# Roon or Audirvana and why **URL:** \ **Category:** Software\ **Created:** [December 29, 2019, 8:16am UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628 "2019-12-29T08:16:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Polygonhell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/977dab/32.png) [@Polygonhell](https://forum.headphones.com/u/Polygonhell)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 3:07pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/123 "2021-03-10T15:07:55Z")
What the Amazon Music application does is set exclusive mode but not set the sample bit depth/sample rate on a per track basis, what that does it force windows to resample the audio to the rate in the windows settings and send that to the DAC, hence the DAC does not change the displayed sample rates. All exclusive mode does on it’s own is give the application exclusive access to the device and bypass the windows mixer. Windows will still resample for the device if the bit rate is not set by the application. The Qobuz windows app used to have a bug in it, where it would set the wrong sample rate for the track, choosing the upcoming tracks sampling rate instead of the one that was currently playing. Again that causes windows to resample IF the two are different. I haven’t checked recently if they fixed it. ---
**Author:** ![cpp](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/cpp/32/14979_2.png) [@cpp](https://forum.headphones.com/u/cpp)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 3:56pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/124 "2021-03-10T15:56:46Z")
OH thank you for the info it sure makes it a lot clearer . Well I don’t use any windows or OS when I stream just the Lumin connected right to the router and the Lumin app, and also I don’t use Amazon just Qobuz and Tidal. Not even sure the Lumin app is working with Amazon HD as of yet. From what I read over on Audiophile Style the Bluesound 2i streamer per this test " The bottom line is twofold. First, it’s great that Amazon Music HD can be streamed to a HiFi system losslessly in high resolution. Amazon’s own applications are incapable of this, but fortunately the indispensable Bluesound Node 2i handles it with ease. “” and he list examples in his test. ---
**Author:** ![antdroid](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/antdroid/32/8600_2.png) [@antdroid](https://forum.headphones.com/u/antdroid)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 4:46pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/125 "2021-03-10T16:46:06Z")
Seems to me that the issue isnt that Amazon HD is lossy or it is not. It’s that their app doesn’t set the Windows Mixer with the correct sampling rate even though it takes Exclusive Mode. It can still be “lossless” but re-samples based on what Windows sound settings are set to (user-defined or not). @Polygonhell seems to nail it, at least how I interpret the article linked above. The article’s title seems misleading… I can’t comment too much on Amazon HD’s service as I don’t use it. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Earmuffs](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/earmuffs/32/43974_2.png) [@Earmuffs](https://forum.headphones.com/u/Earmuffs)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 8:39pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/127 "2021-03-10T20:39:23Z")
My yearly Roon expired so I switched to Audirvana but then realized it doesn’t connect as easily to my streamers(bluesound node 2 & bryston bdp2) how would I go about that? I want to connect wirelessly as long as it doesn’t effect sound quality. ---
**Author:** ![Torq](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/torq/32/16384_2.png) [@Torq](https://forum.headphones.com/u/Torq)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 8:51pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/128 "2021-03-10T20:51:31Z")
Neither the BlueSound Node nor Bryston BDP-2 support UPnP/DLNA (which is how Audirvana talks to network devices), so it’s either connect them **directly** to the machine running Audirvana, use AirPlay or Bluetooth or find a UPnP/DLNA-to-S/PDIF bridge (I don’t know of any). ---
**Author:** ![Earmuffs](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/earmuffs/32/43974_2.png) [@Earmuffs](https://forum.headphones.com/u/Earmuffs)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 9:59pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/129 "2021-03-10T21:59:01Z")
Now I understand why Roon is so popular and Audirvana is super cheap. That’s a big one for me. You get what you pay for I guess. Rings true with this purchase for me. I just hate copping it for $699! I’ll regret it too if I keep doing a yearly subscription. I’ve already spent $400 in the last 4 years on Roon. ---
