$1295 Aurender FLOW - portable DAC/amp with mSATA slot for up to 1TB SSD

[1adam12]

  Is the aurender flow just like hugo? meaning it does not have capability of playing like the Astell?

 
This is true.
 
 

  If it needs a player then does he iPhone suffice?

 
I believe it can play from an iDevice.

 

[sonickarma]

  Is the aurender flow just like hugo? meaning it does not have capability of playing like the Astell? If it needs a player then does he iPhone suffice?

iOS (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IOS) is supported so should work - but I haven't tested as have no iOS devices
 
http://www.aurender.com/page/manual-flow#index_5_4
 
iOS devices needs USB Camera Kit to connect to the FLOW.
Please use the third party App to play Hi-Res(24bit, 96kHz and above) music

 

[shigzeo]

  Is the aurender flow just like hugo? meaning it does not have capability of playing like the Astell? If it needs a player then does he iPhone suffice?

It plays well from the iPhone or iPad. But when battery power is low, it will error out with 'device consumes too much power'. 

 

[ajay555]

listening to aurender flow and chord hugo. Both are very good. The hugo is slightly more dynamic, open sounding with wider sound stage - but over all its close. I think the hugo also has more power and plays louder without any strain.
But the biggest question is ....the hugo is $1000 more...what i feel after using both is that the hugo seems like it is far more reliable. The aurender settings are all done electronically and I don't feel confident it will work flawlessly after a year. But i could be wrong as i am not familiar with the aurender brand.
 
I noticed when battery is low on the aurender is does not play from iPhone too. 

 

[Kiats]

listening to aurender flow and chord hugo. Both are very good. The hugo is slightly more dynamic, open sounding with wider sound stage - but over all its close. I think the hugo also has more power and plays louder without any strain.
But the biggest question is ....the hugo is $1000 more...what i feel after using both is that the hugo seems like it is far more reliable. The aurender settings are all done electronically and I don't feel confident it will work flawlessly after a year. But i could be wrong as i am not familiar with the aurender brand.

I noticed when battery is low on the aurender is does not play from iPhone too. 

Ajay, the question has to be whether the finicky controls on the Hugo will stop working after a year... Aurender is well known for their music servers.

 

[ajay555]

Well i am only stating on what i see...the hugo has worked flawlessly for last 6 months. Aurender had couple issues on day one...
The biggest being it stopped working from my iphone. I had to reboot my iphone for it to work again.
 
Again aurender is great but after doing more listening...hugo is clearly better...more separation, instruments have more space, tighter bass...
 
But if you have a bright headphone ...aurender is a better choice...
 
JH audio has a extremely flat response so hugo is a better match.
 
Finally not sure if breaking in is required for the aurender flow....as its new unit

 

[Kiats]

Interesting. I have both. Within a week of each other. While the Hugo has its own attractive sig, disappointing implemention. As for SQ: Flow by quite a distance for listening off my laptop in the office.

Oh well. We all hear things differently. And have different needs.

 

[garetjax1]

Guys,
 
Just wanted to share some quick impressions of the Aurender. It arrived late last week, from Moon Audio, so have about ~30 hours of time on it so far.
 
Equipment

1. 2012 Macbook Pro Retina with SSD
2. ITunes (all digital effects off, volume at 100%) with all music ripped ALAC (~500GB)
3. Samsung 840 EVO MSATA 1tb
4. CalDigit Thunderbolt 2 dock (work)
5. JH Audio JH-5 CIEM (work)
6. Belkin Thunderbolt 2 dock (home)
7. JH Audio JH-16 CIEM (home) with Moon Audio Silver Dragon IEM cable (JH3a sans amp)
8. 3.5MM to 6.5MM Furutech F63-S(G) adapter
9. Music Genres tested: Metal / Rock / Acoustic / A Capella / Alternative / EDM / Rap / Country

 
Build

1. Built like a tank! The enclosure is beautifully machined, and though it doesn't quite match the aluminum color of the Macbook, it looks really nice
2. Color of buttons are slightly mismatched from each other and from the color of the exterior housing
3. Button action is somewhat disappointing... Too much play, and the action isn't firm
4. Slight bleed through on the backlight when unit is viewed at an angle - no issue with straight-on viewing
5. The (P)leather case is nice, but lacks input cut-outs, as pointed out in some reviews

 
Set-up

1. Setting up the MSATA drive with the Aurender was a snap! The only caveat is making sure you configure the Aurender to have the MSATA feature on.
2. In both work/home scenarios, I have the Flow connected to my dock, and not directly to my laptop
3. Listening volume is usually right around -50, +- 10
4. Mode: MAC, CHG+, MSATA+ - Did not mess with the advanced functions

 
Sound

1. Sound is great! I will leave it at that, as professional reviewers have already covered this in depth, and can do this more justice than I could
2. Zero hiss / Black background
3. With my IPhone 6 close to the Flow, I do hear interference when an impending text message arrives
4. I also hear bus noise when sometimes ripping CDs

