@jussi_laako I would like to send a special thank you for helping me solve the problem with the HQPlayer volume issue and help with troubleshooting other issues with my PC. It is very much appreciated and also a learning experience for me. Now I can enjoy HQplayer again.
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Something strange happened when I turned off all offloads on the network card, so about 0.5ghz of processor usage disappeared, 2-3gb of memory usage and GPU usage went up to full. At least I haven’t noticed any negative effects in the hour. The test continues…
super 512+ psgl with dc and dsd512
edit. CPU usage was 4.5ghz before shot
edit2. Everything seems good. I don’t know if my QNAP switch QoS is so good that with the right DSCP values everything works and the packets go straight to HQP sorted?
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Interesting! Probably less work for the driver and traffic pattern is easy enough. Maybe the driver would need some optimizations for the offload handling…
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First, I would like to apologize for my continued waffling on a new computer to run HQPlayer Desktop.
I currently have a headless Mac Mini M1/16 Gb running both Roon and HQPlayer. I intend to keep the M1 to run Roon only and get a new computer to run HQPlayer Desktop and MinimServer (for JPlay).
The Mac Mini M4 Pro with 14 cores is more than I want to spend so I started looking at Mini PCs capable of running DSD512 with some configurations.
I have looked at both Intel I-9 (14C/20T) and AMD Ryzen 9 (8C/16T).
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MINISFORUM MS-01 Mini PC Intel Core i9-12900H,32GB DDR5, 1TB SSD
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GEEKOM AE8 AI Mini PC, AMD Ryzen 9 8945HS Are (Up to 5.2GHz),32GB DDR5 5600MHz RAM, 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD
Jussi already said the Intel should be good for what I am trying to accomplish.
- Is there any reason to consider the Ryzen vs the Intel?
- I have not used Windows since Win7 and would like to avoid having to deal with potential Windows issues and troubleshooting so I have looked into Debian Bookworm and Ubuntu Server. No experience with either but looking at YouTube videos I should be able to handle. Looking for any known pros/cons for each?
- I want to run the Mini PC headless and access from one of my Macs using Screen Sharing or some other Remote Desktop app. Is this doable?
Thanks in advance.
Nick
A few comments:
- From experience, even if the CPU is theoretically enough for what you want to run, cooling setups in low-cost PCs are not designed for continuous high utilization. I have a relatively well-built i9-11900 machine that goes into thermal throttling with poly-sinc-gauss-hires-lp, ASDM7EC-light, Holo May DAC corrections, 192kHz PCM > DSD256.
- I use Ubuntu Server for Roon and HQPlayer servers, relatively easy to manage, but if you are planning to use HQPlayer Desktop, you’d need a desktop distribution.
- I access the shell command line for my Ubuntu Server boxes from my Macbook, either with Terminal.app and ssh, or with the Cockpit remote management package on the servers. But that requires learning how to use Linux shell commands.
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Thank you Fernando.
Your point about the downside to the mini pc is a good one that I need to consider. I have a Holo Audio Spring L2 arriving in about 2 weeks and I want to use DAC Correction as well.
For one of my systems I’ve been using a Mac Mini M1 (16GB DRAM) for SDM (DSD256) with no issues, using DAC corrections for Spring 2 and now May, with the filter/modulator setup below. I have a burly Intel/GPU server on the way for another system so that I can explore DSD512 as well. But in my experience, Mini M1 is a sweet spot for DSD256 to Holo DACs.
I have the same Mac Mini M1 that you have and am able to run the same settings you are with a Gustard A26 and Dac corrections enabled. I expect I will be able to run the same with the Spring 3 L2 once it arrives.
In summary: I don’t think a mini PC will offer much of a step up from the Mini M1. A real step up needs a more seriously cooled machine, and ideally a good GPU as well.
Interesting. I always thought the GPU was specifically graphics related but I see that it also handles extensive calculations which would benefit HQPlayer.
I think the budget for what you are suggesting would be similar to a Mac Mini M4 Pro.
The graphics card alone will run nearly 1k USD.
… if the cooling is trustworthy. I know the M1 can do DSD256 indefinitely with the filters and modulator I use. I’d want to be sure the cooling arrangement in the mini PC is comparable, given that Intel parts might need more W/performance than Apple silicon.
So one should wait until first HQP tests with a N355 are done before buying a base M4 for double the price?
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That Intel is couple of generations old already. But both should work relatively well. Benefit of 12th Gen or newer Intel are the E-cores, which HQPlayer can utilize for offloading similar way as a GPU. It is not as powerful, but still a notable extra power for example in case of i9-14900K which is 8 P-cores and 16 E-cores, and can do ASDM7EC-super to DSD1024 with default filters (without DAC correction).
Mac like M4Pro or M1Max can work up to DSD512 with ASDM7EC-light. Bigger Apple M-series CPUs can do quite a bit, but for example DSD output rate is limited by limited core clock frequencies.
So in the end it depends on what you are specifically after.
Or you could be the one to buy it, test it and share your results? 
No matter what the N355 can do – it’ll still sound like a vacuum cleaner 
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Thanks.
So, as I have no dedicated server room this is not an option for me, unless someone is offering a silent case for a N355, but then we are probably in the same price range as a base M4.
That of course depends on the cooling. It could be potentially passive cooled without too much trouble.
Base M4 is certainly quiet and easy package…
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I just got a crazy idea.
Instead of always upgrading the computer system at my home, is it thinkable to do a cloud based HQP?
I am sending my 44/16 file to a super powerful cloud computer, there the craziest modulators and filters are used e.g. “sinc-extra super long” and DSD 1024 in super speed and send back to my DAC?
With some buffers in between could this be possible? Today cloud based computer games are possible (more or less).