**Author:** ![Earmuffs](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/earmuffs/32/43974_2.png) [@Earmuffs](https://forum.headphones.com/u/Earmuffs)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 10:21pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/130 "2021-03-10T22:21:34Z")
Oh Nice!! I read around and found out I can use Audirvana wirelessly with the Boston by turning on in the settings DLNA Renderer and in Audirvana the Bryston pops up as a dac!! Hopefully it sound great!! ---
**Author:** ![Torq](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/torq/32/16384_2.png) [@Torq](https://forum.headphones.com/u/Torq)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 10:31pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/131 "2021-03-10T22:31:30Z")
Ah, cool! I didn’t think the Bryston supported UPnP/DLNA at all. The UPnP/DLNA protocol should have no effect on sound quality. It is a simple, if limited, protocol. When it comes to playing a file, the **renderer** (your BDP-2) simply requests the file from the server as directed by the **controller**. The data transfer is more like FTP than anything else. As long as Audirvana (which is acting as UPnP/DLNA **controller** and **server** in this case) sends bit-perfect data (it does/will, unless you have resampling, plug-ins, or other features enabled), it is uninvolved in any “quality” aspect of things. Depending on what version of the UPnP/DLNA protocol is supported, you may, or may not, get gapless playback. I think this was first made available with Linn’s “OpenHome” extensions to the protocol, but it’s hard to keep track of who has implemented what version of. ---
**Author:** ![Earmuffs](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/earmuffs/32/43974_2.png) [@Earmuffs](https://forum.headphones.com/u/Earmuffs)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2021, 11:25pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/132 "2021-03-10T23:25:27Z")
So basically the same quality as Roon? nice! I will check tonight as most music doesn’t sound tip top to me in my 2 ch. system during the day. I don’t know why but it does. Once the sun goes down and its dark my system comes to life ---
**Author:** ![rrwwss52](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/rrwwss52/32/945_2.png) [@rrwwss52](https://forum.headphones.com/u/rrwwss52)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2021, 12:32am UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/133 "2021-03-11T00:32:30Z")
![Screen Shot 2021-03-10 at 4.28.04 PM](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/headphones/original/3X/2/a/2aefbfe2d6a4efe95f61120fc5cec5be6634a0ea.jpeg) ![Screen Shot 2021-03-10 at 4.31.45 PM](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/headphones/original/3X/e/9/e93ca24a97a7f41ebdae563a3f63fc3566f7e938.jpeg) I don’t normally use the BDP-2 in this arrangement, but it works. Mostly use it via MPD direct or Roon RAAT. ---
**Author:** ![J\_M](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/j_m/32/23849_2.png) [@J\_M](https://forum.headphones.com/u/J_M)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2021, 1:32am UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/134 "2021-03-11T01:32:16Z")
MARCELLO! Hey it’s me the guy with the "h” between the “c” and “e”. You remember. From YouTube. March\_hi ---
**Author:** ![Earmuffs](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/earmuffs/32/43974_2.png) [@Earmuffs](https://forum.headphones.com/u/Earmuffs)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2021, 11:57pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/135 "2021-03-13T23:57:42Z")
Yep, that’s what I figured out and am happy. It saved me a big chunk of change not buying the lifetime Roon software. However there are a few setbacks using tidal via Audirvana. Roon has the smoothest software that’s organized in an easy way that lacks a little on Audirvana but still worth it because of how cheap it is. I wish it had mixed Qobuz, tidal and local library as well as when I back out of a discography it brings me back to the top making me have to scroll through the discog again to find my last place. It’s a bummer when going through a big discog like John Coltrane which has tons of albums. Also Audirvana mixes a band’s regular albums with even other peoples albums(ex. Tribute album, playing the bands songs, etc.) in a persons discography making it a bit chaotic. ---
**Author:** ![wgarbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/87869e/32.png) [@wgarbo](https://forum.headphones.com/u/wgarbo)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2021, 12:36am UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/136 "2021-03-14T00:36:21Z")
I’ve had huge issues getting A+ to download/get to the UI. Else, anyone? Yes, I’ve been in contact numerous times with Audirvana. Sadly, they work in their own timezone. Hence, contact is limited. Side note: I’ve gotten up early and stayed up late to accommodate customers. Just saying ---
