Sonore Signature Rendu SE Deluxe Review

    Audio: Listen to this article.

Wow, I can’t believe I haven’t written an in-depth article about a single Sonore Rendu variant since 2019. Considering that I awarded the Rendu series the Audiophile Style Product of the Decade (2010-2020), and I use a Rendu, in one form or another, almost every day, 2019 seems like a lifetime ago for my last Rendu article. It’s time to dig into the newest and best release to date from the Sonore team, the Signature Rendu SE Deluxe.

The Sonore Signature Rendu SE Deluxe Details

The new Signature Rendu SE Deluxe is a major upgrade from Signature Rendus of the past. It all starts with a brand new main board. The team didn’t just replace a couple inconsequential parts and call it Deluxe. This is a new main board with a new network circuit based on a Broadcom integrate circuit. Based on my research and experience, these Broadcom chips are a big deal. In fact, they are highly sought after in network switches for datacenters as well. Sonore also removed the USB hub inside the new Signature Rendu SE Deluxe, in favor of a newer USB circuit design.

Talking to the Sonore team, one thing is very clear, these guys understand competition and it’s constantly pushing them to improve their products. This push enabled them to discover a much better way of implementing their clock injection that elevates the Signature Rendu SE Deluxe’s performance well beyond that of any Rendu that has come before it. In addition, and I know some people who will be fans of this improvement, the team found a way to reduce CPU cycles, resulting in lower processing, lower heat production, and lower noise.

Working with engineer John Swenson and a top tier manufacturing facility in Canada, the team improved how the CPU connects to the main board I/O, increasing stability over all previous Rendu units. Given that some digital audio can still be a bit Wild West these days, I support all stability improvements like this.

The Signature Rendu SE Deluxe retains nearly the same custom power supply as the previous version, with a few changes. The circuit that damps ringing from the transformer has been improved, resulting in lower noise. And, a very subtle value adjustment, to the final decoupling capacitor before the discrete voltage regulator circuit, was made to improve stability of the already superbly performing power supply.

The software side of all Rendu products is constantly being improved as well. Version 2.9 is current, and what my review unit is running. I was very happy to see Sonore and its Signature Rendu SE Deluxe listed in the certified Plays with Audirvana partner section of the Audirvana website. This is very important for UPnP, as many of us know it can be the most nonstandard standard. Assuring a level of performance and compatibility is great for consumers and manufacturers alike.

In addition to the Rendu, I’ve been using a Small Green Computer sonicTransporter i9 (Gen 4) server running Audirvana Studio / Core Player for Linux. I’ve used many sonicTransporters over the years and enjoy the ease and rock solid performance that comes with them. The i9 Gen 4 is the latest, and best, version. Paired with Audirvana, this really could be THE server for many people who love Audirvana but have been “stuck” in the Mac/PC world all these years because Audirvana required macOS or Windows.

One additional note, the i9 Gen 4 server I have also features the Ravenna driver, enabling it to play my 12 channel music files to my Merging Technologies immersive audio system. Much more on this in a future article.

Getting Down to Brass T(r)acks

All the aforementioned upgrades are well and good, but let’s get down to brass tacks. How well does the Signature Rendu SE Deluxe perform in my reference system? Flawless, fearless, and fantastic. Flawless in that it works perfectly, every time. Fearless in that it has the software options to accept anything I digitally throw at it (UPnP, Roon, NAA, etc…). Even more important for us knuckle dragging audiophiles, the Signature Rendu SE Deluxe sounds fantastic.

Note 1: I initially had playback issues using the Deluxe, but I tracked down the issue to an esoteric USB cable that likely doesn’t meet the USB specification. Currently, I can’t get the Deluxe to stumble if I try my hardest. 

The system I used most during this review consisted of a Small Green Computer sonicTransporter i9 (Gen 4) server running Audirvana > copper Ethernet output > switch > optical fiber > Signature Rendu SE Deluxe > USB > dCS Rossini APEX > Constellation Audio Inspiration Preamp and monobocks > Transparent cable > Wilson Audio Alexia V loudspeakers.

Note 2: I really like using devices such as the Signature Rendu SE Deluxe in front of my DACs, as opposed to using a DAC’s built-in ethernet interface, because they are so versatile, work extremely well, offer isolation, and can be expanded to include new features via simple software upgrade. This does increase the number of boxes by one, versus a DAC only system, and I can see why those seeking the ultimate in simplicity may opt for a single box solution.

How fantastic does the Signature Rendu SE Deluxe sound? Fantastic enough to put me right back in my seat at Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis with @austinpop, for Osmo Vanska conducting the Minnesota Orchestra’s performance of Mahler’s Third Symphony in 2023. Rajiv Arora and I attended the performance and the recording session the following day, as described perfectly in this article (Link). Listening to the BIS Records version, at home, through the Deluxe, was an absolutely wonderful experience.

