I have the SE. It's excellent and slightly edged out my SOtM sMS-200 Ultra. The sMS-200 Ultra is the better bang for the buck though.
Innuos Zenith
New to Audiogon. Any users have experience with Innuos products? Heard it at Axpona. Was very impressive. Considering upgrading from my computer to a dedicated music server/streamer. Any feedback on the different models, quality, sound, ease of use, etc.... is appreciated. My system includes a pair of B&W 803D speakers, McIntosh MC452 amplifier, McIntosh MC C47 pre-amp.
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I agree, I have heard the Zenith and the SE, both are excellent, but the SE a step up. I bought the cooking version before the SE came out, but the earlier version is still excellent. I think they are easy to use and of very high quality. The opposition, Melco and Aurender come to mind are great too, but innuos are cheaper, sound great and the company provide excellent support if you do have problems, at least here in the UK. Limniscate, what DAC do you use or have you tried with the SE. I use the Ayre QB9 and am happy with it, but I would like to know your experience. |
I have owned an Auredner N100h for almost 2 years and have been pretty happy with it. 2 weeks ago I bought the Zenith mk2 SE demo unit being used at Axpona in Chicago (you probably listened to my unit when you were there). In terms of SQ it is several steps up from my N100h (I would say on par with Aurender's N10) but as far as ease of use there's no comparison. I ripped hundreds of CD's and downloaded 20-30 hi-rez files with the Aurender and IMO it was a pain in the butt compared to the Innuos. It was about a 10-15 step process using the Aurender but with the Innuos you insert the CD (into the front of the unit) and it does the rest. It labels, sorts, adds artwork and files it into your library. I think the design team at Innuos decided to make their products as user friendly as possible. Going from the Aurender to the Innuos was a breath of fresh air! If I had gone from the Innuos to the Aurender I would have been very disappointed. Another selling point for me was the ability to use Roon with the Innuos. Innuos gives you the option of using their own software or using Roon. I chose Roon and couldn't be happier. It also integrates seamlessly with Tidal. The Conductor app (that Aurender uses) falls way short compared to using Roon. My unit came with 4 TB's of internal storage which I would recommend unless you use Tidal exclusively. My system is as follows: Zenith mk2 SE / Mola Mola Makua preamp/dac / Simaudio Moon 870a amp / Proac D30r speakers and all Nordost cables..... Hope this helps. |
Thanks for that, I use the Ayre QB9 and am pretty happy with that. Ron17, you'll need an awful lot of CDs to fill up four terabytes. I agree about ease of use by the way, I now have 2500 CDs loaded and it was really easy. It's quick and metadata is just there most of the time. That 2500 has taken up 84% of my 1TB of memory, mostly on FLAC, a few WAV. I'm showing my poor ear now, but I really can not hear much difference between FLAC and WAV. I ripped some favourite albums on both and I struggle to hear a difference. If you want to start with 1TB SSD, the company will up the memory at cost. no labour charge, at least again, in the UK. So you can always start with 1TB and add as you need it. Just send off your Zenith with the backup unit and it comes back already loaded up for you. |
They don't have a pure server and having the ability to rip direct is one of the clear advantages, for me at least. I really can not be bothered with added complications any more and I can't say it too strongly, ripping is as near effortless, as it can be.. I can not say if removing the ripper would make difference, I suppose it might make a small one. Certainly the company recommends a good power cord and isolation. I found a Lessloss cord and Stillpoint ultras made a very real improvement. |
Innuos made 100 Zenith mk2 SE units and I was told they are all gone although you could contact the US distributor Mark Sossa with Well Pleased A/V to have him look for one for you. Mark told me they will not make anymore SE's. I have heard the standard Zenith model is also very nice. The new flagship model is a 2 piece unit called The Statement that I believe will retail for 14k.....As far as storage I have used 48% of my 4 TB's. I share libraries with friends so the 4 TB's was a must for me. |
I'd say the jump up from the Zen and Zen Mini to the Zenith is pretty large. For me the Zenith is your starting point and the SE is better, but not a night and day difference. I'm not sure about US prices, but the Zenith is very competitive with the other brands of High End Servers, here in the UK, perhaps because it is a British Company, though they are built in Portugal. |
Interesting read on this product. I was looking possibly to upgrade from my Bluesound Vault 2 to the next level but everything else I looked at was a step backwards in convenience from the Vault. This is first product I have seen that looks comparable in simplicity and ease of use. Anybody know it compares sq wise to the Vault? |