**Author:** ![MrCasp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e56c9b/32.png) [@MrCasp](https://forum.headphones.com/u/MrCasp)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2021, 3:47pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/137 "2021-03-20T15:47:23Z")
This is a summary of my personal experience with Tidal native app, Roon and Audirvana. **Context:** I use Tidal since late year, and wanted to check the best software option to use the service - spent the last three months doing that. **Setup:** My source was always a Microsoft Surface Pro 7 (running solely Tidal, Roon or Audirvana) → iFi NEO iDSD → Sennheiser HD 650 For user interface, I believe it is also relevant to mention that I used the Surface on portrait, and using it only via touchscreen. **Use:** I listen to full albums. I do not use playlists. I explore new music by browsing and reading about music (thus, I do not value radio features and the like). I have a local library - small, not well organized and to which I seldom listen (prefer to listen from the CDs directly. The library is in wav. I also have some low quality mp3. **Music:** I listen to different genres, mainly alternative rock, singer songwriters, jazz. During this period, the albums I listened the most were _Welcome to the Hills_ (Yussef Dayes Trio), _For the first time_ (Black Country, New Road), _Romantic Works_ (Keaton Henson), _Thanks for the dance_ (Leonard Cohen), _What Kind of Music_ (Tom Misch, Yussef Dayes), _Distractions_ (Tindersticks) and _The Koln Concert_ (Keith Jarrett). **1) Tidal native app:** Having used the Spotify app for years, I enjoyed the first impact with the Tidal app. More info, namely with credits and info per album. For Spotify it loses in sound quality and lack of podcasts. I read lots of negative feedback to the software, but I assume it refers to previous versions, as I find it to be suitable to my needs. it is not great for touch-screen. For me, the **major flaw** is the recent played that simply is not accurate. For my use, the **missing feature** is lacking a way of organizing our music (with folders or tags). **2) Roon:** After using the Tidal native app for a couple of months, I moved to Roon. Simply put it is a **great piece of software**. Although most negative feedback relates to pricing, I do not agree with this. If you approach it as a service, I believe it delivers and its **price is justified**. However, I believe **Roon is not for everyone**. I had the 15-days trial (version 1.7) and paid the subscription for one month (version 1.8). It is a **great experience**. Best interface - including though touch screen. **Tags** for organizing music are great - intuitive and effective. Having all the **meta** and the **lyrics** is nice as well. It is great to have your **own library integrated** with your music from Tidal. I loved the stats that version 1.8 brought as well. I find the **Roon Radio** to be **overrated**. I find a shame that the **Focus** feature does not work generally but only with your own music (local library and Tidal). Finally, I found a **pity** that although you can find a way of using Roon in **multiple cores** (i.e work-home, although not at the same time), for me is unjustifiable that you cannot have them in sync (at least, easily). For me, this was the feature that made me go back to the Tidal app. **In sum** , it is a great piece of software and worth every penny, if you use it extensively. I concluded, I did not. **3) Audirvana:** After the Roon trial, I wanted to try Audirvana. However, I could not. I started using Audirvana but managed to do it for less than a week. **Interface** -wise it is not comparable - and unfit for my use (mentioned above). If I could go back in time, I would have started by trialling Audirvana. Few notes: using Tidal, I did not find a **sound quality** increase with Audirvana. On the other hand, Audirvana made a **better job** than Roon **importing my local library** (as it is in wav, Roon did not recognize the albums, and Audirvana did most of them). **Final notes:** I am **back to Tidal native app** and I am happy with it. For its missing feature (mentioned above), I found an alternative - not great, but working. I **may go back to Roon** sometime: probably **only when and if** I come to have **multiple endpoints** throughout the house and/or I develop, curate and start using my **local library**. Sorry for the very long post, I hope it is useful! ---
