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Roon Vs jriver


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My roon trial is about to end so I looked at thier pricing.  A license for a year is $119! I've got Jriver v21 from before and upgrading to v23 wound cost circa $30 but that's a one off cost. I'm not too fussed about the artist info etc that roon offers and so I was wondering what the advantages of using roon over using jriver might be? Any thoughts?

Custom built silent Media PC, Synology DS415+ NAS -> SoTM sms200Ultra/sps500  -> TAD DA1000 DAC/preamp and Bryston 4BSST2 power amp -> Harbeth SHL5 speakers and Velodyne DD10+ subwoofers. PowerQuest Carbon USB cable, Chord Company Chorus interconnects, Chord Company Signature speaker leads, Clearer Audio Silver-Line power leads

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I'm a long time JRiver user that made the switch to Roon and I haven't looked back. Here are a few quick thoughts on the Roon advantages for me -

 

Better mobile solution. My family uses tablets and phones for controlling in house audio and I find that Roon is much better at this.

 

Whole house audio. I find that Roon is much easier to setup and use if you have multiple audio zones in your house.  

 

Streaming integration. I use Tidal and the tight integration with Roon is very seamless. I was impressed.  

 

Family acceptance. I could never get my family interested in using JRiver. Too complicated for them. No such problems with Roon.

 

UI elegance and simplicity. I didn't think the additional Roon metadata would be a big deal either for me either but I changed my mind. I find it improves my interaction with my music library. Having immediate access to reviews, artist info and album history is nice and I do use it.  

 

Better support. When I installed the Roon trial, I had an issue with display scalability so I immediately cancelled my trial. Within an hour, I received an email from Roon support with links to  possible fixes and they offered to extend my trial by 30 days if I wanted to try installing again. I was a bit amazed at the personal response so I tried again and the info they provided fixed the issue and I haven't looked back. On the JRiver support forum, I found the opposite approach and occasionally had difficulty getting them to address or even acknowledge software issues.    

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If you update JRiver just before a new release it's only $15.95.  I usually skip updates for every other year.  So, it comes to about $8 a year.  For bit perfect playback and nice meta tag function editing along with video playback, can't beat it.  My library is always well organized and easy to navigate without ever having any direct internet contact for best SQ.

(JRiver) Jetway barebones NUC (mod 3 sCLK-EX, Cybershaft OP 14)  (PH SR7) => mini pcie adapter to PCIe 1X => tXUSBexp PCIe card (mod sCLK-EX) (PH SR7) => (USPCB) Chord DAVE => Omega Super 8XRS/REL t5i  (All powered thru Topaz Isolation Transformer)

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12 minutes ago, ElviaCaprice said:

If you update JRiver just before a new release it's only $15.95.  I usually skip updates for every other year.  So, it comes to about $8 a year.  For bit perfect playback and nice meta tag function editing along with video playback, can't beat it.  My library is always well organized and easy to navigate without ever having any direct internet contact for best SQ.

In your experience is Jriver sq better than roon? In my setup, roon default volume is louder than Jriver (is it just me?) so hard to compare

Custom built silent Media PC, Synology DS415+ NAS -> SoTM sms200Ultra/sps500  -> TAD DA1000 DAC/preamp and Bryston 4BSST2 power amp -> Harbeth SHL5 speakers and Velodyne DD10+ subwoofers. PowerQuest Carbon USB cable, Chord Company Chorus interconnects, Chord Company Signature speaker leads, Clearer Audio Silver-Line power leads

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11 minutes ago, debt_collector said:

In your experience is Jriver sq better than roon? In my setup, roon default volume is louder than Jriver (is it just me?) so hard to compare

I am skeptical of any sonic differences on an apples to apples comparison.  Both are bit-perfect players.

 

As a classical collector with a very large library, I don't find Roon adequate.  It is not classically oriented.  JRiver can be easily adapted with a few custom fields and custom views to do almost everything I want.  But, there is definitely a greater learning curve with JRiver.  Except, it does so much more, including video and TV and all audio formats.  For me, it is the basis of a complete Media Computer in a 7.1 system without a prepro or an AVR, just a Mch DAC.  So, Roon does not come close for me, in spite of its excellent GUI.

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It all depends on how you interface with your collection and what you are looking for. 

 

JRiver is great with its UI built for a large screen. It's great if you conceive of your collection in folders and want to navigate it that way. It also does things like video, that Roon doesn't. If you know exactly what you want to listen to, use JRiver.

