New NAS is Melco worth it?

Sorry Peter. I understand what you mean now. A pity that Minimserver running on the Melo can't be seen via a browser. That would be helpful.

I re scan after adding new albums. It takes but a few minutes and it's 100% reliable. I had moved to Asset but I now run Minimserver along side for DSD playback.

james n posted:

PeterJ posted:

Harry posted:

I wouldn't say that is a drawback. I'd say that displaying servers as discrete uPnP sources is correct. 

No, I meant having to reboot was the drawback.

On the Melco there seems to be no option to force a rescan on Minim.  The Melco interface is pretty Neolithic with everything having to be done through a front panel menu (there is no web interface).

Minimserver is not officially supported on the Melco so if you install it, you end up with two UPnP servers running. I'd hated Twonky when i came about in in my Mac UPnP days but the customised version running here seems to work fine. Not had any issues. What does Minimserver bring to the party ?

James

 

The one thing Twonky doesn't do is giving out Wav from flac base. So I am awaiting very much the coming server from the Melco.

Does the customized Twonky version Melco runs support FLAC to WAV transcoding? 

Harry posted:

Sorry Peter. I understand what you mean now. A pity that Minimserver running on the Melo can't be seen via a browser. That would be helpful.

Chris from Hiddensystems dropped his demo Melco off with me for a weekend recently. He wanted help setting up Minimserver. Once done Minimserver was detected by Minimwatch running on a laptop and it appeared as a UPnP server in all of my control apps. So, once installed on the Melco Minimserver functions exactly the same as when installed on a PC or NAS.

I hope that helps.

Graham

That sounds more like it

I think you'll have to decide how you will use Melco.

As a NAS direct connected to a streamer

As a NAS somewhere in wlan land

As a direct connected streamer/server that doesn't need any streamer st all

DrPo posted:

Does the customized Twonky version Melco runs support FLAC to WAV transcoding? 

No it doesn't - you will have to wait until they bring out their own server or use another one.

Ok, thanks

I haven't tried Minim Watch.

I'm quite happy, so far, with the Melco native Twonky.  The only issue I see is that a lot of classical music is being indexed by the composer as the artist.

Just plugged Melco in direct mode to 272, finds it on the front panel. Guess you need to install minimServer onto the Melco directly for any app related control of library. First impressions are more bass, airier and cymbals ringing out longer and very clean. Reminds me of first impressions of SL but less sparkly than those cables were on first listen. Need a few days/weeks or so to find its true signature/presentation but certainly encouraged so far...

I have Synology running minimServer also so will check back between libraries now and then as I tune into the Melco full capabilities.

Hungryhalibut posted:

Mike - I recall looking on the Minim forum to see how to get them included automatically and I don't think you can. If you find out how, do let me know. It only takes a couple of minutes though and I've got used to doing it. The same thing needs to be done whenever I change metadata or album art, which is not very often. The other thing Minim won't yet do, which I do find slightly irritating, is show recently added albums. Asset can do it of course. Sometimes I add an album and then forget all about it! Durr.....

HH - I've used an interim solution for recently added albums, whilst awaiting Simon to hopefully add this feature is to MinimServer.

I add a DATEADDED meta tag to any new CD rip and give it a value such as 2016-02 for this month.  Then a one off tweak to MinimServer properties to add -DateAddedate Added to the IndexTags property wherever you want it ordered in the tree list and Date Added will appear.  This at least means you can pick out recent adds to your library and any albums you don't add this meta tag for just appear in the [unknown] group.

Of course you can edit all of your albums but that could take some time although I've found Metadatics does a pretty good job of large bulk edits.  I went back and updated my last year of new CDs and downloads and it works well in a 3000+ album library.

I've found that you can also rescan your minim library whilst still listening to music if you are listening first before you set off a rescan. 

Thanks - that sounds interesting. What should be where the face is? 

A colon followed by a Capital D is turned by the forum into one of these

I've just added two albums and added the tag as shown and, amazingly (given that I'm hopeless with IT stuff) it works! It's a shame it's not automatic but it means I can find my new additions much more easily. Thanks again. 

sjbabbey posted:

A colon followed by a Capital D is turned by the forum into one of these

Thanks!  I should have double checked my post.

CalumM posted:

I add a DATEADDED meta tag to any new CD rip and give it a value such as 2016-02 for this month.  Then a one off tweak to MinimServer properties to add -DateAddedate Added to the IndexTags property wherever you want it ordered in the tree list and Date Added will appear.  This at least means you can pick out recent adds to your library and any albums you don't add this meta tag for just appear in the [unknown] group.

 

Great idea...... stuck on how to add a new 'Date Added' Meta tag using DBpoweramp though?? 

Mr THX posted:

Great idea...... stuck on how to add a new 'Date Added' Meta tag using DBpoweramp though?? 