@mtraesbo not sure what you mean by "the radio part isn't not plug & play". Can you please explain that? @audiotroy When you say "There are a few tweeks which will dramatically improve a Zennith". I have a Zenith SE which comes with custom isolation feet. Other than an aftermarket power cord and a high quality USB cable... what tweeks are you talking about? |
Ron there are better feet than the stock feet, and we are talking about an aftermarket power cord as well as a high quality usb cable, we actually have the best USB cable on the market and it is not from a traditional cable company and we do recommend a high end ethernet cable as well. So we have a series of products we recommend that gives the best sound of the Zennith. You were correct about everything, the Wireworld Ethernet cables did make a noticable improvement as well. For all of these reasons we said to PM us there is a lot to go over. Dave and Troy Audio Doctor NJ |
Ron, thanks for the headsup. We are all about testing and tweeking to derive the best out of our clients systems. We are big on the Isoacoustics as they are remarkable and inexpensive. Very glad to see you are using a high end ethernet cable many people here question the validity of a high end ethernet cable in our testing the better ethernet cables can make a stunning difference. We have the most remarkable USB cable on the market that beats everything we have tested, it is $2k but has a femto reclocker circuit built into the cable if you really want to hear how great a server can sound this unforuntately expensive USB cable delivers the results. Dave and Troy Audio Doctor NJ |
I tried a number of footers, Cerapuc, Stillpoints and I thought the Stillpoint Ultra was the best. Dave and Troy, I'm sure your right about the ethernet cable, but in some circles, anything but a piece of wet string as a cable, is heresy, deserving the most severe punishment. What ethernet cable do you recommend as a matter of interest? |
Here is an update (via video) on the Mk3 versions: https://darko.audio/2018/05/innuos-introduce-zen-mk3-music-servers/ |
The SE V Statement comparison is a trifle academic, if there are no more SE's available for sale. There is always the second hand market I suppose, but good luck there. I haven't seen any Zenith or Zenith SE available on the second hand market. That is testament I suppose, to their quality and good value. The Darko audio report referred to by david-ten, is a bit of a cheek. It refers to Innuos as a Portugese company, it's British, but manufactures in Portugal. To us Brits, that matters you know. |
I have a Zenith SE with I use with my Totaldac Twelve SE. Very happy with it. I use a Totaldac Ethernet Cable and a Totaldac Gigafilter USB cable. I wonder about the sound difference with the Zenith Statement and what is the upgrade path. https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/795 |
Hi guys great thread. VN according to Mark Sosa the US importer their will be an upgrade path to the latest servers, the total costs have not been figured out but the number seems very reasonable. David_12 we also agree with you on the footers, we do think that the Isoacoustics come very close to the Stillpoints for a fraction of the price. Ron Innuous lists Spotify as one of their options and we tried through the mickey mouse Iping and orange pc things, neither one of those options was good. Innuous does need to allow for additional non Roon based streaming services to be on the box. Also agree on the Aurender comparison the Innuous comes very close to really expensive servers.’ Dave and Troy Audio Doctor NJ |
Just upgraded the isolation under my Zenith mk2 SE to Stillpoints Ultra 6’s and WOW what an improvement over Nordost Sort Kones TC’s. The upgrade from the stock feet to the Nordost TC’s was big but going from Nordost TC’s to the Ultra 6’s was even bigger..... Also one of the reasons I chose the Innuos was because of the ability to use Roon. I use Roon’s DSP EQ to tame a 40hz peak I wasn’t able to fully control with ASC tube traps. Using the traps in conjunction with Roon’s DSP EQ has taken my system to another level. If Aurender had offered the ability to use Roon I would have upgraded my N100h to the N10, but they don’t and I’m very happy with my Innuos. |
Currently, I run LMS on a Synology NAS. I am very interested in the Zenith MKII. Does anyone know if it will support the LMS AirPlay bridge plugin? This important to me because my whole house stereo system consists of Squeezebox Duets, Raspberry Pi DACs, and AirPlay enabled (DNLA) Riva WAND speakers. Since Roon does not support DNLA, it is out of the question. |
So the Zenith MKII is $6k and the next up (the two chassis unit) will be $14k. Seems to me the ‘sold out’ SE is/will be a hole in the lineup and may be shooting themselfs on the foot by not continuing to offer it. Seems like a bad business move. ?? Or does the forthcoming MKIII bridge the large gap line up? |
I bought the Zenith MKII and I must say, it's SQ is a lot better than my Mac 7008 MCD and Squeezebox Duet! Plus, I no longer need/use either of those on my main system. Since Roon does not support the ability to synchronize "rooms" that use different protocols, I use LMS as my primary music manager. I really like what Roon has to offer, so if that were to change, I'd make the switch. |