Interview with Enno Vandermeer - Founder & CEO of Roon Audio - The Ultimate Audiophile Media Player
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- čas přidán 24. 07. 2024
- Enno Vandermeer discusses the sale of Roon and the challenges faced in building the company. He shares his background and early interest in music, as well as the inspiration behind Sooloos. Enno also talks about the transition from hardware to software and the spin-off from Meridian to start Roon. He highlights the rush to release Roon 1.0 and the evolution of the product, including the introduction of lossless streaming. This part of the conversation explores the origins of Roon and its partnership with Tidal. It delves into the different approaches to streaming taken by Wimp and Spotify, highlighting the vision of Roon Ready and the challenges of implementing it. The certification process for Roon Ready devices is discussed, along with the evolution of music discovery in Roon. The potential of AI in music discovery is explored, as well as the challenges with streaming service integration. The future of Roon under Harman is considered, with a focus on expanding features for audiophiles and the rebranding of Muse. In this final part of the conversation, Enno Vandermeer discusses the concept of Muse and how it helps in talking about feature sets in Roon and Roon Arc. He also shares the challenges of launching RuneArc as a separate app and the decision to create a separate app for the on-the-go experience. Enno emphasizes the importance of catering to different user preferences and enabling users to customize their experience. He also reflects on the evolution of Roon and the excitement for the future. Finally, Enno talks about Roon as a virtual company and his experience working remotely from Thailand.
This video is sponsored by Rhapsody Audio -
00:00 Introduction and Congratulations on the Sale of Roon
03:00 The Acquisition by Harman
06:00 The Challenges of Self-Funding a Startup
10:00 Enno's Background and Early Interest in Music
14:00 The Inspiration Behind Sooloos
18:00 Building Hardware and the Challenges Faced
23:00 Entering the Audiophile World and Learning from Meridian
28:00 Spinning Out from Meridian and Starting Roon
35:00 The Rush to Release Roon 1.0
37:00 The Evolution of Roon and the Introduction of Lossless Streaming
38:04 The Origins of Roon and Tidal
39:02 Different Approaches to Streaming: Wimp vs Spotify
40:10 The Vision of Roon Ready
44:43 The Evolution of Roon's Server-Client Architecture
46:10 The Challenges of Implementing Roon Ready
50:45 The Certification Process for Roon Ready Devices
54:46 The Evolution of Music Discovery in Roon
57:56 Using User Data for Recommendations
59:18 The Development of Roon's Database and User Interface
01:04:31 The Potential of AI in Music Discovery
01:09:04 Challenges with Streaming Service Integration
01:12:43 The Future of Roon under Harman
01:16:43 The Independence of Roon within Harman
01:18:36 Expanding Features for Audiophiles
01:19:39 The Rebranding of Muse and Enhanced Functionality
01:20:28 Introducing Muse
01:21:07 The Challenges of Launching RuneArc
01:22:16 The Decision to Create a Separate App
01:23:14 Catering to Different User Preferences
01:24:09 The Evolution of Roon
01:25:35 The Future of Roon
01:25:45 Roon as a Virtual Company - Věda a technologie
Enjoyed this very much David and Enno, good to see you both.
So happy for Roon and Harman. Good seeing you both and great job on the interview.
I have seen quite a few interviews with Enno, but this was the first all encompassing where you guys took it from the very very beginnings of Sooloos/Roon right up to potential Harmon future. Great job.
I love Roon. I have been a lifetime subscriber since July 2015. I am also fairly active in the Roon forums... :) I will say this: I am concerned whether Roon will have the same objectives after the acquisition. My question to the Roon guys:
What is Harman's key interest? RAAT and the massive number of devices you've brought under your umbrella? Or is it something else?
On a completely different note: I am curious how much resources go into database maintenance and curation, structural code maintenance, and RoonReady integration in devices?
Some of this you will find answers to in the interview 😀
@@PioneersofSonicExcellenceUnderstood. I would like more detail. :)
Really enjoyed this conversation. As a 5+ year Roon user, someone who works in tech and loves music passionately, I loved hearing about the development and evolution of what became Roon
Thanks!
This is the best audiophile related content I’ve consumed in years! Stoked to see where you take the channel from here - thank you for sharing it with us audio nuts!
appreciate!
Soo excited to see you share this my friend !!
Enjoyed this discussion so much. Now if only I knew where to send my wishes for a better Roon! Off the top of my head my most desired improvement is to the iOS app I use almost exclusively. The app could have a much better look and feel and be much easier to use. But most importantly it needs to be fuller featured to match the capability as much as possible of the desktop editor. This is extra important for me because I have significant pain when sitting and my iPad leaves me free to position myself in a way that is less painful. I *need* the app to be better. But it *should* be better anyway. Signed by a Roon lifer
It's true, the iOS iPhone app is pretty limited. Pretty much just a remote. On the iPad it's as fully functional as the mac version.
Which is not much.
@@sylviarienzo6955 ok, that’s your opinion. In my experience there’s no better music interface available.
Great interview. As a lifetime Roon user, I wish Arc would work for me. In my opinion, it needs lots of work.
ROON is easy. Once it’s setup, the app is easy to navigate. My wife loves it and believe me she isn’t tech savvy at all.
Subscribed! Best wishes on the new channel, David.
Ultimate - meaning terminal?