If you don't care for how Roon sounds out of the box, it integrates easily with HQPlayer so you can tailor the sound with some HQPlayer DSP. Be warned though.... HQPlayer can be a CPU hog depending on the DSP settings (so in general, low power Pico PCs and NUCs need not apply). I'm running a 2.6GHz quad-core i7 Mac Mini with 16GB RAM and SSDs.
Oh, Roon runs best on an SSD.... or more precisely it's best to run it's database on an SSD especially if you have a large library. Roon also has some nice automated backup features. In addition to a local backup to disk, I backup the Roon database over the internet to my Dropbox account. It's fully automated and 'hands off' once properly setup.
But wait, there's more! Roon has it's own user adjustable DSP as of the February 2017 release. Does it require more or less CPU power than HQPlayer? I don't know as I haven't played with it yet.
Bottom line: Roon sounds great right out of the box but it can be tailored to your liking with some DSP tweaking.
I've been running Roon on my Mac Mini for almost a year now now directly into to my DAC in the office system. I also stream content from the same Mac Mini to my uRendu network streamer in another system and occasionally to the the AppleTV boxes in other parts of our home. I use my iPad as the remote control. Roon also integrates nicely with Tidal.
Bonus: Roon was offering an extended trial period through co-marketing promos with some manufacturers. For example, I received a 60-day free trial promo code inside the AQ Jitterbug box. The 60-day free trial is what got me going on Roon. I'm not sure if they're still offering the extended trial period. The AQ Jitterbug? Meh.
