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-   -   N100H to N10 upgrade thoughts (https://www.audioaficionado.org/showthread.php?t=40011)

Sea music 07-22-2017 02:50 PM

N100H to N10 upgrade thoughts
 
I have used the N100H for a little over a year now. I am very happy with
the conductor app and Aurender as equipment. My thoughts are to upgrade
to the N10. I do not need extra storage or MQA. The sole purpose would
be for sound quality. If anyone has experience comparing these or any of the
"100" series to an N10 I would appreciate any input. I am not unhappy with
the N100H in anyway just have a case of upgrade fever. Looking to go to the next level if there are benifits to be had.
Thanks

j3brow 07-22-2017 04:07 PM

N100H to N10 upgrade thoughts
 
I can't give you a definitive yes or no. I own both the N10 and X100. I would wager there is very little sonic differences. This is strictly on memory (shaky ground!) as my X100 is boxed up and in off site storage.

jdandy 07-22-2017 05:15 PM

Paul.......There is much more to the N10 than the storage difference. I like the separate linear power supplies for the digital and audio sections. I prefer the sophisticated proprietary SPDIF digital circuits that take advantage of Aurender's field programmable gate array phase locked loop system and ultra accurate OCXO oven controlled crystal oscillator clock with its incredible 0.02 ppm accuracy. The coaxial SPDIF output to my DAC is my preferred connection that incorporates the OCXO clock accuracy. Those features are not provided with the N100H. I like the 240GB SSD cache versus the 140GB SSD cache on the N100H. I prefer the 4TB of hard drive storage, with an upgrade available to 8TB. The main motherboard is different and provides features unavailable on the N100H. I also like the full sized case and twin AMOLED displays. The N10 delivers a superior performance that has been testified to by several N100H owners who have upgraded to the Aurender N10. The N10 is an all together different and improved music server when compared to the N100H. The good thing is the Aurender N100H sounds very good, uses the same excellent Aurender Conductor app including Tidal integration, provides NAS capability, and comes at a price point that makes it very attractive. The N100H output is USB 2.0 only for those interested in that type of DAC connection. Only you can make the decision about value versus price. I am comfortable with respect to the features and performance of the Aurender N10 being worth it.

imprezap2 07-22-2017 07:13 PM

The N10 is better player out of the box, but if you only stream over USB, the N100H + Uptone regen USB gives you the same SQ.

In my experience there is more performance to be gained in the DAC you connect to the streamer.

Cannot comment on the N10 over spdif.

jdandy 07-22-2017 07:44 PM

https://c1.staticflickr.com/6/5505/3...a94b7dc2_b.jpg



Paul.......Here are some quotes from other Aurender N10 owners.

Quote:

Originally Posted by medwardo (Post 840247)
Got an N10 about 6 weeks ago and I concur with Dan's and others' experience. Couldn't be happier after about 750 hours of play time.

In fact, I'm not getting enough sleep these days because I sit and listen to music far too late into the night. Not a bad problem to have as it's all about enjoying the music.

In my system, the coax spdif sounds best with the XLR being a very close second and the USB being a distant 3rd. YMMV.

Also, thanks to all of you who contributed to this thread...very educational. Your experiences were a significant factor in me choosing the N10 over other offerings.



Quote:

Originally Posted by RLF (Post 825528)
Dan,

I'm a bit late to party in finding your excellent and well written review of the N10. I've owned my N10 since February 2016 and upgrading from a MicMini with external USB hard drive was a sonic revelation to put it mildly.



Quote:

Originally Posted by docmd2010 (Post 825316)
So I just got a demo at home of the N100H and A/B it vs my laptop. Used the WW USB listed below.

The difference when the N100H was in the system was pretty huge vs usb out from my laptop. The difference was in the soundstage, as Dan pointed out. All musicians were correctly placed in not only the X and Y plane but also the Z plane.

Cymbals and piano were far more vivacious and bass was more commanding and staccato.

the 4Tb one is 3K retail for the N100H and that would be a no brainer for me, as the upgrade in quality was quite drastic.

My dealer was supposed to give me the N10 to demo as well but accidentally gave me the A10 instead. Would have loved to see the differences between these units.

