Roon + HQP vs. Audioirvana : Signal quality question

Can you explain pls? I use desktop HQPlayer.
Did you try Audioirvana?

Yes… With HQPlayer Embedded on Linux, I can play from Audirvana direct to HQPlayer.

HQPlayer Embedded can function as a UPnP Renderer

So Roon can play to HQPlayer Server but also Audirvana can play direct to HQPlayer server.

I use both.

I use win10 so it’s not my case.
Can somebody help me to have the more analog and detailed signal from my system? there is like a veil vs Audirvana…?
Now I’m trying sinc S ,Ns4 ,but nothing change more.
Tks Giovanni.

The key point is that Damien Plisson is not only the excellent programer but great AUDIOPHILE too.

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It looks like you are comparing bit perfect (Audirvana) versus DSP (Roon + HQP)?

When I disconnected from direct USB connection, any (subjective) difference in sound quality disappeared to me.

I have server on one side of the house and low powered endpoints (RoonBridge and NAA) in the listening rooms. Connected by Cat 6 UTP cable.

This 2-box solution is recommended by both Roon and HQPlayer. Subjectively, I can also recommend it.

As mentioned I can compare both Roon and Audirvana playing direct to HQPlayer, over the network. No difference is sound quality in my experience, using this 2-box solution.

I used to listen in a similar way you are doing now but I find the way I listen now is much better.

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Hi @anon90297517, continued from PM:

The quickest way to test is to burn Jussi’s HQP OS to a USB stick - this won’t do anything to your current OS. This will turn the entire machine into a HQP Embedded Server and Audirvana will see it as a UPnP Renderer. Use etcher to burn this to USB stick (4.17.1 is latest - don’t use the Ravenna one):

https://www.signalyst.eu/bins/hqplayerd/images/

https://www.signalyst.com/embedded-install.html

Just go to the IP address of this machine, from any web browser. http://ip_address/config . Here you can configure HQP settings.

Of course this means you need to run Audirvana (and Roon) on a separate machine.

But if you installed HQP Embedded on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS, you can install Roon Server on the same machine. That’s what I do - I have an i9-9900K running Ubuntu 18.04 LTS running both Roon Server and HQP Embedded. But again you would need a separate Win10/macOS machine for Audirvana.

Test the HQP OS image above first. That will allow you to test Audirvana playing to HQP Embedded. If you want help later with installing HQP Embedded on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS, let me know. It’s a more involved process.

Cheers

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Thanks for your guidance. Will (try to) follow and ddet things setu this way.
Dirk

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I’m on win10.
Tks Giovanni.

lkjhgdaa, thanks for this information. I also have a similar configuration as OP and have also noticed the difference in sound quality between Audirvana and Roon (Audirvana being much better, clearer, open, etc.).

With disconnecting the DAC from direct USB and with Audirvana also playing remote over the Network to HQPlayer, could the reason for both sounding subjectively the same be that the Audirvana quality has now been degraded to be more close to Roon audio quality? Or do you believe Roon quality was actually improved and is now at the same level as Audirvana? Thanks.

Hi Ramin. Personally, I found all 3 (Roon, Audirvana and HQPlayer) sound better/best (subjectively) when the server is moved to outside the listening room and you just have a low powered endpoint connected to the USB DAC. With UTP cable in between the 2 rooms.

Roon and Audirvana both end up sounding the same this way (to my ears).

But definitely try yourself and report back what you find.

I have used Audirvana, Roon, and Roon + HQPlayer. All sound best to me when using an endpoint over Ethernet. Audirvana and Roon sound the same over Ethernet but Roon + HQPlayer sounds the best.

Now i remove upsampling from my Audioirvana configuration, before was up to the limit of my usb to spdif Audiophellio converter 24/192 and let the N dac by Naim up to 24/768 do all the job.
It seems to me that it sounds much better.
In any case ,make sense a resample from my side up to 24/192 and then go to the N dac who resample again to 768…?
Is probability better let the dac do its job at all ,
instead of applying an upsampling from 16 / 44.1 to 24 / 176.4 or 24/96 to 24/192 with HQPlayer and then giving it to the naim dac, which must still upsampling. perhaps better to leave to the native format.
what do you think?
P.S: now i try the same think with Roon with and without HQPlayer.
Giovanni.

Hi

I have HQPlayer Embedded running, but Audirvana on my Windows 10 Pro system, only shows direct (DAC) connections.
I am not able to setup/see any networked device. I have tried to apply all possible solutions I could find to enable UPNP in Windows but withput success.

Do you have any idea/tip what I can/need to do to be able to configure in Audirvana a networked device?

Thanks in advance for your help

Dirk

Hi Dirk

Which version of Embedded?

The USB bootable version or you installed on Linux Ubuntu or Debian?

Also - with your Audirvana installation on Win10 , you can play to a different UPnP renderer? Just to rule out HQPe as the issue.

When it works correctly, there’s nothing really advanced to configure. You will see HQP Embedded as a UPnP renderer, showing up in Audirvana, the same as another UPnP renderer.

But first confirm you can have another UPnP renderer working with Audirvana.

Can you give 1 or 2 examples that I can try?
I have not found any information using Google ( i have no knowledge at all about UPNP, so probably not searching for the right thing)
Firk

Do you have a Raspberry Pi ?

If you install RoPieee XL on SD card and connect your USB DAC, Audirvana should be able to play to it.

DietPi is another you can try.

But I also asked another important question above - which version of Embedded?

The USB bootable version or you installed on Linux Ubuntu or Debian?

Version HQPlayerEmbedded = 4.14.0

Yes but how did you install it?

There are different ways to install Embedded, all have same version number.

So version number alone doesn’t answer the original question I asked.

This is important to know because HQP OS has UPnP renderer built-in. The others need some additional Linux code.

Hence my original query: “Which version of Embedded? The USB bootable version or you installed on Linux Ubuntu or Debian?”

Did you install from here:
https://www.signalyst.eu/bins/hqplayerd/images/

Or from here:
https://www.signalyst.eu/bins/hqplayerd/bionic/

Or from here:
https://www.signalyst.eu/bins/hqplayerd/buster/

And try RoPieee XL or DietPi in parallel and report back if you can get that to work as UPnP renderer with Audirvana.

I installed Ubuntu, from bionic subdirectory.

I am going to retry with HQP OS , thanks for pointing/correcting me in the right direction.

Dirk