Hard wired ethernet vs EERO wi-fi endpoint

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kwhilden

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  • Posts: 9
Hard wired ethernet vs EERO wi-fi endpoint
« on: 15 Jan 2025, 05:55 pm »
I'm trying to decide if it's worth investing in a hard-wired ethernet streaming setup for Roon.  Opinions are welcome.

I currently have Roon installed on a laptop, and stream over wi-fi to an EERO endpoint, which connects via ethernet cable to a Denafrips Arce streamer.  This sounds pretty good so far.

Would I be able to significantly increase sound quality by running a full hard-wired ethernet cable directly to the Arce streamer? 

I would likely install Roon on a Synology NAS which would replace my laptop, and buy a high quality switch like the
LHY Audio SW-8.  So it would cost a fair bit of coin to get that new gear plus getting an electrician to make the install.

How much of an SQ improvement could I expect?   I suspect that going laptop-wifi-EERO-wire-streamer is the worst of all worlds, even though it sounds pretty good to my ears compared to just laptop-USB-DAC. 

Also any thoughts on if moving the fiber optic cable would sound even better than ethernet?

My full system:
Speakers:  Jena Labs custom speakers
Amps:  George Wright AU-30 monoblocks (300B push-pull 30w)
Pre:  Holo Audio Serene
DAC: Denafrips Venus II 12th-1
Streamer: Denafrips Arce
Cables: Jena Labs Aurora



I.Greyhound Fan

Re: Hard wired ethernet vs EERO wi-fi endpoint
« Reply #1 on: 17 Jan 2025, 05:26 pm »
Wifi is lossless.  So there should be no drop off in quality in theory.

whell

Re: Hard wired ethernet vs EERO wi-fi endpoint
« Reply #2 on: 18 Jan 2025, 03:20 am »
The EERO’s wireless connectivity should rival wired ethernet for streaming music…or video for that matter.  You should not hear any difference.

Rusty Jefferson

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Re: Hard wired ethernet vs EERO wi-fi endpoint
« Reply #3 on: 18 Jan 2025, 02:29 pm »
With the caveat that it depends on how far you want to take your system, ultimately, you'll have best performance with a hardwired network that includes a portion converted to fiber, imo. The best systems I'm hearing today are set up this way. I also have friends who are streaming wireless and it sound pretty good. Not great, but pretty good. My experience with digital over the last few years is the more effort put towards network, isolation, bridge, DDC, DAC, will pay off better dividends than big expenses in amplifiers and speakers.

Rethink putting your Roon Core onto your NAS. It should be on a dedicated NUC/computer along with a dedicated bridge on the network. Don't use the Roon core as a bridge. There is a lot of information about best practices on the Roon website and endless discussions on the Audiophile Style website.

kwhilden

  • Jr. Member
  • Posts: 9
Re: Hard wired ethernet vs EERO wi-fi endpoint
« Reply #4 on: 19 Jan 2025, 06:41 pm »
With the caveat that it depends on how far you want to take your system, ultimately, you'll have best performance with a hardwired network that includes a portion converted to fiber, imo. The best systems I'm hearing today are set up this way. I also have friends who are streaming wireless and it sound pretty good. Not great, but pretty good. My experience with digital over the last few years is the more effort put towards network, isolation, bridge, DDC, DAC, will pay off better dividends than big expenses in amplifiers and speakers.

Rethink putting your Roon Core onto your NAS. It should be on a dedicated NUC/computer along with a dedicated bridge on the network. Don't use the Roon core as a bridge. There is a lot of information about best practices on the Roon website and endless discussions on the Audiophile Style website.

Thanks for your reply.  What's the problem with putting Roon Core onto a NAS?   Why is a dedicated computer better? 

I'm definitely headed to fiber optic hardwire, but probably not this year. 

Rusty Jefferson

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Re: Hard wired ethernet vs EERO wi-fi endpoint
« Reply #5 on: 19 Jan 2025, 09:35 pm »
Thanks for your reply.  What's the problem with putting Roon Core onto a NAS?   Why is a dedicated computer better?.....
It's their general recommendation for best performance, and necessary if you have a large-ish library.

https://help.roonlabs.com/portal/en/kb/articles/faq-what-are-the-minimum-requirements

They do have recommendations for hardware if you want to do it all on a NAS but it's not their recommended path for best performance.

https://help.roonlabs.com/portal/en/kb/articles/roon-server-on-nas

It's a powerful program and wants a lot of processing power for best performance, and dealing with large libraries.

Craig Young

  • Jr. Member
  • Posts: 48
Re: Hard wired ethernet vs EERO wi-fi endpoint
« Reply #6 on: 20 Jan 2025, 03:56 am »
My current set up is that my mac mini 2 instructs roon what to play then the music is sent via ethernet to my mola-mola tambaqui. I didn't really hear a difference when my mac mini 2 usb port into my tambaqui was tested, but with my new hearing aids on I might hear a difference.

I just purchased Firewalla router to replace my tp-link. I must say that I am so happy to discover firewalla !