Melco Audiophile NAS

[malkit]

(28-02-2026 17:25)simoncn Wrote:  Switching from this:

N1A ----- USB port ----- dCS Rossini

to this:

N1A ----- Ethernet player port ----- N1Z ----- USB port ----- dCS Rossini

made a significant difference to the sound. Some time later, I switched to this:

N1A ----- Melco S100 switch ----- N1Z ----- USB port ----- dCS Rossini

This made a further significant difference. Subsequently, changing to an optical link beteeen the N1A and the S100 made a further significant difference.

Whether or not this would apply in your case will depend on the renderer you are using and possibly other factors. The only way to find out is to try.

I just picked myself up a used N1Z on eBay for a really good price that's why I asked the question, I was planning to sell my N1A to fund the upgrade but your two box solution has me intrigued and I'll certainly give it a try. Also I'm surprised to hear that you find better SQ using the S100 between the two Melco servers, so if I understand correctly the N1Z is solely a renderer in your setup and you are isolating the renderer as much as possible from everything else other than the player output on the N1A?
Despite having a large library of files on my N1A I'm really a vinyl guy if I want to do any proper listening I put on a record but I do spend a hell of a lot of time listening to BBC radio streams and would like eek every bit of SQ from those 320 streams I can.