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Post by ChrisB on Jun 30, 2016 20:28:36 GMT
Seen at the N-W HiFi Show this weekend just gone, the Aria Music Server. It's got an interestingly different look about it. I'm really not sure whether I like it or not. What do you think?
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Post by MikeMusic on Jun 30, 2016 20:55:17 GMT
Do they come in black ?
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Post by Stratmangler on Jun 30, 2016 22:31:41 GMT
Follow the link and you'll find out
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Post by John on Jul 1, 2016 4:03:46 GMT
Nice looking unit How are you finding it as sounds like you have mix feelings
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Post by ChrisB on Jul 1, 2016 5:36:27 GMT
Sometimes I look at it and I like it. Other times not, but mostly, I think of the dust trap that it represents!
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Post by MartinT on Jul 1, 2016 5:43:34 GMT
I care a lot more about the sound than the look. It looks fine, but how does it sound?
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Post by Deleted on Jul 1, 2016 10:41:21 GMT
Not too bad a sound been around a few years quite flexible, nice GUI as well
I know the distributor that originally brought in the Aria dropped it for some reason and the dealers that had the product at that time followed suit.
Apparently you can purchase them from a shop in Blackpool
The CAAS is English and not to bad (designed by well seasoned electronics brothers in the north west) , nicely built and sounds nice, bespoke circuity inside good layout again been around for a while. The GUI I felt was a bit clunky
On a sonic basis I believe you can obtain a more engaging sound for other products which are available on the market possibly for less outlay imho.
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Post by davidf on Jul 1, 2016 18:07:43 GMT
I like the look of it.
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Post by Stratmangler on Jul 9, 2016 10:46:53 GMT
From an aesthetic perspective it looks OK, provided that you like toddler with Duplo chic. I just see an overly fussy bling box, one that will be expensive to manufacture. It's audiophile fodder. It's streaming for those that can't get their heads around networked audio not needing to have all the constituent parts in the same place.
A NAS, a Rpi and external DAC and a laptop/tablet will easily perform at a similar level for a fraction of the cost.
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Post by davidf on Jul 10, 2016 14:33:33 GMT
A NAS, a Rpi and external DAC and a laptop/tablet will easily perform at a similar level for a fraction of the cost. Although, you won't really know that unless you've heard it...
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Post by ChrisB on Jul 10, 2016 16:57:53 GMT
These things have their place. Not everyone wants a three (or is it four?) box source, or to mess about with cables and connections, or to even want anything that behaves even vaguely like a computer.
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Post by davidf on Jul 14, 2016 15:45:39 GMT
Hence my recent direction.
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Post by Stratmangler on Jul 14, 2016 16:26:27 GMT
A NAS, a Rpi and external DAC and a laptop/tablet will easily perform at a similar level for a fraction of the cost. Although, you won't really know that unless you've heard it... Really? It's a digital music source, and they're pretty much of a muchness. Any differences in sound quality are going to be down to a combination of three things - the DAC, the quality of the analogue line stages, and the quality of the power supplies.
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Post by Tim on Jul 15, 2016 12:24:36 GMT
Correct Chris
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Post by davidf on Jul 15, 2016 21:21:34 GMT
So not necessarily much of a muchness then?
But again, unless you've heard a few alternatives...
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Post by Stratmangler on Jul 15, 2016 22:17:43 GMT
So not necessarily much of a muchness then? But again, unless you've heard a few alternatives... I have heard a few alternatives, and they're pretty much of a muchness. If there was any one of them that stood out there would be something fundamentally wrong with the sound it was making. They're no better than a Pi, a decent DAC etc ...
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Post by Greg on Jul 18, 2016 18:45:36 GMT
So not necessarily much of a muchness then? But again, unless you've heard a few alternatives... I have heard a few alternatives, and they're pretty much of a muchness. If there was any one of them that stood out there would be something fundamentally wrong with the sound it was making. They're no better than a Pi, a decent DAC etc ... Yes, completely agree, Chris. On a visit to Oxford Audio for high end demonstrations a while back, I listened to £16K and 12K music servers. The £12K one was better. Sorry, can't remember the makes. My RPi, upgraded Beresford Caiman II feeding Roon is a very ready match, possibly better. Oh, and both the RPi HiFiBerry Digi+ (full steel chassis) and the Caiman have good linear PSU's, none of that inferior battery rubbish. It totally satisfies me and always excites giving me fresh insight into the music every time I use it. No point in spending more than basically necessary for a digital streaming front end. Of course, if it is equipment bling you require, that is a different consideration, but you'll be paying for it. Oh, and to continue to be controversial, I now have several 192/24 downloads and yes, although originally sceptical, I can hear a difference for the better. Also, happy to put my money where my mouth is and offer a listen to anyone willing to travel to Bristol.
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Post by MartinT on Jul 18, 2016 19:20:37 GMT
both the RPi HiFiBerry + (full steel chassis) and the Caiman have good linear PSU's, none of that inferior battery rubbish. That's not my experience. Even the best linear PSU I could throw at it (a Paul Hynes PR3i) doesn't sound as good as running my RPi2/HFB Digi+ and Caiman-II from an XT Power MP-10000 battery.
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Post by Greg on Jul 18, 2016 19:43:33 GMT
Yep, I knew you would say that but I disagree based on my own experience with your findings. Furthermore, Nick Gorham (Lurcher) has run a sequence of tests featuring various options on PSU, I think published on AOS which concluded that batteries did not generally offer the best option. Couple that with the opinions of many professionals within the hobby who also share that view, I can only conclude that there is something remarkable about your battery supply that makes it different. I acknowledge from experience that for battery to sound good, it always has to be supplying power as a fully charged unit, and I know that you top up your batteries every day. Once the cells start to discharge, modern battery units then use a circuit to ensure the battery continues to deliver voltage at the intended rate. This can affect the sound and certainly that was my own negative experience and I believe if I remember correctly, Nick Gorham's test conclusion. Regardless of all that, my listening experience is that good linear supplies sound better than battery, even if it is fully charged. The linear supply brings better weight, authority speed and attack to the sound. This is something we will have to agree to differ on 😀
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Post by MartinT on Jul 18, 2016 20:03:54 GMT
Ok, at some future point I will compare them again.
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