Aurender A10 music server has internal MQA DAC

[JMD]

Far superior piece of equipment in design and execution all around. Another option would be the Lumin A1 or S1.

[jdandy]

Mouse.......The Aurender A10 can be used strictly as a source component if you wish. In the Conductor App settings you can set the analog output volume to a specific level or two predetermined levels that the A10 will automatically set itself to when powered on. In this way you use the A10 without using the A10 volume control. Connecting the analog output of the A10 to your MX122 XLR balanced inputs or to one of the sets of single-ended inputs will allow you to listen to the A10 when you select that source on the MX122.

[smatsui324]

Stereophile just reviewed the A10 in the latest issue. I was considering a purchase of the A10 until I read the review. Not exactly a rave review. If it was just a subjective opinion for less than stellar performance that's one thing. JA found issues where the MQA filter was being used for non MQA files which degrades the SQ. The subjective listening review by Jason S. was not favorable as well. I'm not saying this is a bad product since I haven't listened to it. Just giving a heads up for potential buyers to be aware of issues found in the review.

[Mouse]

Originally Posted by smatsui324

Stereophile just reviewed the A10 in the latest issue. I was considering a purchase of the A10 until I read the review. Not exactly a rave review. If it was just a subjective opinion for less than stellar performance that's one thing. JA found issues where the MQA filter was being used for non MQA files which degrades the SQ. The subjective listening review by Jason S. was not favorable as well. I'm not saying this is a bad product since I haven't listened to it. Just giving a heads up for potential buyers to be aware of issues found in the review.

Thanks for the advice. I just read the article. Not too promising
Yet it's probably still better than the MB100.

[Mouse]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Mouse.......The Aurender A10 can be used strictly as a source component if you wish. In the Conductor App settings you can set the analog output volume to a specific level or two predetermined levels that the A10 will automatically set itself to when powered on. In this way you use the A10 without using the A10 volume control. Connecting the analog output of the A10 to your MX122 XLR balanced inputs or to one of the sets of single-ended inputs will allow you to listen to the A10 when you select that source on the MX122.

Dan, Do you think the A10 is the best choice for my system in the Aurender lineup? Or will I benefit from getting the N10 and using the MX122 DAC?

I'll eventually need to discover how to get better sound, upgrade the to a MX160 or get a 2 channel theater bypass. Meanwhile I don't really know how to judge a DAC from a picture on the internet. The only way I got my Mc dealer to even try to get me a loaner is when he found I started buying from his competitors that will do a demo. It's still hard to get one though.

[jdandy]

Mouse.......I believe the Aurender N10's performance level exceeds the MX122's ability to take full advantage of what you ae paying for when you buy an N10. If I were looking for superior two channel performance, the N10 and a super clean two channel preamplifier with Passthru capability would be a much better choice, perhaps a C2600 with it's DAC optimized for two channel playback.

The Aurender A10, despite the MQA filter issue detailed by John Atkinson, which will certainly be corrected by Aurender software engineers in firmware updates, would be a good option for you. I still believe your best choice would be either the Aurender N10, or even the N100H, plus a two channel preamplifier. That is where your best two channel performance will be discovered.

[Mouse]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Mouse.......I believe the Aurender N10's performance level exceeds the MX122's ability to take full advantage of what you ae paying for when you buy an N10. If I were looking for superior two channel performance, the N10 and a super clean two channel preamplifier with Passthru capability would be a much better choice, perhaps a C2600 with it's DAC optimized for two channel playback.

The Aurender A10, despite the MQA filter issue detailed by John Atkinson, which will certainly be corrected by Aurender software engineers in firmware updates, would be a good option for you. I still believe your best choice would be either the Aurender N10, or even the N100H, plus a two channel preamplifier. That is where your best two channel performance will be discovered.

Dan, so that kind of rules out the A10 for me. No use in using Aurender's analog out only for my MX122 to butcher it by A>D>A conversions. If MX122 digitizes all incoming analog I might as well feed it digital right? That way it's optimized for the MX122, and also perfect for a C2600 or MC non-tube equivalent.

It's a shame the MX122 has all these analog inputs and converts it to digital anyway.

I'd like to add a record player eventually, looks like a fun toy and some of the artists I like don't do HD tracks, but they do offer vinyl. That means I need 3 preamps!!! MX122, C2600, and a phono preamp?

Thanks for all the advice too.

[soastrup]

Originally Posted by smatsui324

Stereophile just reviewed the A10 in the latest issue. I was considering a purchase of the A10 until I read the review. Not exactly a rave review. If it was just a subjective opinion for less than stellar performance that's one thing. JA found issues where the MQA filter was being used for non MQA files which degrades the SQ. The subjective listening review by Jason S. was not favorable as well. I'm not saying this is a bad product since I haven't listened to it. Just giving a heads up for potential buyers to be aware of issues found in the review.

