Articnoise
Headphoneus Supremus
Well, I am not a computer expert at all and sometimes I struggle to keep up with discussions I see on these boards. But my plan is to run Roon Server (not Roon Core) on a late 2015 iMac with a Skylake Quad Core 3.2 GHz Intel Core i5 processor (6500). My friend transitioned from Roon Core to Roon Server on his Mac and believes it has made his system more stable. If you are not familiar with Roon Server, this might be helpful: https://community.roonlabs.com/t/how-do-i-move-my-library-over-to-roonserver/3195.
I will try the Roon/HQP/NAA mode on the microRendu and will run HQP on the same iMac that I'm running Roon Server on. So, if you are looking at the diagram that Roy helpfully provided from Andrew Gillis, I would be combining the functions of the Sonic Transporter and the Mac Mini. As in the diagram, my music would be on an external hard drive connected to my iMac. The question that I have is whether my late 2015 iMac is completely up to the task, since I am also using it as my primary office computer. My hope is that it will be sufficiently powerful to do the job and that the microRendu in HQP/NAA mode will provide sufficient isolation so that the music signal remains as pure as possible upon leaving the microRendu.
The only other change that I would have in my system, compared to the diagram, is that I would be running Roon Remote on a MacBook Pro laptop, rather than an iPad, since the only iPad we have is too old to run Roon. iPad is probably preferable but it's not a big deal for me.
As Andrew Gillis states, I would be wary of running Roon on a NAS. My friend stores his music on a NAS, but he runs Roon Server and HQP on a quad core MacBook Pro. He has experienced some hiccups when playing DSD but he thinks that might be because he is also using optical fiber to insulate his ethernet connection (some people have reported similar problems when using fiber). He'll probably remove the fiber and see what happens.
Thank again!
If I get you right you will have your iMac to work both as a server for the software and to get access to your external hard drive. You will when connect the iMac to a modem/router. The mR is connected to the modem/router in one end with an Ethernet cable, so separated so to speak. The mR is in the other end connected to the DAC or DDC. Looks easy. I guess I can do the same but instead of iMac use my PC. I’m still a bit worried about the noise from the iMac or in my case PC? Some pollution can travel thru the power cord and affect amp and DAC that way. Well I will see if I can use another outlet for the PC or something.