HDX and Roon Nucleus+

[scott]

Hello,

I hope someone can help. I have searched the forum but not seen this specific problem.

I use an HDX for ripping CDs (I have around 2000 on my NAS). They are ripped as WAV files.

Recently I purchased a Roon Nucleus+. I have installed a Samsung 2Tb SSD in the Nucleus+ and would like to move HDX ripped files to the Nucleus+ to have a silent one box solution. The intention is to also create a HDX Music Store on the Nucleus+ so future purchased CDs are ripped to that location. I know I have to use the HDX “Move music” facility to preserve the integrity of the metadata and HDX database.

However I have run into a few issues.

1. I cannot access the HDX screen via a browser (minor pain but typing in long network paths on the HDX screen is not easy). I assume that this is because Adobe Flash no longer works.

2. The HDX picks up the Nucleus+\data location as a Music Share and I can promote this to a Store. However if I proceed then music files and CD rips will end up on the same SSD as the Roon OS. Not recommended by Roon, and besides, the SSD is too small for all my CDs.

3. I need to move my music store from my NAS to the new Samsung internal SSD in the Nucleus+. First though, I have to set up a HDX Music Share (later to be promoted to Music Store on the new internal SDD. I have created a music folder on the drive (\nucleusplus\data\storage\internalstorage\music) but the HDX is not automatically picking this up during its scans of the network. I can navigate to the drive from my laptop so it is there and properly formatted. If I try to manually add the location of this drive via the HDX DTC, i.e. try to add \nucleusplus\data\storage\internalstorage\music as a Music Share, I get an error message saying: “Unable to add Network Share. A value is required for Hostname, IPAddress and Share before an external storage share can be added”.

What can be done?

I guess one solution is to try to convert all the HDX WAV files to FLAC and then just copy them over to the internalstorage folder of the Nuclueus+ . But that would mean having to rip future CDs to a separate NAS and then remembering to copy the ripped CD every time. I don’t really want to do that.

Any ideas?

Thanks in advance!
Scott.

[CrystalGipsy]

User name and password to use access storage on systems that need authentication is normally guest and guest for the Nucleus.

Ipaddress will be what your network assigns it check this in the nucleus UI. Hostname is just nucleusplus.

It might be the HDX is not resolving host name in you path, you could try substituting it with its IP address instead of nucleusplus.

[scott]

Thanks CrystalGipsy,

Yes…I have tried IP address (\192.168.1.xxx), entering the host name (\nucleusplus) and I have used “Guest” for logon/password.

I get the same message in all cases.

I am wondering if the HDX, Unitiserve etc only scan/connect to top level folders, ie: \NASHost\folder, and not to subfolders.

In my case I want the HDX to connect to \Nucleusplus\data\storage\internalstorage\HDX music

Scott.

[ChrisSU]

@scott

I cannot access the HDX screen via a browser (minor pain but typing in long network paths on the HDX screen is not easy). I assume that this is because Adobe Flash no longer works.

Instructions for an alternative to Flash for access to the HDX browser interface:

UnitiServe Web Interface After Adobe Flash?

Morning Gents, Fear not as the mighty Unitiserve and derivs will continue to work. To access the web interface after Flash is blocked in modern browsers is: Download the “Adobe Flash Projector” exe. See: https://www.adobe.com/support/flashplayer/debug_downloads.html Launch the app and go to file->open. If your server is at IP address 192.168.0.61 then type in http://192.168.0.61/TV.swf The web UI will then show, all independent of any web browser. Screenshot attached of the above in …

I’ve always found that certain setup tasks like this only ever work on the ‘browser interface’, so I think it would be worth giving this a try before following up your other queries.

[scott]

Thanks ChrisSU,
I followed your suggestion and was able to access the HDX via my laptop browser. Still can’t get the HDX to see the internal SDD of the Roon Nucleusplus though.
I have contacted Naim and they think the folder is too deep for the HDX to access. I am waiting for further feedback from head of software.
Thanks for your help with the “Adobe Flash Projector”.
Scott.

[ChrisSU]

Hi Scott
Lets hope Naim can find a way round this, but my guess is that you may have no choice but to use a different solution. It may be that you have to manually copy each CD rip to the Nucleus. It’s going to take a bit more time, but I guess it’s never a bad thing to have a spare copy of your files as a backup.
Either way I would convert the WAVs to FLAC as the file transfers will be quicker, and any future metadata editing will be easier. It will take a while for the HDX to do this.
Ultimately, if you are committed to using Roon is it really worth keeping the HDX? If you don’t use it for storage or as a player or server perhaps sticking DBpoweramp on a computer would be a neater option?

[scott]

Hi ChrisSu,

I agree and I am working on plan “B” just in case. I wasn’t sure about converting the files from WAV to FLAC given some say there might be a tiny quality benefit of leaving them as WAV files. It has taken 24 hours to copy 890GB of data so far…just another 300GB to go! I did a quick trial with SongKong which seemed to indicate it could take the separate metadata produced by the HDX and insert this into the WAV files properly. I have bought a license now so I can finish the job later if Naim are unable to provide a solution/workaround. I’m a Roon convert and have paid for my lifetime subscription

It would be a shame if the HDX, Unitiserve, Uniticore etc could not play nicely with a Roon Nucleus or Nucleusplus with an internal drive.

Thanks again for your help.
Scott.

[ChrisSU]

I still use my Unitiserve as a music store for Roon, and it works fine. (It even means that I can store DSDs on the US and Roon can play them.) Your problem, of course, is just down to the internal drive on the Nucleus not being discoverable.
Another possibility might be to point an automatic backup at your HDX music store, and use the Nucleus SSD as the backup destination. This should have no effect on the HDX database.

Regarding the FLAC vs WAV argument, the consensus was generally that the 1st gen. Naim streamers sounded slightly better with WAV, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t store FLACs. If you use the HDX as a server, you set it to convert FLAC to WAV on playback so that your streamer still sees WAV. If you use Roon, this becomes irrelevant as RAAT sends a PCM stream that is neither FLAC nor WAV by the time it hits your streamer, so again, FLAC becomes a no-brainer for storage.

[scott]

Good point about RAAT sending a PCM stream…I had forgotten about that. As you say, converting everything to FLAC may be the way to go if I cannot get the HDX to discover the internal SDD added to the Nucleus.

[ChrisSU]

If I were you I would convert to FLAC in any case. It takes a bit of time, and once done your options are greater. Not least because if your HDX dies you can immediately continue listening by running a different server.

[scott]

Thanks again ChrisSU.
I have set the storage format to FLAC on the HDX. I think that means that the HDX will now convert files in the store to FLAC. Is there a way to monitor progress? Sorry for the additional questions…

[ChrisSU]

Hi, the conversion process is going to take a while. With a large library, you may find it best to do it in batches, maybe a genre or a few artists at a time. On a Mac, I would do this in the N-Serve app by a Control-click on the material you want to convert. (If you use Windows, I’m pretty sure using the Desktop Client and a Right click would do the same thing.)

[scott]

Got it! Thanks so much for all your help!