Nope, HQPlayer will only output to ALSA (like a directly connected USB DAC) or NAA networked endpoint. It won’t output to any other protocol.
Hi
Your screenshot actually looks fine.
Are you actually outputting audio to BlackHole?
macOS Settings > Sound > Output > BlackHole? Can you share that screenshot?
You have to also start the input stream in HQPlayer, clicking “Content source URL” on the main screen and select the sample rate and press enter. You need to see the “Time” on main screen of HQP starting.
Also make sure MIDI sample rate for BlackHole matches the correction HQP input sample rate you select.
The BlackHole method is a very manual process, nothing automatic. If all your source rate is 44.1kHz then it’s fine but otherwise you need to manually change sample rates.
The UpBoard Gateway input method I use is much better in this regarding and supports automatic sample rate switching, if the app/OS supports a kind of ‘Exclusive Mode’ or similar.
That was the bit I was missing, thank you so much !
1 Like
Okay @dabassgoesboomboom Per your suggestion over in the HQPe thread I came here for answers on using Apple Music with my HQP setup. I’ve read the entire thread and think I have most of what I need but I need to confirm, as well as get one key question answered. Thank you in advance for all you and @jussi_laako have done to support this working. Here goes (and hope this helps other in similar situation as me):
Current setups:
Setup 1: Living Room 2-channel speaker listening.
- Intel NUC as NAA>USB>Holo May>Amp>speakers (for HQPe upsampling from Roon library)
- Bluesound Node>COAX>May>Amp (for Apple Music via Airplay for discovery and WAF)
- HQPe running in different room upstairs. All connected via ethernet. No wireless except Airplay)
This setup currently requires that I switch the input on the May obviously and that means the NUC NAA loses its connection to the MAY. I have to reboot the NUC to get it back. Not ideal obviously. I’d like to change this by running everything through HQPe server and keeping the MAY using the NAA USB input. As I understand it, this requires me piping the Bluesound USB output (they now support this via firmware update btw) into my HQPe server also via USB input. I would need to move the Bluesound from the living room to the HQPe server location for this obviously.
Key question: does this mean I’d be able to use BOTH Roon and the Bluesound interchangably without any complexities: wife can Airplay to BS Node for AM and I could later stream from Roon to the MAY without any fiddling?
Setup #2: Office with headphone rig (maybe similar to your setup):
- NUC NAA (renamed)>Holo Spring DAC>headphone amp
In this case I have to web connect to the HQPe server and switch it to this NAA client away from setup #1. Not ideal, but okay to avoid adding 2nd HQPe at least for now. However, and here is what prompted my original post, I want to add the ability to stream Apple Music from an iPad into this same setup but routing everything through HQP. So my understanding is of what I have to do is:
- iPad>USB C to USB-A cable>UpGateway device (new) running NAA>set this as input to existing HQPe server via ethernet network>HQPe upsampling streamed back via ethernet to my existing NUC NAA in the office>Holo Spring DAC. Correct?
Key question: but in this Office setup 2 would I be able to also use Roon to HQPe and Apple Music via iPad as described above? My guess is that there would be ease of use issues in all this in that with the Bluesound USB input to the HQPe server for setup #1 I would have to log into the HQPe web interface to change the input from the BS to the UpGateway input depending on the listening session. But in either case, assuming I did that, I’d be able to use Roon streaming AND one of these other inputs?
Sorry for the detail here but I’m just trying to clarify before I purchase the UpGateway and move my BS to the HQP server location. I suspect that ultimately I need 2x HQP devices for this to be seamless. But the key question of can I use Apple Music input to HQPe via USB AND later also upsample Roon still is an open question. Thanks for any guidance!
You can think of switching inputs on HQPlayer Embedded a bit similar operation to switching inputs on a DAC or pre-amp. HQPlayer can automatically switch to Roon input when you start playback from Roon. But to switch to other inputs needs a single simple manual operation. Of course when you stop listening with Roon, you could already switch back to other input so that it is ready and already running.
1 Like
So if I have this correct…I can stream from Roon to HQPe as I do now, but if I want to stream from Apple Music via a USB input to the HQPe server I will need to manually either change the input via the web interface or use the iOS control app (forgot the name) that allows me to change settings on the HQP server. Since this involves trying to simply things for my wife in my Setup #1 as well, what happens if I set HQP server to use the Bluesound input (for AIrplay) and then later play something from Roon? Does HQPe switch to the Roon stream automatically, or do I need to switch ‘from’ the Apple Music stream back to Roon manually? I think either way, the main message is that I need to leave the Bluesound input active so my wife is blissfully unaware of this requirement. But in my Office in Setup 2 I can do the switching myself since only I use that system. I’d still like it if @dabassgoesboomboom can validate my setup 2 configuration as it requires me buying the UpGateway device to make it work. Thank you.
1 Like
That way will go automatically, but not the other way.
Yes, that’s what I was trying to say.
You don’t necessarily need to move it, you’d just need a suitable NAA there (UP Gateway for UAC2), or some other NAA with RME ADI-2 (Pro) as input device. But it is a bit easier and more straightforward if ADI-2 is attached to HQPlayer Embedded directly and then Bluesound attached to ADI-2 via S/PDIF.
