Issue with Playback design MBD5 + USB-XIII

I have the same issue with the USB-XIII. The Playback Designs supports all resolutions up to DSD 256, however Roon only allows it to operate up to DSD 128. I suppose this is a bug in Roon ?

Hi @Cemil ---- My apologies for the wait here and thank you for your patience. I wanted to touch base with you to see if you are still experiencing this behavior or not.

Furthermore, if you are indeed still having a problem having the details of your setup as seen here would greatly aide in our evaluation of the issue.

Looking forward to your feedback!
-Eric

Hi Eric,

Sorry about the delay but I’ve been traveling.

No change - the “issue” is still there. I put issue under quotes as it is currently only a theoretical problem for me. I do not have any DSD 256 recordings. However, Roon only allows the MPS-5 / USB-XIII combo to operate up to DSD 128, despite that they can operate up to DSD 256.

Setup is Mac Mini from late 2012 (maybe that’s where the problem is?) running OSX 10.9.5, feeding directly the USB-XIII.

Cemil

Hi @Cemil ---- No apologies necessary :wink: While I understand that you do not have any DSD 256 on hand, it would be an interesting data point for us to have if you were able to get the DAC to accept 256 via another piece of software.

Lastly, can you please provide a link to this DAC so we can review it’s specs.

-Eric

It’s going to be a while until I get around to it. I’m upgrading the mPS-5 digital board, and I will need to download software to test the higher rez.

At any rate, here is a link for the USB XIII: http://www.playbackdesigns.com/#inline_content_Usbx3.

Quoting from the manual “In this application the UBS-XIII is used to connect the 5-series product to a computer to use it as a DAC for high resolution file playback. All sample rates are supported natively for PCM up to 384kHz and DSD up to 11.2MHz and are indicated on the front panel display as they are detected.”

Is there a Mac driver for this device?

If not the highest you’re going to get with Roon or any other player is DSD128 as the built-in drivers will only support DoP up to DSD128.

There is surely a Windows driver and that should support DSD256 (by then you’ll need to be running Windows).

The issue is related to the fact that the Mac (and Linux) need to use DoP in order to bitstream DSD to the DAC. DoP needs a PCM carrier that is appropriate to the DSD bitrate. 176.4 is used for DSD64 and 352.8 is used for DSD128. The DAC would need to support 705.6 in order to be able to do DoP with DSD256. This is a common problem with DACs that support DSD higher than 128 and unless playback has a Mac driver for this device the only way you’re going to get 256 is to use windows.

No, there isn’t a Mac driver for it. They have one for Windows I believe, but not Mac.

You’ve probably put your finger on the problem. Thanks :slight_smile: