provide you with a perfect entertainment experience. The desktop computer can also be connected to HDMI to connect two displays at the same time so that you can watch one video while working on another simultaneously
and it is equipped with 802.11ax technology for its WiFi 5.0 standard for super-fast connectivity. With the fast 802.11ax technology, you will be able to surf the web or play video games without any delays, which will bring you an excellent experience.
The Mini Desktop Computer is pre-installed with Microsoft Windows 10 Pro & Windows 11 Pro OS and both systems are shipped randomly, if you receive Windows 10 Pro, you can contact us to upgrade to Windows 11 Pro, We also provide a lifetime technical support, 7 days / 24 hours service.
6. Intel NUC 9 Extreme Kit, NUC9i5QNX
This is the most powerful NUC we’ve seen to date. It features a quad-core 45-watt processor, an MXM expansion card slot, and room for two 2. 5″ drives. The system also comes with an external power supply that increases the total wattage of the system up to 275 watts.
The NUC9i5QNX is a high-performance small-form-factor PC (SFFPC) from Intel with a built-in 45-watt 8th generation quad-core chip and discrete graphics card slot. This is the only SFFPC we’ve tested that has such a powerful CPU and graphics card option.
The device has a ton of inputs and outputs, including four USB 3. 1 port (two Type C), two USB 2. 0 ports, HDMI 2. 0, DisplayPort 1. 4, an IR sensor, Ethernet port, audio jack with SPDIF optical out, Kensington lock slot and SDXC reader. On top of that, it supports dual M. 2 SSDs up to 80mm long each, one SATA III 6Gbps interface (limited to one drive), and a single SODIMM memory slot that supports up to 32GB of DDR4 2666MHz RAM.
The iFi Zen DAC is a compact USB DAC and Headphone Amplifier that takes your computer’s audio quality up to a new level. Equipped with a high-end ESS ES9038Q2M DAC chip and XMOS chip, the Zen DAC supports a wide variety of hi-res audio formats and input sources, including PC-USB, Optical, Coaxial, and Apple OS devices.
It offers a dedicated Burr-Brown True Native DSD/DXD DAC which allows the Zen DAC to process any hi-res audio format without additional conversion. Without any downsampling or conversions, you can listen to your music exactly as it was intended.
The compact design includes an OLED display that shows all kinds of information including volume levels, sample rate, bit depth, and filter modes. The display will also change colors when switching between the 3 different filter modes (Bit-Perfect Mode / Standard Filter / Minimum Phase Filter) while in the audio mode which is used for optimal playback. Each filter mode provides its sound signature to suit your listening needs.
It has more than just great sound. It’s equipped with 4 selectable gain settings so you can get the right amount of power for your headphones or IEMs (In-Ear Monitors).
8. Intel NUC 11 Canyon Performance Kit
This NUC 11 Performance Kit from Intel has a compact design, which makes it great for home use or use in a business environment.
This mini desktop features a quad-core i5 processor, 16GB of DDR4 RAM, and 512GB of SSD storage. With this setup, you should be able to run multiple programs as well as multiple browser tabs at the same time. The Intel Iris Xe graphics card will allow you to stream 4K content to an external display via the HDMI port.
Thanks to its USB Type-A and Thunderbolt 3 ports, this computer can connect to a variety of peripherals like printers, scanners, external storage devices, and more. It also supports Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity so you can connect to wireless peripherals as well.
Windows 10 Pro is installed on this NUC 11 Performance Kit, giving you access to the Cortana digital assistant and Microsoft Edge web browser. This version of Windows also comes with BitLocker encryption, Remote Desktop functionality, and Hyper-V virtualization technology.
The Intel NUC has been a popular and affordable mini PC, with an emphasis on portability and performance. Today’s review unit is the latest model, the NUC6i3SYH. This model features the latest 6th generation “Skylake” CPUs, which deliver significant performance improvements compared to previous models.
The Intel Core i3-6100U has four cores and four threads (four logical processors) running at 2.3GHz with a base clock speed of 2.7GHz. This CPU is a quad-core CPU which will not be suitable for some users who might want to run more demanding applications, such as video editing.
NUC6i3SYH comes with Windows 10 Home 64 bit preinstalled. Windows 10 is free and available in a wide range of languages, but it can only be upgraded to Windows 10 Pro if you have a paid subscription from Microsoft or if you purchase a license from an OEM (such as HP).
The Beelink SEi8 is a compact, powerful, and affordable mini-computer that includes a high-performance Intel i5 processor and 16GB of RAM. It’s small enough to fit in a backpack and has enough power to run multiple programs simultaneously without slowing down.
Since this is an Intel-based system, you can expect it to run Windows 10 or Windows 8.1 Pro seamlessly, but the included Windows 10 Pro operating system is recommended for optimal performance.
The SEi8 comes with a 500GB SSD drive pre-installed, which should be more than enough storage space for most people. If you need more storage space, there’s an easy upgrade to up to 2TB via the M.2 NVME slot. The RAM can also be upgraded from 16GB to 32GB by purchasing a compatible memory module separately.
The Beelink SEi8 includes four USB 3.0 ports (two on the front of the computer, two on the back), two USB 2.0 ports (one on the front of the computer, one on the back), HDMI output (support 4K HD video), Ethernet port, 802.11ac WiFi (5Ghz band) and Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity options.