Roon is a different user experience. It's for people who like to see relationships between different albums and artists.  For people who like to recreate, in a sense, the experience of the LP cover and it's information. For people who like to have instant access to Internet info related to their music. And for people who like to do a bit more wandering in their collection, or have their playback UI "surprise" them by reminding them of something in the collection they haven't listened to in a while. And of course, it gives you full integration of Tidal into your library. 

 

 

Main listening (small home office):

Main setup: Surge protector +>Isol-8 Mini sub Axis Power Strip/Isolation>QuietPC Low Noise Server>Roon (Audiolense DRC)>Stack Audio Link II>Kii Control>Kii Three (on their own electric circuit) >GIK Room Treatments.

Secondary Path: Server with Audiolense RC>RPi4 or analog>Cayin iDAC6 MKII (tube mode) (XLR)>Kii Three .

Bedroom: SBTouch to Cambridge Soundworks Desktop Setup.
Living Room/Kitchen: Ropieee (RPi3b+ with touchscreen) + Schiit Modi3E to a pair of Morel Hogtalare. 

All absolute statements about audio are false :)

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I agree completely with your last point jimm2. As for ease of use, both AVE plusses and minuses, it's a matter of taste isn't it? 

I find that the jremote android app is more user friendly than roon's. I have a very large number of albums and scrawling through with the roon album list is virtually pointless. After scrawling down for two minutes I finally get to albums starting with the letter B. In my experience, the  jremote allows the user to scroll down a lot quicker with the scroll bar.

Custom built silent Media PC, Synology DS415+ NAS -> SoTM sms200Ultra/sps500  -> TAD DA1000 DAC/preamp and Bryston 4BSST2 power amp -> Harbeth SHL5 speakers and Velodyne DD10+ subwoofers. PowerQuest Carbon USB cable, Chord Company Chorus interconnects, Chord Company Signature speaker leads, Clearer Audio Silver-Line power leads

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35 minutes ago, debt_collector said:

I agree completely with your last point jimm2. As for ease of use, both AVE plusses and minuses, it's a matter of taste isn't it? 

 

Yes, I agree that ease of use and UI preference are highly subjective based on what you want. For me, I just got tired of waiting for JRiver to make any updates in these areas.  

 

I don't want to knock JRiver though. There are many areas where I think it's superior to Roon. But for me, it just feels like it's time has passed and the owner isn't willing to move forward in areas I value.  

 

I'm also not a fan of the JRiver business and support model but if low cost and flexibility are primary concerns, I think JRiver is clearly the winner.  

 

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I use them in the following order: Roon, Foobar2000 and Jriver.

 

1. Roon because of the beautiful display, album sorting, relationship between the albums and Radio feature. Of course I have a Tidal subscription and it's linked so the intergration is an extra point.

 

2. Foobar2000 because it's the absolute tool for everything. Period. (exept for the album relations)

 

3. Jriver is a weird thing. It's powerfull but I think that the developers are the main problem. For example you can't sort albums only with the Album Name. I have a lot of compilations and they are impossible to manage. Imagine the compilation 500 Greatest Songs by Rolling Stone Magazine. There are almost 400 artists. I don't want to have "Various Artist" tag because there are no such name. There are Beatles, Pink Floyd etc. Also you can't have lyrics easily. And weird little things that are annoying. And in the video section for example you can't download subtitles easily and you can't change the mouse buttons. Little things that are very annoying and the developers are not willing to hear. I have made a lot of complaints but the answer is always the same. Use our way.

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26 minutes ago, plissken said:

I'm sure JRiver could move to a model that cost $120 a year and provide extended function. 

 

They aren't necessarily competing products. They service different cost segments. You will have some people that will absolutely refuse to pay a recurring fee. 

 

For my use case, I think they are competing products. I used JRiver for years and now I switched to Roon. I guess that's why choice is a good thing, right? 

 

I spent thousands on audio gear so the price of Roon didn't dissuade me personally.  Do I wish it was cheaper, sure.  In the end, I chose to spend money on what what was the better solution for me. 

 

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On 8/12/2017 at 4:19 PM, koupa said:

 

3. Jriver is a weird thing. It's powerfull but I think that the developers are the main problem. For example you can't sort albums only with the Album Name

 

This is not true -- JRiver can sort by any tag in your database -- including Album Name.

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1 minute ago, jcn3 said:

 

This is not true -- JRiver can sort by any tag in your database -- including Album Name.

