gsm Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Dear Forum I have a colleague who is struggling to get his Benchmark Dac 1 Pre (USB) to recognise the USB signal from a Mac (mini running Leopard). Upon initial connection the USB input is confirmed very briefly on the Benchmark indicator panel but after a few seconds the Benchmark goes to sleep (no signal). The presence of the USB output to the Benchmark does not appear in the Mac Audio Midi frame in utilities. Any thoughts and ideas, as always, gratefully received. Link to comment
Lizard_King Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Get a windows Vista laptop! Powerbook G4 15 inch Aluminum, \"Fidela,\" M2tech EVO (BNC)with RF attenuator,dedicated PSU, Stereovox XV Ultra (BNC) Audio Note Dac Kit 2.1 Level B Signature Upgraded to 12AU7 tubes, ARC SP-16L Tube preamp , VAC PA100/100 Tube Amp), Vintage Tubes, Furutech ETP-80, (Alon 2 Mk2, (upgraded tweeters, Usher Woofers), Pangea Power cords, Omega Micro Active Planar PC. Signal Cable Silver Resolution ICs. Link to comment
kdoot Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 (Thanks, Lizard, for your insight and humour. I might point out though that any Intel-based Mac is perfectly capable of running Vista should the owner so require.) To the original poster: 1. Try a different USB port on the mini. Make sure you're not going through a hub (including a hub in a keyboard or display). 2. Try a different USB cable - one which you know to work with other devices. 3. Disconnect all (and I mean all) other USB devices that you can, and try again. Ideally using some kind of non-USB remote control. 4. Ensure that your Mac OS X is up to date (current version 10.5.6 and QuickTime 7.6). 5. Try the DAC1 on a different computer... could be the DAC itself is faulty. Link to comment
Lord Chaos Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 You may need to select the Benchmark DAC1 in the Sound control panel. Go to System Preferences, click on Sound, and then click on the Output button. You should then see a list of available output options (on-board speakers, any other devices) and that should include the DAC1. Click on the DAC1 entry and it should work. Note that I have occasionally had Itunes stop talking to my DAC1. When that happens I just pause the music and restart it, and that seems to get Itunes back together. Link to comment
The Computer Audiophile Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Well said kdoot. I was just about to type of a list similar to yours but you beat me to it. Thanks for the post! Founder of Audiophile Style | My Audio Systems Link to comment
gsm Posted January 26, 2009 Author Share Posted January 26, 2009 As always, my sincere thanks and appreciation of the help, I shall relay the advice and encourage another individual to register himself as a member of this excellent forum. I am still awaiting the arrival of the DCS U-Clock and shall post some impressions once it has bedded in. Thanks again Link to comment
drdigital Posted January 26, 2009 Share Posted January 26, 2009 Did you manage to resolve this? Does the DAC need bespoke drivers or can it use the default drivers (restricted to 16bit 44k I think) Link to comment
gsm Posted January 28, 2009 Author Share Posted January 28, 2009 By following the guidance (all other usb's except mouse disconnected) the mac mini registers the Dac1 in system preferences - sound and Audio Midi set up but, after selecting the Dac1 as the default output in both the mac mini quickly reverts back to the internal speakers and internal default output, losing the recognition of and connection to the Dac1. Any other ideas would be gratefully accepted. Link to comment
Roseval Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 If USB fails you, you might try a mini-toslink to toslink cable. The headphone out doubles as a optical out. Link to comment
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