The Hugo Of Streaming But Even Better With The ultraRendu

Posted by: Kendrick on 28 July 2017

I thought a new thread about the Sonore ultraRendu might be of some interest.   For those who don't know, the uR is a brand new device released last week.  It has with a larger case than the Sonore microRendu, better components and a slightly higher price.   I’m using the ultraRendu with a .75 meter Sonore DC4 power cable,  a .8 meter Curious USB cable, and a Uptone Audio LPS-1.  After a few days to allow for burn-in of the uR and new cables, the music presentation is clearer, deeper, and more involving on an emotional level than the mR which preceded it.  Good recordings simply sound clearer, but what is really surprising is that average quality recordings have new life and vibrancy now.  I frequently notice this when Roon Radio serves up some seldom listened to tracks and the music seems much more listenable than before.  The uR seems to unravel complex passages better, too.  With classical music, violins, violas, and cellos are now more distinct than with the mR.   This is the best music source I have ever heard and is a Roon endpoint.   No server issues either when using a Sonic Transporter from Small Green Computer.   

Previous streaming sources include:  most recently the mR>LPS-1 with Sonore USB Adapter and DC4 cable.  Prior to that, sources were a W4S modified Sonos, ND5xs with Naim Dac V1, Rega Apollo-R CD player. 

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Posted on: 28 July 2017 by No quarter

I am curious if you have compared the Ultrarendu to a Naim Core,or other server into your DAC?

Posted on: 31 July 2017 by RICHYH

Hi Kendrick,

I am interested in the findings after a few days of running in, please give a review.

Posted on: 01 August 2017 by Kendrick

No Quarter - I did not compare the Sonore ultraRendu or microRendu with the Naim Core.  To be clear, these are two entirely different type of devices. The uR is a music renderer that functions like a Naim network player, while the Naim Core is a music server.  The uR/mR has no music storage capability, while ripping and storage is primary purpose of the Core.  So “apples and oranges”, so to speak.  For a music server, I use a Sonic Transporter I5 from Small Green Computer.  The uR/ST were jointly developed, and work without any issues.  The ST has an internal SSD for OS and accepts external SSD devices for music storage.     

So to reframe your question slightly, did I compare the Sonic Transporter I5 to the Naim Core?  I did not for several reasons.  I have moved on from Naim products, cost (the I5 is only $645), Roon capability (sorry Naim) and concerns about reliability and ease of use. 

For what it is worth, I did have an opportunity to compare the older mR with an NDX a few months back on Mackb3’s revealing Naim system.   The mR was “handicapped” at the time with an earlier, less revealing software version and soft sounding USB cables but it still sounded slightly more revealing in a good way.   We plan to do another comparison in a few weeks using the uR with its better hardware and software, connected with a high-quality USB cable from Curious.   Will post the results on this thread.

Posted on: 01 August 2017 by No quarter

Ok,thanks for clearing that up,but both units feed music into a DAC,just a little different how they go about it.My reason for buying the Core was a simple solution to adding music storage,eliminating the network fussing around,when using SPDIF.