Well, after gotten assurance from Focusrite Tech Support that the 16 R and the 16 AES are more or less the same, I jumped the Rednet wagon (and the Mutec MC-3 + USB)
"
Apart from the front panel design, the redundant power supply and ethernet there are no notable differences between the D16 and D16R"
"Yes, both the D16 and D16R use the Brooklyn II module and the RedNet 3 does use a Brooklyn I module. The only difference for the end user between Brooklyn I and II is the ability to assign a static IP address to the device and in the future, AES67 compatibility. Both devices are purely digital so there is no sonic difference between them.
I would not anticipate any issues using either the D16 or D16R in a home audio setup, using a mac or pc and Dante Virtual Soundcard. If you did choose the D16R you would only need to have one ethernet cable and one power cable connected to use the device."
Got it working after downloading DVS, Dante Controller, Rednet Controller (do I need this?) and Java (pre 2015) in about 30 minuttes. But shouldnt there be a valid license for DVS included? Nothing in the box so I use the Trial download for now.
Initially the sound is very, very good! I feel I am missing a little inner detail but the "flow" of music is fantastic! The sound is very close to my USB chain (Berkeley usb/spdif converter, Regen, Curious Cables) after 10 min. Looking forward getting som hours and playtime on it. And more to come later on..... (the Mutec)
Tommy