Melco n1a or Melco n1a2

[newlash09]

Thanks for your detailed reply. Thought through it, the entire night. Roon does look like a future proof investment. And I will only need to change end points as technology marches on.

I had set out with a budget of approx 2000 USD for a high quality digital source. And after some searching, the ' small green computers' i7 DSP version seems to fit the bill.

Iam though undecided about the end point. Looking for something that can output via usb. So the sonore microrendu seems to be a good start.

My only doubt is if this combination feeding into the usb in of the chord, can sound as good as the innuos zenith feeding the same usb. And unfortunately in the computer audio world, there seems to be no way to audition, except to go by user experiences

 

[insider9]

Reson why I resisted a PC based solution for a year was the fact it didn't feel so "audiophile"

Good news is that you don't have to spend as much on the PC. Anything self built or otherwise with specs good enough wherther quiet or loud would work. If it is loud stick it in another room. It would probably save you a lot of money. If you want to see how Roon is doing before buying any hardware run it on a free Trial from your laptop. See what you think before you commit.

However if you go with Small Green Computer Sonictransporter I'd suggest using it directly to the DAC via USB at first. I belive you will be able to do that. And WXC-50 as an end point in the other system. Should you have a need to then upgrade the endpoint in your main system you can do it too. First upgrade could be UpTone USB regen which is much cheaper than an endpoint.