Followed shortly with this additional post from docmd2010:

Quote:

Originally Posted by docmd2010 (Post 825436)
Ok. just listened to the N10. It was a huge upgrade to the N10, details were pouring out from my digital music collection like I've never heard before. The soundstage became even bigger. My 802D3's suddenly disappeared in thin air and a huge production stage just popped out. Quite sensational.

It only took me about 20 minutes after I listened to the N10 to place an order. Should get it next week!



Quote:

Originally Posted by j3brow (Post 820313)
I pulled the trigger today. Aurender N10 8TB, black, has been ordered!



Quote:

Originally Posted by rscotth (Post 819020)
Dan,

As you know the n100h only uses USB audio out. I, like you, prefer the clock inside the n10. The n10 is much more of an audiophile type component. Better air, detail and soundstage. Don't get me wrong, the n100h is a great unit, just not as refined as the n10. I like the flexibility of the n10. I'm using BNC out to my audio research dac9 and xlr aes to my oppo ha-1 headphone amp. I've completely bypassed the Esoteric dac. The dac9 is more liquid and smoother and "more analog"! I started with the n100h, to dip my toe in, and the limitation of only USB out was a bit of a negative for me. I use the n100h when we travel. We usually rent a house up north for a month or two, and it works great for that with a dac and hp amp. I've also used the n100h in my office system. It's interface with the conductor app, is identical with what you're used to. For a second system the n100h is a great way to go!


Sea music 07-22-2017 09:48 PM

Thank you all for the honest information. Every "upgrade " from preamp to cords has
brought me further enjoyment. A server in this price range is not easy to demo and
I appreciate your imputs. Now just have to decide silver or black.

Blueoak 07-22-2017 10:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jdandy (Post 857259)
Paul.......There is much more to the N10 than the storage difference. I like the separate linear power supplies for the digital and audio sections. I prefer the sophisticated proprietary SPDIF digital circuits that take advantage of Aurender's field programmable gate array phase locked loop system and ultra accurate OCXO oven controlled crystal oscillator clock with its incredible 0.02 ppm accuracy. The coaxial SPDIF output to my DAC is my preferred connection that incorporates the OCXO clock accuracy. Those features are not provided with the N100H. I like the 240GB SSD cache versus the 140GB SSD cache on the N100H. I prefer the 4TB of hard drive storage, with an upgrade available to 8TB. The main motherboard is different and provides features unavailable on the N100H. I also like the full sized case and twin AMOLED displays. The N10 delivers a superior performance that has been testified to by several N100H owners who have upgraded to the Aurender N10. The N10 is an all together different and improved music server when compared to the N100H. The good thing is the Aurender N100H sounds very good, uses the same excellent Aurender Conductor app including Tidal integration, provides NAS capability, and comes at a price point that makes it very attractive. The N100H output is USB 2.0 only for those interested in that type of DAC connection. Only you can make the decision about value versus price. I am comfortable with respect to the features and performance of the Aurender N10 being worth it.

Dan,

Does the N10 also use the OCXO when using the USB cable?

Thanks

jdandy 07-22-2017 11:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blueoak (Post 857317)
Dan,

Does the N10 also use the OCXO when using the USB cable?

Thanks

Doug.......No, the USB timing is controlled by the DAC. Only the SPDIF digital outputs on the N10 (coaxial, optical, AES/EBU) are controlled by the Aurender's OCXO clock.

Blueoak 07-23-2017 12:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jdandy (Post 857332)
Doug.......No, the USB timing is controlled by the DAC. Only the SPDIF digital outputs on the N10 (coaxial, optical, AES/EBU) are controlled by the Aurender's OCXO clock.

Using a OCXO for timing seems much more superior.

j3brow 07-23-2017 12:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sea music (Post 857308)
Thank you all for the honest information. Every "upgrade " from preamp to cords has
brought me further enjoyment. A server in this price range is not easy to demo and
I appreciate your imputs. Now just have to decide silver or black.



That's the EASY part! Looking at your avatar it's gotta be BLACK. My black N10 looks great in my rack of McIntosh. Personally, I couldn't stand having my silver X100 and silver Esoteric K01X mixed in with my McIntosh gear so I went to great lengths (7 meter interconnect and relocated dedicated 20 amp line) to get them separated from my McGear.


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