 
Caveats for Mac Users

1. Make sure you are getting a digital signal out, especially if ITunes is your source: Sound Enhancer OFF, Sound Check OFF, Volume 100%
2. Under Settings -> Energy Saver, I would recommend turning off 'Put hard disks to sleep when possible' (under the Power Adapter tab) if you are using the Aurender's MSATA feature, otherwise the disk will automatically get ejected each time you lock your workstation
3. Before connecting your Aurender to the MAC, be sure to set the Host mode to MAC (once it is connected, you cannot change Host mode)
4. If you are using ITunes as your media manager, and the Flow MSATA feature, you may want to consider migrating your ITunes library directly to the Flow. It wasn't quite as straight-forward as I thought, as my previous install was somewhat non-standard, but within 30-40 minutes, all content was migrated, and now my media library is solely stored on the Flow. Lots of good links out there on how to move ITunes to an external drive, if you run into trouble...

 
Miscellaneous Thoughts

1. Up until I first heard of the Aurender, I was seriously considering getting a portable SSD enclosure to house my music as I was fast running out of space. However, lugging an SSD, plus an external DAC/Amp, didn't really appeal, so I was pleasantly surprised to hear about the Aurender, and it's MSATA capability. I think if I were not planning on using this feature, I would probably recommend shopping for the best DAC/AMP at this price-point, based on listening preference. For me, having one device that was storage/amp/DAC was what sealed the deal! Installation was a snap, and after a quick format using Disk Utility, you are off to the races!
2. Aside from some minor concerns around build quality, my only gripe with the unit is that it doesn't remember some settings (volume, host mode, charging, etc.) from one use to another. I am hoping this will be fixed with a firmware update at some point
3. Prior to the Flow, I was using Audirvana 1.5 with the JH3a at home, and the JH-5 at work. Using Audirvana with the Flow didn't sound very good in quick listening tests, so have been using ITunes directly - I'm sure this can be addressed with configuration changes, but am happy with the sound as is
4. Battery life has been great so far - In CHGA, the battery does drain much faster, so I usually set it to CHG+ and get through the day with a good bit of battery life left. I haven't noticed a difference in SQ between the different modes, but I don't listen to music at very loud volumes and profess to have golden ears

 
I haven't posted very much in the years that I have been a member, but I really love this site, and all of the invaluable info I have gained from it - I hope this goes some small way towards saying thanks!

 

[kawaivpc1]

Have you guys access to its 1TB mSata drive with your smartphone yet?
Was it successful?
As I have said previously, Aurrender guys told me that it's possible to stream music from Flow to a smartphone through USB connection.

 

[sonickarma]

  Have you guys access to its 1TB mSata drive with your smartphone yet?
Was it successful?
As I have said previously, Aurrender guys told me that it's possible to stream music from Flow to a smartphone through USB connection.

Yes i got it working see my link earlier but only with Nexus Media Importer -(so currently only working for redbook standard)
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/738861/1295-aurender-flow-portable-dac-amp-with-msata-slot-for-up-to-1tb-ssd/150#post_11273443
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/738861/1295-aurender-flow-portable-dac-amp-with-msata-slot-for-up-to-1tb-ssd/150#post_11273443
 
Didn't find a way to get it working with with USB Audio Pro or as don't know how to get that to that software to see OTG mounted devices

 

[kawaivpc1]

 
Yes i got it working see my link earlier but only with Nexus Media Importer -(so currently only working for redbook standard)
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/738861/1295-aurender-flow-portable-dac-amp-with-msata-slot-for-up-to-1tb-ssd/150#post_11273443
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/738861/1295-aurender-flow-portable-dac-amp-with-msata-slot-for-up-to-1tb-ssd/150#post_11273443
 
Didn't find a way to get it working with with USB Audio Pro or as don't know how to get that to that software to see OTG mounted devices

 
 
So, it works. Aurender guys told me that I will be able to stream music from Aurender's 1TB msata to my smartphone.
If that works, FLOW is already ahead of other competitors as many of other guys are just offering MicroSD or SD card slot.
 
Can you try Hiby Music?
 
or you can to use ES Explorer. Try to locate the mSata drive of FLOW through LOCAL network.
Choose music files in mSATA drive then right click and choose "Hiby Music" or "USB Audio Player Pro".
I bet it will work fine.
ES Explorer is the best explorer that allows you to use all kinds of Android USB or wireless devices on smartphone.
 
Let me know if this works!

 

[jesterdist]

Hey guys, finally got it to play actual DSD files with an android phone! Have a look. The app I'm using is called Hiby. 

 

[sonickarma]

Hey guys, finally got it to play actual DSD files with an android phone! Have a look. The app I'm using is called Hiby. 

Is that using the mSata in the flow?

 

[jesterdist]

Is that using the mSata in the flow?

Yes. So far the only mSata that I found usable is the Samsung original one. 

 

[garetjax1]

Found out some disturbing news (IMO) today - the display window on the Aurender is made out of plastic. I noticed some faint scratches on mine when viewing it at an angle - I've babied mine since new, so this was discouraging. Contacted support, and they confirmed that the window is plastic. Kinda disappointing on a product in this price range.