As a very satisfied owner of an A10 I was surprised by the Stereophile review. I have not experienced any technical issues whatsoever and find the SQ very good. I mainly use high-res downloads and CD rips to good effect. Jason S implies that the A10 is only for easy listening which I find borderline ridiculous and it is not supported by other reviews either. If you are in the market for media player I suggest you audition and make up Your own mind.

[smatsui324]

Originally Posted by soastrup

As a very satisfied owner of an A10 I was surprised by the Stereophile review. I have not experienced any technical issues whatsoever and find the SQ very good. I mainly use high-res downloads and CD rips to good effect. Jason S implies that the A10 is only for easy listening which I find borderline ridiculous and it is not supported by other reviews either. If you are in the market for media player I suggest you audition and make up Your own mind.

Last week my friend lent me his N100H while he is vacationing for 2 weeks. I liked it so much that I ordered one last Friday. I also ordered a Bryston BDA-3DAC to pair with it. I should have both products in a couple of weeks. I decided to go the separates route instead of the all in one A10 to give me greater flexibility and to make it easier to upgrade in the future. The A10 only has 1 digital optical input. The BDA-3 provides 10 digital inputs including 4 HDMI inputs for connecting to an Oppo or Sony Blu-ray player to provide high quality SACD playback.

I'm glad you're enjoying the A10 and I'm sure the Aurender engineers will work out the issues with the MQA filters with a firmware update just as Dan mentioned. I really like Aurender's conductor app and I'm looking forward to getting my N100H in a couple of weeks.

[jdandy]

Originally Posted by soastrup

As a very satisfied owner of an A10 I was surprised by the Stereophile review. I have not experienced any technical issues whatsoever and find the SQ very good. I mainly use high-res downloads and CD rips to good effect. Jason S implies that the A10 is only for easy listening which I find borderline ridiculous and it is not supported by other reviews either. If you are in the market for media player I suggest you audition and make up Your own mind.

soastrup.......I agree with your view of the Aurender A10 review in Stereophile by Jason Serinus. First, I don't particularly care for his writing style or his selection of music for this review. Right from the beginning of the A10 review he made disparaging comments that seemed to belittle the A10 streamer/DAC in a back handed manner, making fun of Aurender's claim the A10 is a high-performance component. He continued by stating the 4TB hard drive was limited storage. A 4TB hard drive stores an enormous number of FLAC encoded music files. He makes the statement that during the time the hard drive is caching files to the solid state drive for playback ultimate sound quality is sacrificed. He must have bat ears because that has not been my experience at all with either my Aurender N10 or N100H music servers, and I highly doubt it is with the A10. Jason spoke less than flatteringly about the sound of the A10's DAC. Again, I suspect he might have wanted the A10 to sound like the dCS Scarlatti he kept mentioning, a DAC system that comes in at five times the price of the Aurender A10. The A10's AKM 4490 DACs are not slouches. In addition, Jason wasn't sharp enough not to place the A10 directly on the dCS components which negatively impacted the sound of the A10 until he wised up and relocated the A10 to it's own shelf. At the same time he admitted to breaking in new cables. Hmm! More with the negative tone, he referred to the Aurender A10 online manual as far too slim. I don't know about other Aurender owners, but I have had no issues finding operating and technical information for my Aurender components and the Conductor App online, not to mention nearly immediate email response from Aurender Tech support when needed. He goes on to complain that when he selects a title of music to play, then taps Play Now in the Conductor App the music starts immediately. What the heck does he think "Play Now" means. None of this strikes me as someone who was committed in a positive way to the A10 review.

Despite the MQA filter issue discovered by John Atkinson while bench testing the A10, which if not already resolved will certainly be so in short order, Jason Victor Serinus as he seems to like to be addressed, seems to take himself more seriously than he takes his job as a reviewer in my opinion. His effort at reviewing the Aurender A10 was a lackluster, uninspired read. Jason kept referring to the A10's apparent lack of color saturation. What the heck is that supposed to mean? Perhaps chartreuse was overshadowing magenta, while a light mauve seemed pale compared to the hot pink.

Jason just couldn't resist himself. His uninspired Aurender A10 review was wrapped up with a final dig, "Those who tend to listen to music while multitasking (read: not paying attention to the music) or who don't spend hours on end sitting undisturbed in the sweet spot (read: not interested in fully enjoying music) need not hesitate."

Note: The comments in parentheses are mine.