Intro
Contents
There are products where you have an instant connection. And there are products where that just takes time if it happens at all. The Innuos ZEN belongs to the second category. It’s a product that almost made us scratch our head to the point we almost became bald. Let’s explain that, because there are multiple reasons!
Your author has a strong feeling that he is going to stir up a lot of angry tongues soon. Then again: that’s part of the job. But for now, please leave the rotten tomatoes alone.
To come straight to the point: we have spent a long time thinking about the usefulness of the Innuos ZEN. Where does this product fit in the component list of a hi-fi system? You see, the Innuos ZEN is a bit of a crazy product. Admittedly, the ZEN is technically very well put together. And yes: Innuos has obviously put a lot of thought into it, but nevertheless a few things are wacky.
Anyway: before we give everything away…. let’s sketch and start nuancing things. Because that is necessary… innuos deserves that as well as the ZEN.
Servers and stuff
Followers of the platform – thanks for the loyalty! – know that at Alpha Audio we don’t shy away from dealing with tricky topics. Network stuff, cables… we always try to get to the bottom of it ánd explain why something works or doesn’t work. That also makes the work interesting. Doesn’t it?
With streaming audio, many products and links are added to the hi-fi chain. Think of a data network and also physical storage of music. And of course the media software to get it to the streamers. If you combine some of the stuff, you get to a system like ROON where a “server / core” is needed to control the “endpoints / players.
ROON has its own Nucleus server to support the Core software. A product that helps the end user by making the server plug and play. Silent Angel has its Rhein hardware. Aurender has its ecosystem… and so there are more ‘server’ products. From affordable to extremely pricey.
Why does the ZEN exist?
What does the preceding story about servers have to do with the ZEN? Well: the ZEN is a server. Its purpose is to put your music on the ZEN. Players can then play the music from the ZEN. You can also add accounts from Qobuz and Tidal to the ZEN to stream music from these services from the Sense app.
We take a small step back to put things in context. In fact, Innuos has developed its own operating system (InnuOS). The server and players run on this operating system which is basically a modified SqueezeOS. Fine; nothing wrong with that. In fact, ROON is also a modified version of Linux. But let’s not get into that.
The special thing about the Innuos ZEN is that it can work in multiple modes. For example, the ZEN can also act as a ROON core as well as support UPnP. In short, it is a three-in-one product: InnuOS, ROON and UPnP. Handy for those who have multiple devices in their network…right?
… Yes and no, because it is not possible to stream streams from Tidal and Qobuz to UPnP clients. That can only be done to Innuos streamers. Or via Roon to Roon endpoints of course … but you can’t use Roon and InnuOS at the same time. So that’s a case of: either/or…. Bit of a shame though. We hope it will be possible to use Tidal and Qobuz via the ZEN on UPnP clients.
You probably already see where we are going … the question is: who is this fancy server for now? Basically for people with Roon products. Or people with Innuos streamers. But not so much for the rest of the market. Because then this ZEN server is just frankly not that useful. So unless they can stream multiple online services ALSO to other UPnP clients.
Everything on one disc
So the Innuos ZEN is primarily a media server. That means all the music you have will be on the ZEN. There are servers with 1, 2 and 4TB hard drives, or SSDs up to even 8TB. That should really be enough for practically everyone.
We have talked to Innuos about the single disk in the ZEN. We think it’s a data loss risk. Disks just break down. The question is not if, but when.
That’s the reason we have a NAS that holds all the music. If a disk fails, there is no problem. Now RAID is not a backup, but the fact is: if a disk fails, you don’t lose everything. With the ZEN, that would be disastrous, since there is thus no mirror or other form of RAID protection: everything is on that one disk.
Now we shouldn’t exaggerate, because the ZEN does have a backup capability. However, that one is manual. They are fortunately working on an automated system that can also backup to a NAS. We think that is a very good and actually crucial addition. Especially considering that hardly anyone thinks about making backups themselves.
Thank you for the review and glad you pay attention to INNUOS. The ZENITH MK3 is an improved version of the ZEN (MK3) as tested here. ZENith mk3 comes with a 3 rail regulated power supply for the motherboard, SSD and USB connections. And you can hear that!
Both were released in 2018 and are still excellent. Also the top model was and still is the Statement, with a power supply in a separate housing; the same size as the streamer itself! Incidentally, all INNUOS- power supplies are designed by Sean Jacobs, one of the best in the business. They are ‘extremely low power streamers’, which benefits sound quality.
The ‘USB output’ can be improved with external add-on of the INNUOS PhoenixUSB.
CD ripping can be set to FLAC or WAV format; the latter should sound better without the compression.
In 2023, INNUOS released the PULSE and PULSAR, which no longer have an SSD and a CD ripper and are designed exclusively for streaming. The PULSAR has three independent power rails, one each for: 1) the operating system on APacer SLC memory, 2) the ‘USB output’ with a modular reclocker that can be replaced on request (in 2024), and 3) the motherboard.
The INNUOS Sense APP is highly appreciated by users for the perfect integration of your entire music library on SSD, NAS and TIDAL/QOBUZ.
I understand that you are busy with streamers, among other things, but I highly recommend testing the latest INNUOS PULSAR.
Good luck!
PS.
You wrote : ”It is not possible to stream from Tidal and Qobuz to UPnP clients”.
I can stream Tidal to clients ‘UPnP servers’ (INNUOS terminology) and SONOS speakers with my ZENith without any problem. This should work.
Maybe try: under SETTINGS > SYSTEM UPDATE, check if the latest version 2.4.7 is installed. You can also try to turn SETTINGS > UPnP > Sense UPnP integration on and off once and/or the same for the UPnP function.
CONTACT support available in the same SETTINGS menu is super helpful. If you are offered help, immediately ask if Nuno Vitorino will soon have a PULSAR available for ALPHA-audio ;-).