Reviewing the Innuos ZENmini MK3 and LPSU with BorderPatrol DAC SEI

Guess what there really is music hidden in those digits! Until the Innuos ZENmini Mk3 showed up in my listening room, this “dyed in the wool” vinyl lover didn’t really believe that.

My problem over the years with listening to any digital music except SACDs has not been so much the sound as the lack of engagement with the music. The best digital systems that I have listened to, say those in the $2,000 to $5,000 range, sounded very good, and they didn’t sound “digital”, but in the end, I found it very difficult to engage with the music for very long.

Back in 2008, I wrote a review for Dagogo, and I asked PeterQ to share his views on the basic differences between how CD and vinyl sound. He answered:

“My view is that digital cannot resemble the original because of the inaccuracies introduced at the point of entry in the digital domain. The errors and omissions introduced by all current and past methods of conversion are so great that, at best, all we get is a cardboard copy of the original and it is clearly audible, as a quick comparison between a decent turntable and even the most expensive CD replay set up will quickly reveal.”

Until now I have agreed with his view, and while I am nowhere close to saying that the ZENmini digital system is better than analog, I do find it musically engaging. I can easily tell you where it falls short, but I still find it emotionally involving, and that is a huge step forward for digital in my life.

So far, I’ve only listened to the Innuos ZENmini Mk3 combo with the BorderPatrol SEI DAC. This combo cost less than $4,000, and it is by far the most satisfying digital playback that I’ve heard at any price. The closest I’ve had in for review costs more than ten times as this much as this combo.

I reviewed the BoarderPatrol DAC back in August and loved it so much that I bought it. You can read my review here. Still, I had no idea how good it was until I got the ZENmini Mk3. Adding the Innuos Linear Power Supply Unit (LPSU) took the sound to a whole new level.

Description

The ZENmini Mk3 has more features than the Mk2 had, but it is still a streamlined music server. The most significant change from the Mk2 to the Mk3 is that the Mk3 uses a custom-designed motherboard that is optimized for audio performance instead of an off-the-shelf unit.

The Mk3 uses a custom high-end-audio operating system that is very user-friendly. It also has a built-in drive for ripping CDs. It works well with Roon and even has a Sonos mode for people with that ecosystem. It stores up to eight terabytes of music on an internal drive. It will also stream from local network storage or from Qobuz, Tidal, and Spotify and can also play internet radio stations.

All of this comes in a chassis that is just 8.4 inches wide, 9.5 inches deep, and 2.8 inches tall. The ZENmini Linear Power Supply Unit is the same size and comes with an umbilical cord.

The audio optimization in the ZENmini starts with the Ethernet input and goes all the way to the outputs. There are plenty of outputs; a Toslink, an SPIDF coaxial and an Ethernet output that serves as a passthrough for another network device. There’s also an RCA analog out–yes, the Mk3 has an integrated DAC onboard. The chassis has also been improved with floating isolation for storage and optical drives to reduce noise from vibration.

The Innuos Operating System

So far I have only talked about the hardware, but what makes the ZENmini special is the Innuos operating system. First, let me say it is as user-friendly as it gets. If this old vinyl guy can figure it out so can you. Once set up, I found the system to be pretty much “set-and-forget”.

I really liked that I could rip CDs by just inserting a CD. It was also very easy for me, yes even me, to manage the music library and back it up to an external location. In case you have any network issues, you can access Innuos’ technical support team remotely over the internet.

I know there is more that I could say about the Innuos software, but I’ll be honest and admit that I don’t know enough to say more. So, let’s talk about what I do know, which is how it makes my system sound.

Understanding What Was Missing

I’ve been studying the history of The Blues and Jazz lately. I’ve spent a good bit of time listening to performances from the “Dust-to-Digital” archives. This music comes from the soul. It moves you, involves you, affects you emotionally, and makes you think. It does this with dynamic contrast that startles you and with drive and flow that keeps you listening. It also does this with tonal colors that move you and sometimes can even make you angry.

I share this because the more I learn about music and the more live music I hear, the better I get at putting together a system that I enjoy in my home. Now, I know how to describe what I was missing previously when I listened to a digital source.

The digital sources I listened to lacked soul and the color pallet of tones that are needed for me to be engaged in the performance. I think this is because I never had the right source to feed the Audio Note DACs I had. I would love to hear a system with an Innuos music server and an Audio Note level three or higher DAC. I’m sure it would be very engaging, but I’m not sure it would be better than the BorderPatrol SEI DAC.

Listening

The combination of the Innuos ZENmini Mk3 and the BorderPatrol DAC is one of the most soulful sources that I have heard. It paints music from a wonderful palette of tones. The BorderPatrol DAC provides the soul and tones; the Innuos ZENmini Mk3 provides transparency, detail, treble extension, and an incredible soundstage.

In my review of the BorderPatrol DAC, I said, “This little BorderPatrol DAC is a stunning success when it comes to achieving the design goals of sounding natural, sweet, open and organic. If you quit listening critically and just enjoy the performance, I think like me, you will discover that this DAC allows for a degree of emotional involvement that you just don’t get from even some of the most expensive digital devices.“

Even though I was so pleased with the sound of the BorderPatrol DAC that bought it, until I paired it with the ZENmini, I was still listening to vinyl over 90 percent of the time. The ZENmini with the LPSU changed all of that. I’ll admit that it is still a big step down from my vinyl setup that is priced at over $30K. Still, this is a digital setup that is engaging and very emotionally involving.

Some Finer Points

Now for a few words about some finer points that a lot of audiophiles want to know. First, the one place that this digital combo is better than my analog rig is in the bass; it goes so low with incredible authority. Next, the midrange is pure, sweet, detailed, and very transparent with no hint of digital glare. In terms of size, it had a soundstage that was as good as any source I have used, and the layering of the soundstage was also quite good.

It is the way this combo handles musicality though that makes it better than any digital I have had in my home. It lets me hear real musical flow and big tones with great tonal colors. The “Pace, Rhythm and Timing” is very involving.

Conclusion

Overall the Innuos/BoarderPatrol combo has changed my mind about the possibility of having a long-term relationship with a digital music source. I highly recommend both the Innuos ZENmini Mk3 and the BorderPatrol DAC SEI as individual products. As a pair, however, they far exceed anything else that is close to their price.