Getting back on thread subject:
Last weekend I installed Minimserver/Java/M.Watch & had a more serious listen over two evenings to compare with Asset ( R6.3 beta).
iPad, Synology DS214, ethernet via switch to NDX, playing WAV 16+24bit & DSD64, electric rock, acoustic folk, jazz, small ensemble & full orchestra.
This confirmed again that there is very little to choose thats different in sound terms.
Operation, ease of use, configuration etc., I found Asset so much easier, but to be fair Iāve put that down to familiarity.
I have not found anything that persuades me to change from Asset.
Maybe a different NAS model or brand with different CPU, OS or RAM will show up something different.
A month back I had Asset, Minim, Linn Kazoo Server and Twonky installed on a Debian Linux mini-ITX.
Using tunedem-tests I preferred Twonky (8.5.1) using .WAV-files with ID3-tags. But the differences was not that large and most notable with orchestral harmonies (like Wagner). Up to then I had been running Minim.
I have both Asset 6.2 and latest Minimserver installed to my low cpu power 119+ QNAP. I have not compared them because i have all my files in FLAC and Asset plays them as WAV but Minim as FLAC.
I know Minim can play WAV too but i have not configured it yet. Do i need install other packages to QNAP in order to do so?
No, Minimserver can transcode FLAC to WAV āon the flyā too.
On all platoforms? where this can declared on QNAP? I am reading documentation and says that needs ffmpeg installed
Not exactly, one has to install the MinimStreamer extension to MinimServer in order to transcode .flac files to .wav, see https://minimstreamer.com/.
After installation, simply enter āflac:wavā in the stream.transcode field of the āSystemā menu via MinimWatch.
I am trying right now to configure this on QNAP via command line. I have managed so far to install static version of ffmpeg program in the appropriate directory/share/HDA_DATA/.qpkg/MinimServer/opt/bin]
Now remains (i think) to find where i put flac:wav optionā¦
I can see a line with stream.transcode = flac\:wav in minimserver/data/minimserver.config but I never edited this file directly. I have configured MinimServer using MinimWatch, as explained above.
āflac:wav24ā means that 16bits files will be converted to 24bits files, however.
If you only want to change the format by leaving the sample rate and the bits depth unchanged, the setting is āflac:wavā, I believe.
Today i continued my minimserver research. I installed minimwatch on my windows 10 desktop in an effort to configure flac:wav conversion but i can not see all options that appear on Peter1480ās screenshot
This is because, as explained above, you have not installed the MinimStreamer extension to MinimServer.
2 Likes
Thanks a lot, i installed MinimStreamer from MinimWatch and missing options appeared!
A little confusing procedure because i installed something on QNAP server using a Windows programā¦
Great, at this point you should have no problems setting up MinimServer according to your needs. Enjoy, nbpf
I can hear no difference b/w Bubble server (Kazoo), MinimServer, or Asset with my locally stored AIFF, FLAC, and hi res files on a QNAP TS-251A.
Hi all. Apologies for the delay in coming back. Iām in the process of moving back into my house after a year away and am still unpacking and sorting things.
I have to say I wasnāt expecting so much interest and so many responses to this post and wondered what kind of monster Iād created!
The latest news is that although Iām still convinced there are differences, itās less easy now to pick a clear favourite. There appears to be pros and cons for both. I usually feel MinimServer has a bit more body to the sound - for example listening to a Brandi Carlile 24/96 download of āEvery Time I Hear That Songā, when the bass comes in, it seems there is more of it - which can be initially impressive but Asset seems slightly easier to listen to, especially on some vocals. To put this into perspective, I would now concede the differences arenāt quite as huge as Iād maybe intimated in my initial amazement at noticing any difference at all, but in my set-up I think do exist. To complicate things further, I reconnected my Sony laptop with USB hard drive using Asset which I had been using for the last year, and to me this sounded just a touch more natural and relaxed than either uPnP option on the QNAP NAS which sounded more analytical. That was certainly not what I wanted to hear! (Identical Ethernet cables used on both to same switch. )
I know the temptation is to think itās all imagined, but Iām not one to look for differences of these sorts usually preferring the simple life. When I had a much more upmarket Naim system I once borrowed a Melco and some very expensive Ethernet cables and really struggled to hear any significant differences so this is bizarre for me. Perhaps Iām just getting paranoid in my old age!
I am heartened by @Simon-in-Suffolkās comments that these differences are not (as?) apparent in the new streamers as I am planning to get myself sorted with probably either an Atom or Nova once Iāve got myself more settled - right now itās an ideal opportunity to do a lot of long overdue repair and decorating work on my house whilst most things are still in boxes.
Itās been interesting looking at MinimServer. I do agree with @Mike-B that the user experience with Asset is a million times better although I quite like the drill downs in MinimServer. It is stupidly fussy though about both your files (it refused to read the tagging on Naim label WAVs and those created by my Sony PCM recorder which Asset has no problem with) and with metadata in general. It does force you to be very careful I guess with your metadata and as a consequence Iāve corrected quite a few errors that I had.
Anyhow, thanks for all the comments and apologies if Iāve caused any anxieties about anyoneās set up!
P.S. Can definitely recommend the Brandi Carlile album āBy The Way I Forgive Youā having listened to it a lot just lately!
2 Likes
I believe Minim only support the newer ID3 tagging for WAV. Not the old Wav Info. All my files are WAV/ID3 with a lot of tagging and it has worked out so far.
There is the SongKong add-on package for Minim that will read Naim .XML metadaa for WAV but I think that function is only available when run on Melco.
I think you are right, however the WAV List Info tags are the only formally specified meta data tags for WAV, and tend to be the format used for commercial and Windows OS use as well.
The ID3 tags is an unofficial consumer extensionā¦ so it does seem a bit short sighted to only support the unofficial rather than formally specified format ā¦
However quality rippers like dbpoweramp allow both forms to be concurrently written into the file. Itās what I do.
Simon
Iām using Minimserver on a QNAP NAS and it will read Naim WAV rips showing cover art, artist, album title and tracks on the Naim app. which is all I really need.