As soon as the horns began in movement one, I was instantly transported to Orchestra Hall. I thought about the people sitting next to us, the very excited gentleman sitting behind us who could barely hold his applause, and I visualized the musicians in front of us. Sound quality at this elite level leads to stunning experiences at home, where theater of the mind is every bit as good as actually being there in person, on many levels. In fact, I could hear everything so much better in my own system with the Signature Rendu SE Deluxe, than I could that night at the Hall.

I knew the Deluxe would reproduce the bombastic percussion of Mahler’s Third very well, but I really wanted to hear the benefits, if any, of the new lower noise improvements. A little over one minute into the first movement, my suspicions were confirmed. The Deluxe is the best Rendu I’ve heard in my system. The very soft “taps” of the drum head, by principal percussionist Brian Mount, could be heard as if they really were off in the distance, yet they had incredible texture. This is partly because of how the producer Rob Suff crafts the recording, and also because of an audio system capable of reproducing everything that’s on that very recording.

Throughout this entire performance, ebbing and flowing between loud and soft passages, enthusiastic and relaxed emotions, everything that is a Mahler symphony could be heard on an appropriately large soundstage with depth and height, percussion capable first scaring then kicking the listener in the chest, and strings with the ultimate in delicacy and palpability.

I’d love to go back to Orchestra Hall, but given what I heard at home through the Deluxe, I’m in no rush.

Transitioning from Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis, to the Unterfahrt Jazz Club in Munich, Germany, I played the newest release from Bob Reynolds Group, Live in Munich. As the title suggests, this is another live recording, and it’s also capable of placing the listener right in the jazz club through an equally capable HiFi system.

Track two is my absolute favorite on this album. Gene Coye’s drumming is off the charts, and it should sound like it when played through the Signature Rendu SE Deluxe and a reference system. Starting with the snare and moving to the kick drum, Coye’s kit sounded like it was sitting right between my Wilson Audio Alexia V loudspeakers. I had the volume up at jazz club levels, because why not, and I could picture the entire band as they entered about 1:30 into the track.

Reynolds Saxophone sounds a lush as ever on this track, as he takes the button from Coye for a couple minutes, before then handing off to Ruslan Sirota on the keys and Anek Gwizdala on bass. This track has something for everyone, and the audio quality through the Deluxe feeding my dCS Rossini APEX was something everyone could enjoy. The sound was so good the one couldn’t dislike it if s/he tried.

Now for some absolutely un-audiophile music that really does it for me. I love Jon foreman’s new album titled In Bloom. It has an ethereal sound to it that just feels good, more than it sounds good. If I’m being honest, a reference grade component such as the Signature Rendu SE Deluxe must also sound good with this type of music, not just Diana Krall. I don’t want the Deluxe to change a single bit or byte, but if any music sounds bad, it isn’t the component for me.

Fortunately the Deluxe hands this singer / songwriter album off to the dCS Rossini perfectly, and without editorial noise. On the track titled Where the Sidewalk Ends, the limited percussion sounds delicate and sets up a beautiful foundational bass groove and Foreman’s honest and bare vocals. This is one of those tracks, and albums, with nothing to hide. Through the Deluxe, it also sounds like nothing is hidden. Just a band and its music, coming through my speakers, and moving me on an emotional level.

Speaking of emotion, the track titled Antidote mainly features Foreman and his guitar, with a little backing vocal assistance. It’s a raw track that sounds like he’s sitting around a campfire between my speakers. The incredibly high quality reproduction through the Deluxe enables emotion to just pour out of him as he hits high / lowlights of fear, depression, and wondering if there’s an antidote. It’s absolutely bare and absolutely beautiful. This is what it’s all about. This is what I want and why I got into this wonderful hobby in the first place, back in what my twelve year old daughter correctly calls the nineteen hundreds.

Deluxe Wrap Up

Around my house we have a saying. Use it up, wear it out, make do or do without. That’s a tough thing to live by in the world of high end audio. I’d love to keep my existing gear and spend all my disposable income on music. However, when a component upgrade comes along that improved upon all previous versions and it can improve all my previously purchased music, it’s time to reconsider. Or, at least put an asterisk next to one’s motto, that allows for reasonable and prudent upgrades.

The Signature Rendu SE Deluxe is the best Rendu ever created by the innovative team at Sonore.  Everything from huge crescendos and bombastic percussion to finger cymbals and texture laden sweet string sections, is reproduced perfectly. Grungy singer songwriters are handed off to one’s DAC sounding grungy, as they should sound. The Deluxe’s optical “firewall,” new mainboard, proprietary clock injection, lower CPU usage, and small but fruitful adjustments to the power supply, all come together in harmony as sweet as Peter, Paul, and Mary.

If you have a previous Rendu, it’s time to list it rather than continue to love it, and make the jump to the Deluxe.

    Product Information:

• Sonore Signature Rendu SE Deluxe - $5,350
• Small Green Computer sonicTransporter i9 Gen 4 - $3,999+
• Audirvana Studio / Core Player (Linux) - $70 per year

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