Aurender N10 - Stereophile 2017 Recommended Components A+
 

Pleased to see Stereophile Magazine rate the Aurender N10 as A+ in their October 2017 issue's Recommended Components.

Congratulation to Aurender's great team for bringing to market what I consider one of the best caching network music servers and apps available today.

Way to go Aurender.


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Having just connected mine, I can understand why. Very impressive piece of equipment!

Greg.......The more you listen to your Aurender N10 the more you will appreciate what a phenomenal music server it is. I hope you are taking advantage of the SPDIF coaxial output supported by the N10's ultra accurate oven controlled crystal oscillator clock. The clarity, detail, and texture of the music is astonishing.

I have owned my Aurender N10 just over 10 months now. I am still completely thrilled every time the music begins to play. Each time is like the first time. Truly remarkable performance from a state of the art caching music server.

It is a good looker, too.


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This is a piece of gear I am seriously considering when the dust settles with the current upgrades because of Dan’s lead discussion on this, I made it a point to visit Aurender at RMAF.

No doubt on build quality and sound. Support seems to be there too, which is a big one for me, it’s important that the company will be there tomorrow.

It’s not a low cost option, like a Mac Mini, which works, however, the Aurender possesses internal fixings, build quality and its application makes this a different unit all together, a true component.

I also learned Au = Audio and Render is just that to make the name Aurender.

Ed.......Thanks for that tidbit of Aurender trivia. Fun to know.

As for installing an Aurender N10 in your sound system, trust me when I say it will become your go-to source component immediately. It is that good. Not to mention how rich and intuitive the Conductor App is to use. It is slick as wet ice and will quickly turn you into a couch potato as you navigate and enjoy your entire music collection. Tidal integration is seamless, too, as is Internet radio.


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Dan, I’m sure you’ve mentioned before, but what DAC are you using?

Also, as near as I can determine, the N10 vs A10 difference is the larger HDD/SSD option in the N10, and the DAC in the A10. Am I missing something? I’m interested in the A10 if I don’t elect a Mark Levinson 519.

Mike.......I use the Esoteric K-01X DAC, specifically the SPDIF coaxial input to the DAC.

The Aurender N10 and the A10 are different components. It is much more than a larger hard drive option for the N10 or the DAC in the A10. Both have support for Tidal and both are excellent music servers but fill different capacities.

The A10, with its internal AK4490(AKM) dual DACs, is a complete stand alone music server package. In addition, the A10 is certified to deliver full MQA decoding. A few differences the N10 has are a larger 240GB solid state hard drive for caching playback, the option to install 8TB of hard drive, a fully shielded proprietary SPDIF digital output section that is supported by Aurender's oven controlled crystal oscillator clock with an accuracy of 0.02 ppm. To get that level of timing accuracy one usually must add an external clock. The A10 does not include the OXCO clock, although I am positive the clock used with their Field-Programmable Gate Arrays based precision clock is up to the task of keeping jitter very low. The N10 supports on-the-fly precision DSD to PCM conversion, the A10 does not. The N10 uses two AMOLED displays, the A10 uses one. The A10 has a single Toslink digital input to the DAC which allows an external digital component to use the A10's internal DAC. The N10, of course, has no DAC. Both music servers support network attached storage playback. Both the A10 and the N10 make full use of separate dedicated and isolated internal linear power supplies for digital circuits, and in the case of the A10 for the analog audio output circuits. There may be more engineering differences and/or user features I have not touch on but this should help you understand that the N10 and the A10 are not as similar as you might have thought. The Aurender A10 is an attractive music server/DAC and preamp if used in that manner. The N10 is a no-holds barred music server with state of the art playback through one's own DAC. I don't think anyone can go wrong with either music server. The A10 represents a great value considering its features, MQA decoding, and flawless design and assembly. Aurender's components are top notch in my book.

That is a very gracious explanation Dan. I thank you with sincere gratitude. I’ll be auditioning MQA next week when traveling to a city with a dealer who can accommodate me. It’s the next technology I have enough interest in to spend money on. Thus, my Aurender inquiry. The OXCO clock (or an alternative) is something I need to study more.

I realize not many Mcintosh or Sonus Faber in Stereophile recommended list... somebody explains this! :(

Hey Dan, I am going towards the direction of the N10 since Marc got a new clock, but I did not realize until now MQA is not on the N10, not a deal breaker but it would be nice. Do you know if the N10 can be updated through firmware as progress moves forward? Two questions not thought of while at RMAF.