I wrote "only". It doesn't sort it with that tag alone.  Always includes the artist name. So in a compilation album you have a lot of "sub-albums" instead of the whole. And I gave you the example of the rolling stone collection. 

 

It's a major problem. I have the same problem on Android players. A few ones do the same thing. 

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1 hour ago, koupa said:

I wrote "only". It doesn't sort it with that tag alone.  Always includes the artist name. So in a compilation album you have a lot of "sub-albums" instead of the whole. And I gave you the example of the rolling stone collection. 

 

It's a major problem. I have the same problem on Android players. A few ones do the same thing. 

Also not true.  You are unfortunately getting deeper and deeper into the notion that your knowlege of JRiver is less than definitive.  Now, that is easy to fall into because we all know the learning curve for JRiver is not necessarily easy.  But, even senior citizens, like me and many of my buddies can learn how to make it work like we want it to.

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1 minute ago, Fitzcaraldo215 said:

Also not true.  You are unfortunately getting deeper and deeper into the notion that your knowlege of JRiver is less than definitive.  Now, that is easy to fall into because we all know the learning curve for JRiver is not necessarily easy.  But, even senior citizens, like me and many of my buddies can learn how to make it work like we want it to.

I'm not at home right now. When I go I'll show a few screenshots. 

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On 8/12/2017 at 1:19 PM, koupa said:

 

 

 

 

3. Jriver is a weird thing. It's powerfull but I think that the developers are the main problem. For example you can't sort albums only with the Album Name. I have a lot of compilations and they are impossible to manage. Imagine the compilation 500 Greatest Songs by Rolling Stone Magazine. There are almost 400 artists. I don't want to have "Various Artist" tag because there are no such name. There are Beatles, Pink Floyd etc. Also you can't have lyrics easily. And weird little things that are annoying. And in the video section for example you can't download subtitles easily and you can't change the mouse buttons. Little things that are very annoying and the developers are not willing to hear. I have made a lot of complaints but the answer is always the same. Use our way.

 

It took me about 10 seconds to create a view that lists albums by name in alphabetical order.  (Not by artist and album name.)   Less time than you have spent complaining.

 

 I've never used an online tag database that always provides tag values exactly as I want them.  If you don't like the way JRiver tags a compilation album, you can edit the tag values.  I check the values JRiver suggests before I start ripping a CD.  When I import downloaded music files, I check the tag values in those files and make any changes that I feel necessary.

 

 

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I consider it to be confrontational for someone to blame his own ignorance on someone else or something else.  Software like JRiver or Roon or iTunes required many man hours to make it useful to many users.  Newcomers who have spent a few man-seconds before complaining should show a little respect for the efforts of those who brought real knowledge and real effort into developing something useful.

 

For the record, I'm not a JRiver employee or an employee of any other company.

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I do not know Kroupa or you or Fitzcaraldo215.  I read what each of you post and go from those words.

 

Just before I posted, I actually created a new view as I stated.  I was not just voicing an opinion;  I was stating my actual experience.

 

"

How about being friendly and asking someone to double check rather than telling them they aren't that smart. 

"

 

After Fitzcaraldo215 stated that JRiver could sort by album alone, Kroupa continued to assert that JRiver could not sort by album.

 

Miscommunication?

 

Kroupa would be correct in saying "I don't know how to sort by Album name without Artist name".  That is quite different from saying that JRiver does not support sorting by Album name alone.

 

Kroupa may have meant something else entirely.  Fitzcaraldo215 and I have pointed out that his oeiginal statement is not correct.  It is up to Kroupa to state what he actually means.

 

 

 

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Yes, miscommunication. After reading tens of thousands of posts per year for a while, I often see someone try to describe a view or something while they aren't at their computer. Usually it turns out to be a bit different once screenshots are available. The accusers usually say, "oh in that case ..." Or, the person is actually helped in the long run because they were incorrect. Telling someone they don't know what they are talking about is much more abrasive than it needs to be. If you are an abrasive person, then I guess that just you. However, I'm willing to bet you aren't. 

 

I'm just suggesting a little patience and leniency until things are actually figured out. 

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I included a typical compilation album. And I have screenshots from the three programs that I use plus tagscanner.

 

In general I think that Jriver is an excellent software. BUT I am used to something else in terms of support and customization. As I wrote before I don't like the attitude in their forums. If they listened us I would be much happier. If I didn't believe that I wouldn't have bought a master license twice. It's my main player in Linux since it's far more superior than anything else there.

roon.png

jriver.png

tagscanner.png

foobar.png

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