HiFi Rose RS130 Network Transport - Black

Noise Cannot Travel Down a Beam of Light

Every network cable running into a streamer is also a wire carrying electrical noise from your router, your switch and everything else on the network. The RS130 answers that by taking its Ethernet over fiber instead.

Light carries no ground and no current, so the noise stops at the transceiver. The same trick is applied to the USB output, where optical conversion separates the music data from the electrical noise that drives it.

That is the whole argument for this machine. It has no converter inside at all, so its only job is to hand the cleanest possible signal to the DAC you already chose.

An Oven for the Clock

The clock is an OCXO, an oven-controlled crystal oscillator. It holds the crystal at a constant temperature, because a crystal's frequency drifts as it warms and cools, and that drift is what jitter is made of.

If you run a master clock already, two BNC inputs accept a 10MHz reference at either 50 or 75 ohms. The digital outputs then follow it, so the transport and the DAC agree on time.

Power comes from a linear stage backed by a high-capacity supercapacitor, which brings supply noise close to battery levels. A 256GB NVMe drive caches music so playback never waits on the network.

What Reviewers Are Saying

Ed Selley of hi-fi+ called the RS130 "a seriously proficient streaming front end that is a pleasure to operate and look at." The magazine went on to give it a 2025 Award in the Network Streamer category.

Andrew Everard gave it Hi-Fi News' Outstanding Product Award, writing that optical connections act as a noise barrier and that "The result is a device that makes the most of almost any DAC you might try."

Who Is This Network Transport Best For?

• You own a converter worth building around — with no DAC inside, every part of the RS130 works on delivery rather than conversion, and the sound stays your own choice.
• Your network is electrically noisy — fiber Ethernet and fiber USB break the electrical path entirely, which no amount of expensive copper cable can do.
• You run an external master clock — two BNC inputs take a 10MHz reference at 50 or 75 ohms, so the RS130 slots into a system already built around one.
• Your DAC takes I2S or AES — HDMI I2S, AES/EBU, coaxial and optical are all fitted, so the best input on your converter is the one you get to use.
• You want the screen to do the work — a 15.4-inch touch display shows artwork and library at a glance. Browse our digital-to-analog converters for the other half.

How Does It Connect to Your System?

Choose the output your converter does best: HDMI I2S, AES/EBU on XLR, coaxial, or optical. Your DAC then feeds the amplifier exactly as it does now.

The network arrives over the SFP fiber Ethernet port, with a transceiver module included, or over Wi-Fi using the supplied dongle. The Rose Connect app and a metal remote both control it.

Pairs Well With

Building around the RS130? Here are some great companions:

• DAC: The half this transport was built to feed — see our Digital to Analog Converters.
• Preamplifier: The next box in the chain — see our Preamplifiers.
• Digital Cables: AES/EBU or coaxial — see our Interconnect Cables.
• Equipment Rack: A steady home for 12kg — see our Audio Racks.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a separate DAC?

Yes. The RS130 is a transport, so your converter does the sound. That is what puts the choice of character back in your hands.

What outputs does it have?

Optical, coaxial, AES/EBU on XLR and HDMI I2S, alongside the fiber optic USB output to your converter.

What does it support?

PCM from 8kHz to 768kHz at 8, 16, 24 or 32 bits, and native DSD from DSD64 to DSD512.

What is an OCXO clock?

An oven-controlled crystal oscillator. Holding the crystal at a steady temperature stops its frequency drifting, which is where most jitter starts.

How big is it?

430 by 317 by 125mm and 12kg, with a 15.4-inch touchscreen across the front.

What is the warranty?

Two years from the original date of purchase, covering manufacturing defects. Unusually, it stays with the device, so it remains active if the unit changes hands.

See It in Action

Steve Huff spends time with the RS130:

And Yorkshire AV compares it directly with the RS150B:

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Learn More

Want to learn more about network transports, master clocks, or isolating a streamer from network noise? Visit our Learning Center for guides, tips, and expert advice.