Rajeshh
Well-Known Member
Looks like there is a lot of interest in the ELAC Discovery Music server, this is piece of kit that ive used for sometime and has remained, while the rest of my system has changed.
It all began after i had bought the LS50 Wireless speaker, a great sounding package with a built in DAC.
It's a finicky speaker system - stands, toe-in, distance from wall. Everything made a difference.
I experimented with Tidal & HD audio files, direct from my Mac mini to the LS50's USB input. Compared to a dedicated CD transport at the dealers place, it was not satisfactory. I also tried Audioirvana+ but found the UI to be extremely cumbersome.
I was clear about one thing, i was not going the CD Transport way, digital music for me is about convenience and Tidal HIFI streaming was my choice.
I finally tried Roon on trial and loved the experience, the UI was a revelation. But something was amiss, the sound quality while better than my previous experiments, was still "not quite there." i realised that the built-in DAC in the LS50 Wireless was the weak link.
Enter a friendly dealer who agreed to loan the ELAC Discovery.
The Discovery brought out the missing "X factor" from my LS50s - Sound-staging, precise imaging, Pace & rhythm, and dynamics.
Music was just more forceful and involving.
I would term the Sound as warm & involving as opposed to in your face with details.
I tried the optical out from Discovery VS the RCA, absolutely no comparison the RCA is king of the hill.
Since then i have moved to a Kef reference 1, Wyred4Sound mono blocks & PreAmp. The Discovery remains in my system and i still enjoy it.
I have compared the Discovery against the Bluesound N2, Auralic Aries mini, Apple TV (Gen 3 with optical out & current gen) & the DAC in the Peachtree Nova300 Integrated. In each instance the Discovery is head and shoulder above the rest.
The caveat is that, the Discovery while very very good, is not the holy grail in digital audio, I recently happened to try a Ulrarendu feeding a Mytek Brooklyn DAC+ (A loaner from a friend). The sound was much better than the Discovery.
Well, as they say HiFI is endless pit & there is no end to upgrades.
More impressions.
The ELAC Discovery runs Roon Essentials. The UI & experience is the same as full Roon, but there are many differences.
Some advantages like
1. No need for Roon software license, thus save on the $ .The Discovery ships with Roon Essentials pre-installed.
2. Set-up is a breeze, a) just plug the Ethernet port to the Discovery b) Install Roon Essentials "remote" App on your IoS/Android device or Computer c) Make sure the Discovery & the remote is in the same network. d) Configure Tidal inside Roon Essentials via the remote e) All set
3. the Discovery picks up your Media in the network, shows Tidal songs as well, Everything is catalogued via Roon's interface.
4. It is truly a plug and play device - If you want to play a song, just fire up the App and enjoy.
5. No need for separate Roon server, core etc., the Discovery is all you need - No additional HW or SW needed.
Some limitations are
2. Library limited to 30,000 songs (Note this is only for files on LAN/NAS and not streaming media)
3. No Signal path look up
4. No DSD support.
4. No USB output. Output is RCA, Optical (96/24), Coax (192/24)
I would gladly recommend the ELAC discovery music server to anyone, but it is especially excellent value for some who does not yet have a serious DAC and chooses to use the RCA to pre-amp or integrated amp.
This mix of sound quality and connivence is hard to beat.
It all began after i had bought the LS50 Wireless speaker, a great sounding package with a built in DAC.
It's a finicky speaker system - stands, toe-in, distance from wall. Everything made a difference.
I experimented with Tidal & HD audio files, direct from my Mac mini to the LS50's USB input. Compared to a dedicated CD transport at the dealers place, it was not satisfactory. I also tried Audioirvana+ but found the UI to be extremely cumbersome.
I was clear about one thing, i was not going the CD Transport way, digital music for me is about convenience and Tidal HIFI streaming was my choice.
I finally tried Roon on trial and loved the experience, the UI was a revelation. But something was amiss, the sound quality while better than my previous experiments, was still "not quite there." i realised that the built-in DAC in the LS50 Wireless was the weak link.
Enter a friendly dealer who agreed to loan the ELAC Discovery.
The Discovery brought out the missing "X factor" from my LS50s - Sound-staging, precise imaging, Pace & rhythm, and dynamics.
Music was just more forceful and involving.
I would term the Sound as warm & involving as opposed to in your face with details.
I tried the optical out from Discovery VS the RCA, absolutely no comparison the RCA is king of the hill.
Since then i have moved to a Kef reference 1, Wyred4Sound mono blocks & PreAmp. The Discovery remains in my system and i still enjoy it.
I have compared the Discovery against the Bluesound N2, Auralic Aries mini, Apple TV (Gen 3 with optical out & current gen) & the DAC in the Peachtree Nova300 Integrated. In each instance the Discovery is head and shoulder above the rest.
The caveat is that, the Discovery while very very good, is not the holy grail in digital audio, I recently happened to try a Ulrarendu feeding a Mytek Brooklyn DAC+ (A loaner from a friend). The sound was much better than the Discovery.
Well, as they say HiFI is endless pit & there is no end to upgrades.
More impressions.
The ELAC Discovery runs Roon Essentials. The UI & experience is the same as full Roon, but there are many differences.
Some advantages like
1. No need for Roon software license, thus save on the $ .The Discovery ships with Roon Essentials pre-installed.
2. Set-up is a breeze, a) just plug the Ethernet port to the Discovery b) Install Roon Essentials "remote" App on your IoS/Android device or Computer c) Make sure the Discovery & the remote is in the same network. d) Configure Tidal inside Roon Essentials via the remote e) All set
3. the Discovery picks up your Media in the network, shows Tidal songs as well, Everything is catalogued via Roon's interface.
4. It is truly a plug and play device - If you want to play a song, just fire up the App and enjoy.
5. No need for separate Roon server, core etc., the Discovery is all you need - No additional HW or SW needed.
Some limitations are
2. Library limited to 30,000 songs (Note this is only for files on LAN/NAS and not streaming media)
3. No Signal path look up
4. No DSD support.
4. No USB output. Output is RCA, Optical (96/24), Coax (192/24)
I would gladly recommend the ELAC discovery music server to anyone, but it is especially excellent value for some who does not yet have a serious DAC and chooses to use the RCA to pre-amp or integrated amp.
This mix of sound quality and connivence is hard to beat.
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