 

I agree, it looks to be possible using the custom & fixed value tags function in DBPoweramp but I can't get it to work so that you can add a custom tag at the time you rip the CD or convert the file format.

I'm a Mac user and have always used XLD to rip CDs rather than DBPoweramp. XLD definitely doesn't have the option to add a custom tag at ripping time, so I always use Metadatics to add custom tags and tidy up the internet meta data after I have ripped a CD as it is much more flexible and and can perform automated batch updates to tidy up the text.  I haven't found one tool that does both tasks well, i.e. Rip CDs and easily manage the meta data - hence the two-stage workflow for me.

Probably not relevant unless melco can do "Roon" but Roon lets you view albums by various criteria, one being date added, then you can "focus" on and subset of this. 

SJB

Oh sh*t, another thread has just been rooned.

It could even be worse if Schiit Yggdrasil became the new Hugo. 

SJB

Does Roon wrap the original files into its own format so it can create all the metadata? Is it the Core system that converts to the RAAT format. If I read this right Roon takes your WAV/FLAC library, pulls them into its Core library for the better metadata and library then streams back out as its own RAAT format?

Does this not cause any issues to your original masters them being converted again, is it a format that applies its own compression?

Will test soon, seems intriguing but I guess I'm concerned about the quality of a newly wrapped format being applied. Or have I not understood it fully as yet?

Dan43 posted:

Does Roon wrap the original files into its own format so it can create all the metadata?

No, Roon does not change the audio files in any way and once you choose to "watch" your current music folder it does not change the file structure either.

Dan43 posted:

Is it the Core system that converts to the RAAT format. If I read this right Roon takes your WAV/FLAC library, pulls them into its Core library for the better metadata and library then streams back out as its own RAAT format?

 

RAAT is not a format, it is a carrier. Roon currently can send music files to

1. Squeezeboxes and any Linux Squeezelite devices using the LMS protocol
2. any AirPlay device using apples Airplay
3. a Roon end-point using RAAT. (currenlty Auralic Aries, Sonic Orbiter SE and Meridian products but a lot more to come with release of version 1.2)

So Roon uses RAAT where DNLA is used Naim (and in truth most other streamers) AFAIK the reason is that RAAT pushes rather than pulls which gives Roon control of the clock.

The "Core" is where all the metadata is kept about the music files. Roon analyses them, meta tags them and does an audio analayis and all this information is in the core which points the original files (there is no metadata added to the actually music file)

Dan43 posted:

Does this not cause any issues to your original masters them being converted again, is it a format that applies its own compression?

Will test soon, seems intriguing but I guess I'm concerned about the quality of a newly wrapped format being applied. Or have I not understood it fully as yet?

 

 I hope I've answered this above, your audio files are not changed in any way, there is no on the fly transcoding (unless this option is chosen).

I have 3 Naim systems

1. The main one has a Naim DAC attached to a Squeezebox as the streaming source. To change this to Roon was simply a matter of closing LMS on my NAS and ticking enable Squeezebox support.
2. SuperUniti in TV room. To "Roon" this I have a Squeezebox Touch connected optically to the SU. I can still use the Naim app and to the Superuniti as all the files are exactly as they were before Roon.
3. UniQute in bedroom. I use an Apple Airport express to get music to this, using its analogue out in UQ.

Roon have released a software development kit which would allow manufacturers to add Roon capability to their streamers and DACs. I would think for a premium product like the Melco the capability to be a Roon endpoint would be an attraction.

As  a music fan I find Roon great. For the first time since I got streamers my wife is actually streaming music (mainly due to the fact that I have bookmarked a sub-set of my collection of about 200 albums which I know my wife likes and she finds this much more manageable than scrolling through 1800 albums she cares little for). 

Apologies if I harp on a bit about it but it really has been a game changer for me and my music collection.

SJB

Thank you SJB  for the explanation.

Will try later on the demo trial, I guess the OS X laptop becomes a control point and you watch your hires folder from there and feed your streamer via the app on the same laptop. Is the server running on the laptop too, Roon can be installed on only a few NAS for now I suspect. Cheers.

Also I think you are right if Roon runs its server on the Melco it becomes that one box option, I believe asset is being primed for Melco but thats net rumour, or they'll have their own custom soup soon ....if using Melco there is a need to control library browsing and playback while in direct player mode too.

Dan43 posted:

Thank you SJB  for the explanation.

Will try later on the demo trial, I guess the OS X laptop becomes a control point and you watch your hires folder from there and feed your streamer via the app on the same laptop. Is the server running on the laptop too, Roon can be installed on only a few NAS for now I suspect. Cheers.

 

Sorry I totally forgot the initial way Roon runs which is on a Mac / PC where the connection to the DAC / Streamer etc. is directly from that PC/ Mac.

So for me I could run Roon from  my computer Roon is running on or to the devices I've outlined above.

You would from my understanding be using the "System output"

SJB