Choosing a Thinvent Mini PC for a Roon Server
Roon runs on Windows 10 or later, macOS 12 or later, and Linux, and it can also run on supported NAS platforms. The Roon hardware guidance lists an Intel Core i3 (Ivy Bridge or later), 4 GB RAM, an SSD boot drive, and a 1440 x 900 display as the recommended baseline. Performance and the experience depend on the size of your music library and the power of your hardware. Roon Server also needs OpenGL 3.0 support on Windows.
For a quiet, high-fidelity Roon Server, a small fanless or low-noise system with an SSD boot drive is a practical choice. The Thinvent products below meet the recommended baseline. Their Intel Core i3, i5 and i7 processors have 6 to 12 cores and up to 5.0 GHz, and each has at least 8 GB of RAM. Each includes a 256 GB or larger SSD.
Key Specifications for a Roon Server
| Product | Processor | Cores | Max Frequency | RAM | Storage | OS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thinvent Aero Mini PC | Intel Core i3-1215U | 6 | 4.4 GHz | 8 GB DDR4 | 256 GB SSD | Windows 11 Pro |
| Thinvent Industrial PC IPC3 | Intel Core i3-1215U | 6 | 4.4 GHz | 8 GB DDR4 | 256 GB SSD | Ubuntu Linux |
| Thinvent Industrial PC IPC5 | Intel Core i5-1240P | 12 | 4.4 GHz | 16 GB DDR4 | 512 GB SSD | Windows 11 IoT Value |
| Thinvent Industrial PC IPC5 | Intel Core i7-1255U | 10 | 4.7 GHz | 16 GB DDR4 | 512 GB SSD | Windows 11 Pro |
| Thinvent Aero Mini PC | Intel Core 5 120U | 10 | 5.0 GHz | 16 GB DDR4 | 512 GB SSD | Windows 11 Pro |
The Thinvent Treo Mini PC with AMD Ryzen 5 7430U (6 cores, up to 4.3 GHz, 16 GB DDR4, 512 GB SSD, Windows 11 Pro) is also available. The Thinvent Treo Mini PC with Intel N5095A (4 cores, 4 GB RAM, 128 GB SSD, Ubuntu Linux) is below the recommended memory and storage baseline for a large library.
Use Cases
A Roon Server on a Thinvent mini PC can serve as the core of a whole-home audio system. It can manage a large music library and stream to Roon Ready speakers and networked devices. It can also serve as a Roon Bridge endpoint.
Thinvent Products for Roon Server
Thinvent has mini PCs and industrial PCs with Intel Core processors, 8 GB to 32 GB of DDR4 RAM, and 256 GB to 1 TB SSDs. Windows 11 and Ubuntu Linux are available. The Thinvent range does not include an ARM-based system for a Roon Core, but its Micro 5R thin client with ARM Cortex A53 can serve as an output endpoint.
