Melco Audiophile NAS

[alh22]

As there was interest expressed in comparing Melco N1 with Lumin L2, I thought I would add a comment here. I have both of these units on hand, recently coupling the Lumin L2 to an X1 as an upgrade to an older Melco N1Z HA60. The Lumin, with its newer solid state drives and fiber network seemed like a clear choice and does, in fact, sound quite good. However, at the recommendation of Alan Ainslie the UK/US Melco agent (alan@admm.uk.com), I upgraded the N1Z with the latest 4.50 version of the -EX firmware. The improvement in sound quality was surprising. In side-by-side comparison with high-resolution music files, I would rate the Melco slightly better than the L2 when both are ethernet-connected. When the L2 is networked with fiber, it might have a slight edge, but that involves other variables, including differences between SFP modules and switches. So I would say to anyone with a Melco N1Z on hand, Keep it! With the 4.5 firmware, it sounds great.