UnitiServe Observations

I am old in years but new to this sort of music making. Thank you for the explanation, even if 75% is over my head.  I do think that N-Stream and N-Serve would be easier to use if combined into a single app.  But hey, what do I know?  There may be very good reasons for keeping them apart.

Please keep the updates coming.

The UnitiServe is a great bit of kit  - I've almost bought one at least twice, even handed over the cash and ordered one. However, I can't justify the cost in terms of what it offers in terms of features and SQ when compared to the alternatives.



In essence it is a dedicated, well built PC running bespoke UPnP/ripping software (with extensions) and a 1TB hard drive in a beautiful case. You can get away with charging £2000 for an amp but not for a micro PC and believe me if Apple could do it, they would.



@Mr Underhill - I feel your pain - UnitiServe control is just too messy! N-serve/stream will get better but the low-level stuff will still require fiddling with a windows based desktop client. The alternatives are better, simpler, cheaper and provide IMHO exactly the same SQ.



Vortexbox provides 99% of the software features for no cost. You can source a silent server with twice the storage for one quarter the cost of a Unitiserve and nobody in SQ terms would be any the wiser. Operating a VB server is straightforward and can be done from any browser or an iPad. Updates come every week and add functionality.  If this looks too scary then for less than 50% of the UnitiServe's rrp buy a RipNas.



The other alternative to UPnP is to use a Mac either as a direct source or a streamer. Little bit more

expensive but even easier to use and maintain. Once you have used Remote it is difficult to take n-stream seriously.



It takes no particular talent or effort to fill your rack (fraim of course) with a single brand like Naim or Linn - you just need a big wallet not a big brain.



Naim - fantastic amps - UnitiServe? .... How much?



Tog

Tog put all of those bits together and ask some questions about the music replay, I think

You will be surprised just how far ahead the Naim server offerings are ahead of the rest. In the end it's not about features and storage it's about the time you sit down and feel the music.

Of course control matters, storage also but sound quality first.

Understood Paul  ... the UntiServe is good but outside of the showroom in the real world the others are just as good ... more flexible and easier to use. I mess with computers daily - when I want to listen to music it has to be hassle free and involve managing music shares as little as possible.


Tog

Tog with respect mate the Vortextbox absolutley is not easy to set up, it requires the user to SSH in and do command line stuff to even add a USB harddrive.

I worked it out, it took a long time and on the occasion a restart was required, back into command line to Mount the harddrive, and wiping the damn thing to get started was a real task.

Yes for the most part it worked, DAAP was as flaky as arseholes but the actual UPNP bit worked as did the ripping, but like most linux things its one for the geeks.

Hi Tog,

I'm currently undecided about the quality, to explain:

Last year I rebuilt my 'Music' Laptop using the CMP instructions, turning off all extraneous services etc, and using a HiFace it sounded VERY good.

In Nov 2010 I rebuilt the laptop leaving all services on, so that I could stream Spotify. BUT, for other reasons I decided to leave my EAR amps to one side and use a full Naim AV solution, using my AV2 as the pre - but retaining the nDAC, ....and? For music it was OKish. But I've spent months watching movies, and listening intermittently - not deliberately, just that the music lost its pull.

Last week I turned off one of the 250s and moved my EAR gear back in, the laptop on the music side was revealed as just a bit painful.

I have borrowed the US for a few days to have a listen to what Naim have achieved.

So, am I going to rebuild the laptop? Well, NOT before I have to give the US back! But, I know that I would like to have my cake and eat it - stream Spotify, and have excellent sound quality; accepting that Spotify is only there for me to decide whether to buy a piece of music.

From memory the laptop was on a par with the US, but the US might be somewhat better. Remember I haven't listened to the well fettled laptop for four months, and audio memory can be tricky over 4 minutes. It could be that as I had missed the EAR amps I was just happy to hear music again, but I did think I was enjoying the music a bit more from the US than I had done from the laptop.

Today I want to rip a few CDs and compare them to what I have been achieving with RubyRipper, may add something to the mix.

I do like some of the usability Naim has built in, and that it allows people with greater knowledge to use their NAS etc, whilst not excluding those who want a plug it in and play experience.

With my laptop as it is currently configured I saw a big leap in quality when moving from playing a locally held file to using uPnp, and would have been interested to compare the US acting as a uPnp client, as well as its current configuration - using smb shares. Shame Naim haven't developed this for the US.

I'm doing some serious thinking at the moment - and am also thinking about a dealers ex-dem NS01, for which I will do a separate thread, as I have some questions; and about building the full CMP2 solution, but would like to use a linear power supply.

As you can see I am wrestling with the same issues as you are!


@Richard Lord:

Hi Richard. Can I say how heart warming I have found it seeing you on this forum. Although you won't remember I spoke to you a number of years ago, before I bought my REL Strata III sub, which is still doing Stirling work.

If your interested Malcolm S. did a UnitiServe review in this months HiFi+, and compared it to his HDX.

M

Hi Gary

To use the immortal DavidDever phrase "your mileage may vary"

TogServe currently running on Sony Vaio netbook VB V 1.8.

Much easier to install on Vaio than 5 year old MBP

Didn't need any command line intervention this time - (to be honest it is about as tricky as messing with Windows shares even if you have to) and the only access has been via browser. Updates, Bliss cover art management - all very easy.

I think things are getting easier - I've never had a problem with the forked - DAAP server but I gather development is a real pain as Apple (bless em) don't make it easy. Large libraries do cause problems.