**Author:** ![hifiDJ](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/hifidj/32/53299_2.png) [@hifiDJ](https://forum.headphones.com/u/hifiDJ)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2021, 9:16pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/138 "2021-04-30T21:16:17Z")
![Screen Shot 2021-04-30 at 14.11.26](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/headphones/original/3X/b/f/bfb40dc4af49628bd00ddf29902f0229eb64ae2f.jpeg) 🤔 Hmmm…well this looks interesting! Too bad I don’t have Facebook. lol ---
**Author:** ![rrwwss52](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/rrwwss52/32/945_2.png) [@rrwwss52](https://forum.headphones.com/u/rrwwss52)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2021, 11:34pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/139 "2021-04-30T23:34:40Z")
Me neither, but I could use the wife’s account. I’m not a F-book fan. ---
**Author:** ![QuasiSpecies](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/quasispecies/32/17044_2.png) [@QuasiSpecies](https://forum.headphones.com/u/QuasiSpecies)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2021, 4:51pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/140 "2021-05-01T16:51:34Z")
I haven’t used Roon, but I just paid for Audirvana because it fits my needs very well. I have a headless Mac mini (no monitor) that I use it as a media library and player. I use it for my digital library of flac files exclusively (so far). It is connected directly to a topping D70. My wife and I use our phones as remotes using the Audirvana app. For this type of use case Audirvana worked better than any other solution I tried out. The next closest was Plex, which has some great features. In fact, from a feature perspective, Plex is a better product. However, there was a definitive difference in sound quality that favored Audirvana. It’s not night-and-day, but since it was clear enough for me to hear when I was somewhat biased towards wanting Plex to be better (due to cheaper price and better features), it was a no-brainer for me to go with Audirvana. I also do prefer the audio-centric interface of Audirvana, but that is obviously use case specific. I didn’t try roon out because I know that I’m too cheap to pay for it 😂 ---
**Author:** ![pyrexia](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/pyrexia/32/26896_2.png) [@pyrexia](https://forum.headphones.com/u/pyrexia)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2021, 6:48pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/141 "2021-05-01T18:48:07Z")
I’m a complete fan of Audirvana and Plex. I tried Roon, and, while the features are great and the UI is nice, I couldn’t justify the price. I get the recommendation engine is a great feature, as is the organization of Qobuz and Tidal. It just wasn’t for me. And, maybe this sounds snobbish, but I was hoping for more obscure or surprising items. I realize it is often based on learning and frequency of use. I just find places like Bandcamp, friends, or message boards to be of greater value. I also understand my music preferences are a little more niche. The sound was great, but the added features didn’t sell it for me. That being said, I have a similar set up. My 2 channel system features a headless Mac Mini that runs into my Brooklyn DAC+ to my amp. I run Audirvana on this and the music library is fed over wifi from my NAS. I also use the app/controller. No complaints and it sounds great! My desktop systems uses a Mac Mini running Audirvana, but the source is a local hard drive. Fantastic sound! The local library is backed up to the NAS that feeds the other system. Both desktop and 2 channel integrate Tidal and Qobuz with Audirvana. Re: Plex - the lifetime is totally worth it. I run Plex off of the NAS for video and audio. I only really use the audio when away and on my iPhone. The sound is not as good as the Audirvana set ups, but it greatly is more about hearing and convenience over listening critically. ---
**Author:** ![SnowRang3r](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/snowrang3r/32/24588_2.png) [@SnowRang3r](https://forum.headphones.com/u/SnowRang3r)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2021, 10:46pm UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/142 "2021-05-01T22:46:22Z")
Edit: oops someone already posted about the Audirvana event. Still will be interesting to see what features they add. ---
**Author:** ![perogie](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.headphones.com/perogie/32/13801_2.png) [@perogie](https://forum.headphones.com/u/perogie)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2021, 1:27am UTC](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628/143 "2021-05-02T01:27:20Z")
Is this a new version or something entirely different? The email wasnt clear to me on that point. Calling it studio suggest maybe more advanced features like EQ or something? [Previous page](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628.md?page=6) [Next page](https://forum.headphones.com/t/roon-or-audirvana-and-why/4628.md?page=8)