But since ADI-2 Pro for example has three digital inputs plus analog input, you could hook also old school CD spinner and vinyl rig to it.
1 Like
@Michael_Grant it looks like Jussi has answers all your questions perfectly (as expected)
If there’s anything else, post here
@dabassgoesboomboom My only open question is exactly how to configure the new Up Gateway box for use in my Office setup 2. I’m clear on the physical connections of the iPad via USB input to the UP, but what am I running on the UP box and how is the ipad audio stream sent to my HQPe Server? I’m only familiar with getting Roon-based streams sent to the HQPe and then on to the NAA client. The reverse is a complete mystery to me. I suppose @jussi_laako knows the answer as well. 
1 Like
My NAA OS image would be the one. Then it needs one line to hqplayerd.xml that @dabassgoesboomboom probably has more clearly at hand, because I think I’ve seen him posting it earlier too.
1 Like
Thanks @jussi_laako Going to take this one step at a time starting with my Setup 1 changes and moving the Bluesound Node to my IT closet where the HQPe server is located. So I just plug the BS into the HQPe USB input and then what? I don’t see where in the web interface that I specify the Bluesound input. Once I have this working I will move to ordering the Up Gateway for my office. Hopefully @dabassgoesboomboom can assist me in how to get an Apple Music stream from my iPad to flow from the Up Gateway to an input on HQPe server via ethernet. Thanks for all the help with this from both of you.
This won’t work.
Have another read of Jussi’s method which includes his RME ADI-2 Pro
You need either an RME or UpBoard Gateway in between Bluesound and HQPe , for automatic sample rate switching support
I’m assuming you have latest Bluesound Node N130 which supports USB audio output now
I’m away for the next week and don’t have access to my notes
It’s not the kind of thing I know automatically, so I keep notes
When I’m back, I’ll dig up
I’m pretty sure I shared the code either in this thread or my Embedded thread
Thanks @dabassgoesboomboom I don’t think it makes sense for me to buy an RME dac just for this purpose as it’s still pretty expensive. And I need a 2nd UP for my office setup if all this works as expected.
Since I now need to get the Up Gateway before I can move the Bluesound I guess that will take at least a few days to a week best case. And it appears that once I get this working I can replicate it in my office setup using a 2nd Up Gateway for direct iPad AM playback. I will say for @jussi_laako benefit that it would be nice if this was a supported ‘feature’ of HQP & NAA so a custom script wasn’t required. Optional web page on NAA OS where this could be configured and then web stack disabled for example?
Have a read from this post onwards (below) from my Embedded thread.
Somebody else was asking me how to hookup everything with the UpBoard Gateway.
I also mentioned some important caveats.
It saves me retyping everything again.
@dabassgoesboomboom Read it. But got snagged here for my setup. You say that you have to edit a Embedded .xml config file to point Embedded at the new UpBoard NAA input. All fine. But what happens when you later want to stream from Roon using this same Embedded server? Does that require manual intervention? @jussi_laako seemed to imply that it did but I thought it could be done via Embedded’s web interface or HQPDcontrol iOS app. I want to be able to leave the Bluesound>UpBoard NAA as the active input to Embedded most of the time for ease of use by my wife. But when I want to stream from Roon I want to do that and then leave the Bluesound as the active input when done. So if you are editing an .xml file on Embedded to dedicated it to the Bluesound input it’s not clear how this works with Roon in the mix using same Embedded. Sorry for all the questions but I need to understand this before I spend $$$ on the UpBoard to make this work. Need Apple Music AND Roon so that is what I am trying to work out. Thank you!
HQPlayer can switch back to normal “playback queue” input automatically. But when you want to switch to a hardware input it needs to be done manually.
Essentially you have a drop-list where you can choose the input to use. You can have as many as you like.
Here’s a default list from Embedded web interface:
1 Like
It is incredibly simple. I wouldn’t be here on the Roon forum and using these features, if it was a pain to switch from Roon to “other” source and vice versa 
More important is to read about the limitations of UpBoard Gateway that I wrote about in the other thread.
Thanks @dabassgoesboomboom Sorry for being slow on getting this. But I guess I need one last question answered. If I use what @jussi_laako said about going the INPUT screen in Embedded to switch from Roon playback back to the Bluesound ‘input’, how does that ■■ input actually show up on that Embedded drop down? You said I can’t just plug the ■■ USB into my Embedded server and that I had to use either the RME method or the UpBoard NAA, so what I am doing to add an INPUT to that drop down? You also said that I need the UP or RME for auto sampling rate handling, but the ■■ is going to be streaming Airplay to the Embedded for upsampling, so does it matter? I get how for my headphone setup I need rate conversion because I will be sending Apple Music direct from the iPad (which handles sending different sample rates) so having the UP or RME in the chain to handle this makes sense. I do happen to have an RME I was using as a DAC for a long time so perhaps I can use that in my HP/iPad AM setup. But the last part of my understanding is how to get any of these INPUTs to show up in that Embedded drop down. I’m happy that Roon/AM switching is easy once I get this working.
You can give it any name you like. It is just one <input> element line in hqplayerd.xml and you can have as many of these you like.
1 Like