Roon has a following for a reason. You might just have a better experience with a third party app and use the Lumin as a bridge.
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Nah, you just want a kickback from that free trial link.
I also havent dove into looking at the roon setup or any streaming services that pair with it. I am pretty sure I would need to get something to act as the core and find the best way to get my local library network attached.
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The Lumin could/would act as your server with a USB drive attached to it with the music files. But yeah, youād need a PC running as a core to keep the database. The other thing you can do is stop being so ducking OCD about it and live with the old album cover. But we knowā¦ the struggle is real.
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Plus I hope maybe this helps others who may run into these type situations.
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@dB_Cooper whatās your impressions of your Lumin U2 so far?
Better digital source than the Sonore opticalRendu just as detailed but more musical (I hate using that word) itās just not a technical technical first presentation which is what the Sonore did and the opticalRendu V2 improved on with a bit of more meat than the V1.
The U2 is more organic more muscled presentation, the USB out is at least as good as the new OR V2 but I didnāt get an opportunity to try that much because of all of my issues getting precious metal USB cables to work on the Sonore OR2. The ability to have a full range of digital outputs is very convenient and for a good bit of time I just went AES out from the U2 into the Mojo EVO Pro.
In the end it couldnāt compete with the technicalities of an OR V2 feeding the Berkeley Alpha DDC. Going AES out into my Mojo EVO Pro was very good but I felt it was leaving just a little too much on the table. It was enjoyable and had enough technicalities as is, but you know you canāt unhear things and I was looking for a solution that I wouldnāt feel I was compromising on anything as part of the upgrade. So in the end, I brought the Alpha DDC back into the fold.
Without It was less technical but more involving easier to just get into the music than the OR/Alpha DDC, a very enjoyable presentation none the less which is why I used the musical descriptor before. But putting the DDC back inline; USB out of the U2, into the Alpha DDC and then AES out into the DAC it was finally the right combination of everything.
I think with the U2, Lumin is making the most of their next gen chip technology coupled with their entirely new optimized software to run that hardware, the expanded digital outputs the SFP input and as such has taken a clear step forward with it as a solution. That said I feel that this isnāt Luminās āflagshipā level Network Transport device effort as they can certainly improve the clocking, chassis and power and take yet another step up. This is certainly good enough and a better solution than the Sonore OR and Berkeley DDC for all the reason Iāve stated. I wouldnāt be surprised and even welcome an X1 level Lumin network transfer offering.
Iām nitpicking a lot as I am demanding a lot. This is or at least was to be my endgame as Iād like to get off the upgrade escalator and for that itās more than good enough especially knowing that it was a clear step up from where I was before. I just know thereās improvement being left on the table but Iām sure at that point weād be looking at a $10K plus level piece of hardware with a Taiko or PinkFaun or Antipodes Oladra level digital output but without their server functionality. This probably isnāt at that level, certainly not at this price point.
There is an tweaking option here of changing the internal power supply but itās already got a more than decent LPS solution and I didnāt want to go down the warranty voidance route as I bought it new (open box dealer pricing)
That said the Lumin software sucks balls so you need to factor in Roon or some other type of control front end. It has the look, the feel and the functionality of a 1997 piece of software. lol
Iām very happy with it overall as this tick all of the boxes I was looking to tick.
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I prefer my early 2000s Cowon D2, which is saying sonething.
Thanks @dB_Cooper thatās a nice writeup, do you know what isolation method does Lumin use for that dedicated USB output?
They say itās a ādirect coupledā low noise USB which is unique in the Lumin product line something that their X1 doesnāt have so I suspect that tech to trickle up eventually. Lumin has stated in their tours of the introduction of the U2 that they had to completely rewrite their OS to support the new higher efficiency low power consumption processor.
Basically a direct to DAC USB output, Iām sure no different in philosophy to the various other low noise USB only solutions out there. The one side by side comparison I did of USB out into the DAC it was considerably better than the OR V2 but given the fact that the EVO Pro does not shine with USB input I didnāt put too much stake in that comparison.
Like I said, using it int the way I am, which is USB out into the Berkeley Alpha USB and then AES from there, it is a clearly superior solution in the engagement front and at least equal to where I was previously in technicality.
The interesting thing is that the USB cable (Iām using a frontRow) considerably less sonic impact than it did going from the OR to the Alpha DDC.
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Thanks for clarifying. I usually use USB from my source into the DAC (currently with a FTA Sinope cable) so these things matter more than most other factors in choosing my next source.
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Get the USB-X4 and use PLINK with the playback from the streamer. Hear itās a solid improvement. Just a thought.
Thatās my plan. Just trying to decide between streamer. Maybe innuos pulsar or k22.
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Both innous and antipodes are great options. I really like my K50 and the antipodes skinned version of LMS does not leave me wanting, but i am also on top of ally metadata and artwork.
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Ok nice, is the antipodes software similar to innuos? I donāt mind the sense app. Thought it was solid and sounded good.
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I never used innous but i know if Nick likes it then it is probably good and simple. It seems they may have a good multiroom setup going too. All pics of the sense app ui look sleeeeeeek to boot.
The antipodes LMS is a bit more rudimentary but there are tons of plugins that enhance it. I keep it simple and browse my music in folder view and make playlists on the fly. Sometimes i use the random mix or internet radio channels or podcasts or chromecast etc.
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I liked the sense app and felt the zenith mk3 was a solid value. Just wasnāt sure how the antipodes app compared. The think both use Logitech, at least thatās what Iāve heard.
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It looks like you are correct unless something changed in the past 3 years.
It is a very sleek looking iteration.
Antipodes is no slouch and it would have way more useful ui per screen if i used it horizontal or on a tablet or pc, but this is how i have mine. There are also buttons for artist/album/song internet lyrics and info.
And i believe both can do roon and at least the antipodes supports other players too. But i would recommend sticking to LMS.
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