Agree - out of the box - UnitIServe looks attractive in terms of hiding you from most (but certainly not all of the faffing with computers) but VB is developing very rapidly, it is free and in terms of streaming the sound quality is comparable with UntiServe. If we were comparing UnitiServe with a £2000 VB using dig out - well all bets are off.  Sonore 2TB player with Lynx Card Versus UnitiServe or HDX - I'd enjoy listening to that. HDX V Resolution Audio - even better.

I find it truly amazing that we are even able to discuss a free open source server and a £ 2000 audiophile server at all. My point is that VB shouldn't even get close... but it does.

Apple / DAAP well thats another story.

Tog

       


Tog

Exactly my point, I don't mess with music shares, I select an album

and enjoy the music, at home not in the dem room. It's not really worth

anthing if the music is less on one than another who cares

about file handling it's about the music. I never let getting up

and placing the stylus in groove put me off, still don't.

Ripping with the US:

Very straightforward to set up, and fast to rip.

Ripped from the US to the remote store.

I hoped that I would find no difference ....but I have. Listening to vocals as ripped via my laptop and RubyRipper there is an occasional edge that is not there with the US rips.

I do not believe this has anything to do with FLAC vs WAV. I have tested this extensively in my system, and heard no difference - although I have heard a difference in other systems; and, of course, this isn't quite the same system anymore!

M

Thank you.  Glad to hear the Strata is going strong.

I am presently listening to the demo UnityServe UHES have loaned my whilst awaiting delivery of the new one.  

I am finding it difficult to use with its hand held remote.  It is displaying folders, such as: Photographs, Videos, Trash, Downloads, which all show as <empty>.   Why does it do this?  

Also, more worryingly the music will suddenly stop, then pick up a few seconds later.  It does this even on low res music such as AAC 256K.  I was warned this might happen.  I am streaming from the NAS upstairs via those mains linking devices.  

Sorry if I have skewed the thread sideways.

M ...Is that a good or bad edge ?  

Tog

Hi Richard,



Can't help you with the remote - I'm controlling it from my laptop - using the web interface.





When I first set up the US and scanned the remote share I found, like you, that the US would periodically hiccup.



Since I started listening this afternoon I haven't had this happen - been listening for 6 hours solid.



In his article MS noted that with the Naim servers he leaves them for a couple of days to do cataloguing before doing any serious listening.



Hopefully all will settle down in the near future.



M

Richard you have a poor network. In order to do this game you need a good network.

There is very little point in spending 2 grand plus on a network player and pump it through 90 quids worth of flaky home plugs.

Get the job done properly. Network switch and ethernet points/

Thank you, garyi.  I am sure UHES will sort me out. The present system is a little haphazard to put it mildly.  

I think I know what a Network switch is, but what are "ethernet points/?

Hah!  I have just edited out my query for the names of the mains devices I am using.  They are called Mains Powerline.  I have discovered mine are first gne, there is now a later version, which is supposedly able to stream video.  So I will order a pair immediately.

Ethernet points or sockets look a bit like phone sockets in the wall, these have ethernet cable on the back which goes to the network switch. And attached to the switch your internet modem and router.

You then plug your hifis, computers etc into the ethernet sockets, in this way you do not rely on wireless and powerlines both of which will fail you time and time again.

Naim do not recommend powerlines (well not really) and I just think if someone is going to invest into distributed audio, the back bone, the bit thats gonna make it work is the network. It does not need to be expensive I did my house by myself and including the switch and 16 ethernet sockets around the house including three in the garage cost 300 quid, it can be done even cheaper if you do it all at once.

Got back this evening to find my Fileserver had gone down - nothing of note in the logs.

Got everything back up and running in a few minutes.

Using the Naim Client checked the remote Music Store and Share were up and available.

--Interestingly I cannot browse the Albums. The error reported is that there is a mismatch in the no of files and albums.

I think I may know what is causing this ...be checking this evening.


File Size:

I have ripped a number of my vinyl albums at 9624.

Rather lazily I didn't bother to divide these into tracks, but left them as Side 1 etc.

The Naim US fails to handle these, I presume due to the size. Although Asset streamed them via uPnp fine. I will be breaking them up.



Richard:

I didn't post further yesterday. Gary may be right, although I know people who get reasonable bandwidths via power socket networking solutions.

If what you were hearing was down to the US indexing the remote storage it should be complete by now, and the symptom gone.

Regardless, personally I'd avoid them; I'd rather not introduce 'noise' into my power.

M

I have ordered some newer generation Powerline units by D-Link, together with some better quality ethernet cables - gold plated no less! These cables are stated to be Cat 5E, whatever the E suffix means. If that does not fix my drop outs, then I will bite on the bullet and get someone in to run a Cat 5 cable around the house.  

As my friend J.N. said in his Email about these problems:

I don't like to be negative, but your report from last night has put me off 'Streaming Audio' again. My friend George summed it up well I think - 'It should not be this complicated to play music in the home'.

He's right, of course. Gone are the days when you simply put some vinyl on a revolving platter and music appeared.  Oh well, must not grumble.  At least it is all instantly available at the press of a button or touch of a screen.  You gotta love technology!

I have discovered why I was seeing double entries of all my music tracks.  Instead of connecting to the UnityServe and allowing it to stream the music from the NAS, I was bypassing it.  I was trying to connect directly into the NAS from the Qute.  Possible, but it does not seem to arrange the music in its proper content. Once I used the UnityServe, I saw the music as Naim intended.  It is all there and is streaming beautifully.  

I have now ripped around 25% of my collection.  But I still have a few hundred or maybe thousand of downloaded AAC files to copy across.  I will leave that to the experts at UHES, in case I do something even more stupid.  

Richard