No need for the dongle in my setup with W20SE (upsampling possible up to 352.8/384 kHz) using dual AES and synced by Vivaldi’s dac Word clock output. No experience yet with a Vivaldi Master Clock and Upsampler Plus, audition is still on my wishlist. No hurry though, it already sounds glorious.
Of course. The DAC has three clock inputs but only one clock output so it must auto-switch to match the sampling rate. Didn’t think of that as I use the Master Clock which doesn’t. It’s obvious when you think about it. The DAC knows the sampling rate from the data frame whereas the Master clock doesn’t as in the Vivaldi architecture it has no inputs, only outputs. Doh!
SQ alone was the factor for me, my dealer has both brands so I could compare.
Innuos has -apart from that- the higher capacity SSD I was looking for (8TB vs Melco’s 3.8TB)
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Where are you running your UPnP server (and Roon Server if you use Roon)?
add-on:
I tried the Aurender N10 atttached via USB to dCS Rossini Apex, it was too smooth for me (couldn’t try the AES/EBU). Of course a N20/W20 could be better ,
Hi,
Yes it does (sorry @PAR) … the USB (host) input is handled by the S800 board that also handles the UPnP and USB (slave) inputs and as such does “pass through” the streamer.
Not sure what you mean here exactly - you can access any track you want and skip within that track. You don’t have to play all the tracks on the stick in sequence so there is “random access”.
There isn’t any browsing by metadata though if that’s what you were meaning - only by folders and files…
Basically the OP’s original question really requires clarification (as has been said elsewhere in this discussion) … a DAC in itself will not benefit from a Music Server as a DAC and a Music Server require things between them for them to be connected together and also we need to know a bit more about “benefit” too … adding a Music Server (a SERVER being something that hosts a UPnP server such as Asset UPnP or MinimServer) to a setup where there is a dCS streaming device such as a Network Bridge / Bartok / Lina DAC / Rossini / Vivaldi Upsampler or Varese Core will allow the users music collection to be indexed and sorted by the UPnP Server and made available for the UPnP Client (the dCS Streamer) to browse by the metadata that is stored in those tracks - so by Artist, by Album Name, by release date, by Genre, by Performer, by Composer etc. (as long as that metadata is present).
Certainly accessing music via a UPnP Server brings a functionality benefit when used with a dCS Streamer - otherwise music that is on a USB Stick plugged into the USB host port on a dCS Streamer can only be browsed by folders and filenames - and the USB Host connection is only intended for use with small collections of music.
Just as a note - we do state in the manuals that we recommend only USB pendrives and thumbdrives of up to 32GB capacity and that use with HDDs or SSDs, although it may work, is not supported - this is becoming increasingly relevant now that drives of over 2TB are readily available as 2TB is the largest capacity supported by FAT32. (32GB being the largest supported formatting size for a FAT32 drive under Windows own formatting tool although third party tools will format drives using FAT32 up to 2TB.)
Phil
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Just as a thought - and I’ll float it here simply to get an idea of feedback - would it be something useful for people if I was to work on putting together some kind of tutorials about managing music file tagging (metadata) and the comparison of UPnP servers using metadata / tagging to folder and file browsing?
Obviously I’ve been doing this stuff for cough years and my experience so far is that generally people aren’t actually all that interested in file tagging and how it all works and just end up throwing files into a folder, getting frustrated when they don’t show up on their UPnP server where they expect them to and end up going back to using the folder browsing option on their UPnP server with the perception that UPnP is rubbish because of that and not actually having any concept of why - a bit like someone getting into a manual car after an automatic and deciding that manual cars are rubbish because they don’t go more than 20 miles an hour flat out. 
Don’t make any LONG comments as replies here (as I don’t want to derail the original discussion) but let me gauge interest here and if there is interest then I’ll float it as a separate thread (then you can give your fuller thoughts, comments and suggestions) to see if the wider group thinks it’s worthwhile … I have tried doing this before (years ago) but not only is it a lot of work it’s also not exactly the most riveting read and the general response I’ve had previously is that on the whole people ultimately just aren’t that bothered but if you guys are then I’d love to try to help.
Phil
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Phil, given the waning popularity of open UPnP Servers in general in favour of Internet streaming services, Roon, and [other] closed platforms like Antipodes and Innuous, where local file asset management are not really user configurable, I’m not sure it’d be worth your while really 
Hi Anup,
To be honest that would be my view nowadays too but just throwing it out there …
I’m one of those incredibly sad people that get a feeling of immense well being after closing up an area of white space in the table of data shown by MP3Tag after I point it at a set of files so I KNOW that my values and perceptions are shot… 
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/10chars
I have been thinking about this but there a number of issues and that does not encourage brevity. However the observation of @Anupc regarding streaming services v. UPnP is highly relevant and certainly reduces a need for this IMO.
Most of my recording collection on CD has been ripped already with much attention paid to metadata.Given the inherent limitations of server software and media players ( including Mosaic) workarounds have frequently had to be used.
Of course the importance to different users varies but if a lack of understanding causes blame to be levelled unjustly at the result this has significance. In this context I love your manual v. automatic car metaphor 
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Oh, yes, your wording regarding metadata and USB flash drives is what I intended. I shall sacrifice something to the Gods of clarity.
Sold my Verdi in 2006 and that was the last transport I owned so I battled my way up the whole ripping/tagging learning curve over the subsequent 4-5 years. Been there, done that, got the T-shirt and the scars and hate to think how many of us were all struggling in parallel trying to (re)invent the same metadata wheel. I did a quick search for some of the countless posts I wrote on the subject on forums like Stereophile and Squeezebox but they all seem to be gone with the wind.
So that’ll be a “kind offer but 18 years too late” from me!
I’m not using a server but occasionally playing files using Amarra on a macbook pro.
So it starts to become clear we should have asked more questions about your use case(s)!
Are you mostly or only asking for thoughts on SQ in the streaming use case?
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Yes, that is correct.
Understood. So I guess the only useful input is if there is some kind of consensus that external music servers don’t make any difference to SQ in the streaming use case.
I am thinking that If the consensus is that they do (which is what I think I am hearing here) then I guess it becomes a question of where a given upgrade budget is best spent. Say $20k spent on a music server versus an upgraded cable loom, a grounding system or a lift and shift to Vivaldi?? The number of alternatives becomes unmanageable and I have seen advocates for all of them on the forum!
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…but isn’t that a defining characteristic of this hobby? 
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Haha, I suspect one could have a lot of fun with the idea of “defining characteristics of this hobby”, but that is definitely gliding well OT. Maybe a subject for another thread…
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Holy permutations batman! Fortunately there are more hobbies, each with their own nice attractions, here’s some shoe porn to go well ot, sorry but it’s Friday and I just got these in:
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That’s a shoe?? Looks more like some exotic fruit, or something that lives on the seabed! 
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