Hiccups with DSD

pl_svn · May 21, 2017, 2:55pm

I think we first have to check ethernet too, before ruling the Mini completely out

in the while… Uptone Regen (as obvious, technically being just an USB hub) and Audiophilleo SE can be also ruled out: played two full albums (DSD 64 and DSD 128) with just the Regen re-added and halfway through another one, now, with the Audiophilleo too: not a single glitch

ooops, spoke too soon: just had an hiccup with the Audiophilleo in the chain

orgel · May 21, 2017, 3:06pm

Yes, believe it or not, I thought about that, but I’m going to put it down as a low-percentage (but real) possibility. Do you have a way to test the Ethernet without the Aries in the chain?

pl_svn · May 21, 2017, 3:08pm

… and another one right now

tomorrow I’ll try my usual ethernet setup with just the Audiophilleo out of the chain
(so… NAS > Mac mini > Aries > USB Regen > Chord 2Qute)

pl_svn · May 21, 2017, 3:09pm

nope: only ethernet Roon endpoint I have is the Aries.
but see my previous post and since… I’m having more and more hiccups

orgel · May 21, 2017, 3:18pm

As a fellow Audiophilleo owner (it’s unused at the moment, I’ll be lending it to a friend shortly), you have my sympathies. That seems to me like something’s wrong with the Audiophilleo — I’m sure Philip et al. will make it right.

pl_svn · May 21, 2017, 3:21pm

sure, Philip is indeed an extremely kind guy

though… had this Audiophilleo 1 upgraded to SE (and PurePower’s battery pack replaced with a new one) just a few months ago

back now to ethernet with Aries in the chain and files on Mac mini’s SSD (will try files from NAS tomorrow)
too early to say it works flawlessly but… SQ I’m getting is sooooooo much better than from plain Mac mini’s USB

pl_svn · May 21, 2017, 3:59pm

thinking about it… not necessarily it’s the Audiophilleo: might well be 2Qute’s s/pdf

orgel · May 21, 2017, 6:04pm

Do you have a non-Chord DAC you can test with?

pl_svn · May 22, 2017, 12:18am

hhhhmm… the Metrum Hex doesn’t do DSD but does PCM up to 384
I can upsample some PCM but I’m not sure the result would mean something or not :-/

pl_svn · May 22, 2017, 10:21am

and… just had an hiccup without the Audiophilleo in the chain: just Mac mini > Aries USB > Regen > 2Qute
(DSD 64, files on Mac mini’s SSD)

orgel · May 22, 2017, 11:52am

Have you thought about testing without the Regen?

pl_svn · May 22, 2017, 12:11pm

it was first testing step yesterday: no issues with two full, longish (1+ hours), albums. one DSD 64 and one DSD 128
then, yesterday, I did the same with Regen in the chain and had no issues too

difference, today, is the Aries as endpoint, instead of Mac mini’s USB
only had, so far, three light hiccups on a 1 and 1/2 hours long DSD 64 album

pl_svn · May 22, 2017, 2:41pm

troubleshooting this thing will be a nightmare!

Mac mini > Aries > USB Regen > 2Qute
hiccups are very, very, very few but still there (2 or 3 in a 1 and 1/2+ hour DSD 64 album)
files from Mac mini’s local SSD or from NAS doesn’t make any difference

might try removing the USB Regen but… it was proven, yesterday, to work flawlessly on the USB chain straight from the Mac mini, so it shouldn’t make a difference when using Aries USB output

pl_svn · May 23, 2017, 12:11pm

today’s tests:

NAS > Mac mini > Aries > USB Regen > 2Qute -> very, very few hiccups (same as yesterday)
NAS > Mac mini > Aries > USB Regen > Audiophilleo SE > 2Qute -> hiccups (one every other track minimum)
NAS > Aries > USB Regen > 2Qute -> no hiccups at all (… so far )
the above means… no Mac mini and no Roon

pl_svn · May 23, 2017, 3:12pm

got, in the while, a reply from Philip Grubele saying that… the Audiophilleo doesn’t even know/care if it’s PCM or DSD: all it knows about is just the bitrate.
so if it has no issue with 176.4 PCM there’s no way/reason it might misbehave with DoP DSD 64

orgel · May 23, 2017, 6:03pm

Isn’t the Special Edition supposed to be able to handle up to PCM 384 and DS128? (I realize this doesn’t help much with the troubleshooting.)

Is there any question about what the 2Qute’s S/PDIF input can handle? If there were a problem there, that would coincide nicely with your positive results with USB into the 2Qute.

pl_svn · May 23, 2017, 7:31pm

exactly: had my Audiophilleo 1 upgraded to SE because the 2Qute is one of the very few DACs that can do PCM 384 (and DSD 128 DoP) on s/pdif too

anyway… these tests are leading nowhere: hiccups are randomly happening (more or less frequently) whatever I try

NAS > Mac mini (Roon) > Aries > USB REgen > 2Qute -> plays fine for a long-ish while then starts misbehaving
NAS > Aries > USB Regen > 2Qute -> one hiccup after a few minutes/seconds then plays smoothly for hours

orgel · May 25, 2017, 11:57am

Check out this post:

Maybe the solution?

pl_svn · May 25, 2017, 12:18pm

thanks, David, but my Mac mini is on 10.11.6, not Sierra, and… staying there!

today I’m testing NAS > Mac mini > USB Regen > Audiophilleo > 2Qute (no Aries, just Mac mini’s USB out):

tried Audirvana, first, with a DSD 128 Album -> a couple very light hiccups
then Roon (same album) -> 5 or 6 hiccups (one “heavy-ish”)

playing now a DSD 64 album using Roon and already had 5 hiccups in just track 1

EDIT: and it’s getting worse: three more just a couple of minutes into track 2!!!

pl_svn · May 25, 2017, 6:39pm

today’s tests:

files on Mac mini’s internal SSD, Mac mini’s USB out:

Audirvana > USB Regen > Chord 2Qute -> not the slightest hiccup (DSD 64 and DSD 128)
Roon > USB Regen > Chord 2Qute -> not the slightest hiccup (DSD 64 and DSD 128)

files on Qnap HS-251, Mac mini’s USB out:

Audirvana > USB Regen > Chord 2Qute -> not the slightest hiccup (DSD 64 and DSD 128)
Roon > USB Regen > Chord 2Qute -> not the slightest hiccup (DSD 64 and DSD 128)
Aries (Lightning DS, no Roon, no Mac mini) > USB Regen > Chord 2Qute -> not the slightest hiccup (DSD 64 and DSD 128)
(btw… holy cow: how good does the Aries sound on its own!!! but this is another story )

so far looks it’s either the Audiophilleo (unlikely) or 2Qute’s s/pdif in

tomorrow… Aries as Roon endpoint :nervous: