Diretta Listening Sessions with Jim Hunton
John Hughes | Published on 2/1/2026
Jim hosted two Diretta listening sessions at his home on January 10th with a total of 9 club members attending. They compared a two-node Diretta System (AudioLinux and Raspberry Pi based) against the native streamer in his Meitner MA3i DAC Attendees were encouraged to choose their own music selections to play from Tidal and Qobuz, resulting in an eclectic mix across genres and recording styles. Between tracks, the group discussed what they were hearing as Jim switched between the two streamers in his living room system.
The listening impressions were about what you'd expect when gathering audiophiles in a room: varied, nuanced, and sometimes contradictory. Several listeners noted that the Diretta offered improved focus and spatial precision, with instrumental lines more clearly defined and performers more precisely placed on the soundstage. Some found these differences immediately apparent and continuous throughout the session. However, the Meitner's internal streamer held its own, with some attendees preferring it on certain tracks - one specifically noting better bass definition, another finding it superior on a particular vocal jazz selection. One attendee made the astute observation that separating streamer differences from interface differences (internal versus USB) was challenging.
Consensus among audiophiles is about as rare as a speaker with a flat frequency curve so the opinions as to which was best wasn't universal across all material or to all ears. Some found the differences subtle, while others heard more obvious distinctions. One listener described the Diretta as making the music "more enjoyable, and less analytical," highlighting how personal preferences shape what we value in playback. The technical observations ranged from noting reduced coherent noise to questioning whether the sonic signatures were inherent to the streamers themselves or artifacts of their different connection methods. The consensus, if audiophiles ever reach such a thing, was that both streamers were highly capable and that preferences depended on the music, the listener, and what specific qualities each person values. The real success of the session was the opportunity to gather, share music, and engage in thoughtful listening and discussion. If you’re looking for a new Roon endpoint, the two node Diretta and AudioLinux system is a very high-performance solution and a bargain at ~ $550.
The Audiophile Foundation is planning some 'System Hop' events in the future where a number of members can host groups to listen to their system in sequence. If you are interested in opening your home to groups as small as 4 in participation, please email events@audiophilefoundation.org.