MELCO N10/2 MUSIC SERVER

Review Extracts - Feature Insights

The Melco is a small unit, understated but visually elegant in its simplicity. The umbilical connecting the power supply to the main unit is pretty short, meaning that the two sections either have to sit side by side or can be stacked. Overall build quality is excellent with the solid aluminium casework on both boxes finished to very high standards. Take a look inside and you’ll see that care has been taken to decouple any sensitive audio circuit from external vibrations.

Sound
We start by using the N10/2 as a music server feeding  our reference Naim ND555/555 PS DR music streamer. The rest of the set-up is our usual reference system of Burmester 088/911 Mk III amplifier and ATC SCM 50 speakers. Our usual server is Naim’s Uniti Core, which has worked well over the years.

There will always be those that think digital things like servers make no difference to sound quality, but that isn’t the case in our experience. While noting that the Melco comes in at more than four times the cost of our Uniti Core, there is no denying that we hear way more in terms of subtle detail and authority when listening to a range of files off the N10/2.

There’s a sense of power and solidity that the same music files accessed from the Naim lack. As we listen to Tchaikovsky’s Marché Slave Op.31, the presentation is sharply etched without being obtrusive, and a precise as we’ve heard. It’s more open than we’re used to, with greater space around the instruments. We’re more aware of the orchestra’s power and its dynamic reach. There’s also a truer sense of the recording venue in terms of size and scale. 

A quick comparison to Melco’s less costly N100 ‘music library’ – broadly the same price as the Naim Uniti Core – shows that both siblings share the same crisp, clean and precise character, but the N10/2 shows considerable advantages when it comes to muscularity and expression.

We add an outboard DAC to the N10/2 in the form of Chord’s excellent Hugo TT2 (£4750 / $6725 / AU$9000), and the combination turns into one of the finest music streamers that we’ve heard. Whether taking high-res files from its own hard drive or the Uniti Core, this pairing delivers a combination of clarity and authority that's hard to better.

Nick Cave’s Carnage set comes through with unusual boldness; the presentation rich with texture with low level details brushed up for inspection. There is so much information but it’s organised in a musically cohesive way, one that encourages the listener to focus on the music rather than analyse the production or recording. We love the confident way this Melco/Chord combo paints Cave’s distinctive tones and the surefooted manner with which it handles the album's mostly easy-going rhythms.

Hans Zimmer’s Interstellar OST is a massively demanding piece of music with densely layered instrumentation, deep extended lows and some savage dynamics. The Melco/Chord pairing shines here, delivering huge, expansive soundscapes that are wonderfully stable and beautifully layered.

The sound is composed and there’s always a feeling of everything being under control no matter how demanding the music gets. Dynamic extremes are handled with ease and there’s a terrific amount of insight and heft at low frequencies that makes even our reference Naim streamer sound a little light and ill-defined in this region.

Tonally things are even, though on the slightly tauter, leaner side of neutral. Those looking for a rich or overly smooth sound would do better by swapping the Chord DAC for a more suitable alternative, though we doubt you’ll find anything more insightful for similar money.

We listen to a wide range of music from Bob Marley’s evergreen Legend set to Radiohead’s brilliant In Rainbows album, taking in the likes of Stevie Wonder, Bruce Springsteen and Mahler in between, and the N10/2 never misses a beat. Once set-up properly it works well and in a fuss free manner. 

Verdict
The Melco N10/2-S38 is expensive, and on paper doesn’t look great value. But in use it’s a charmer. If you’re looking for a cutting-edge high-end digital source this one deserves to be near the top of your list.

Scores

Sound 5 / Build 5 / Features 5