LUMIN - Audiophile Network Music Player

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@wklie,

 

Peter I had not previously tried bypassing my preamp, but did some experimentation yesterday with my LUMIN X1.   I have some older 4-way active speakers, so the connection is actually to the analog actitve crossover and then from there to amps.  My current installed XLR cables are not quite long enough to reach.  I did not move my preamp, a Vinnie Rossi Signature L2.  It is a DHT tubed  unit and I do not have room in other than its current shelf location due to height.  I did not want to completely rearrange everything for my limited testing.  My first test involved removing current output XLRs, Triode Wire Labs, from the X1 and replacing with Mogami I had in storage.  The presentation is very clear and transparent and appears louder than through my VR preamp.  The presentation appears more dynamic but loudness can very much influence that perception.  I also did some checking of mixing cables while using the preamp by replacing the TWL cables to the VR while keeping a TWL pair to the crossover, reversing that by running TWL to the VR and Mogami to the crossover, and then just Mogami to the VR and out to the crossover as well as prior TWL for both.   I was checking for inital impressions during all this and did not allow any one test to settle in for long period.

 

The inital impressions were interesting enough I will want to spend more time on each change with preselected musci selections I repeat for each.  I may also include doing so just from the LUMIN App and also using Roon for selecting and playing the music.  

 

I am using iPad to control the LUMIN App.  There is a great deal of configuration and control afforded by the LUMIN App, but I do miss the ease of a handheld remote for quick access to volume adjustments, muting, and in the case of the preamp, selectability for sources,  and fine adjustment of channel emphasis--not balancing of tube bias but output volume bias by channel.

 

As a suggestion, you may want to consider adding the up/down interface arrows in the App as well as slide bar for Leedh like is present for Volume.  Also suggest channel level emphasis control from center position similar to preamp to better dial in when speakers cannot be same identical distance from listener.  Ability to dial in improves imaging and soundstage perceptions.

 

Thanks

 

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5 hours ago, chungjh said:

Has anyone tried either the Westminster or AudioSensibility DC cable on Lumin X1? I am considering an upgrade to the stock DC cable if there is a noticeable (not subtle) improvement.

 

chungih,

 

I did a short review on the AudioSensibility DC cable last year, and I believe you had posted on that thread, so most likely not new info from me to you on this, https://www.audioshark.org/lumin-169/replacement-power-cable-lumin-x1-18507.html  I am still very pleased with the AudioSensibiIity DC cord, but have not heard the Westminster offering.  

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Possibly it is related to interruption of service from your internet service provider or rebooting of your modem--the X1 requires active network connection and will show Network Error if connection to network is not active, and then will revert to normal condition when service is active to the unit again.

 

 

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Years ago I purchased some Audio Artistry speakers that were owned by Siegfried Linkwitz.  He had been part of Audio Artistry, but AA was no longer trading.   The speaker cables he sent me that he had been using was zip cord as well.   

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Peter,

 

I am having issue with Lumin App.   I am on Version 7.1.3 and Firmware 14.4.   I am using a Mac M1 for the App.  In trying to use this morning, I received an alert that server is offline with message asking to continue or not.  I elected Yes.   The App opened and populated with music, and I was able to pick a selection to play whole album.  Setup is available in the menu and Music Library is shown in LUMIN X1 Options reflecting MinimServer (antipodes) as usual.

 

However, music does not play.  If I select play arrow at top of app, the playlist just jumps to next selection on playlist and continues to do so till end of the album playlist.   The app is reflecting (Offline) Album:  1590 with a spinning icon symbol above the menu for songs, albums, artist, etc. and if I change from album to one of these other options, including Qobuz, it still reflects Offline and spinning symbol.   I have tried closing the app and reopening several times, restarting my computer, removing and reinstalling the app without success.   The X1 screen reflects the music selection artist and first song and numbers it and will jump through the names of songs and song number when I select play arrow on app, but no music..   The progress circle shows no progress on the X1.

 

How do you suggest I resolve?

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Peter, I also just tried switching to Roon, and X1 does not show as an audio zone option, even with restarting Roon Server and Player on my Antipodes dashboards.   Other options are shown, and am playing music through another DAC via Roon now, but X1 not shown as available.

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1 minute ago, pl_svn said:

 

... there's a Lumin.app version for mac OS? 😳

why no one ever told me? 😡

 

😛

If you have M1 version of Mac, you can use the same version of Lumin App as one for the iPad.

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2 minutes ago, pl_svn said:

 

... which doesn't mean they'll work as expected 😉

(as it seems from the post I was replying to)

 

I have been using the Lumin App with the M1 for some time without issues.  I did recently update the Firmware when alerted on my system for the X1, but do not recall if this is the first time I have tried playing the X1 since that.   I also recently updated the App as well.

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On 1/12/2022 at 7:06 PM, wklie said:

 

Please power cycle the whole network, starting from the router, especially including the Roon Core, Lumin X1, Antipodes and all WiFi / mobile devices.

Peter,  

 

I left on a trip shortly after your posting to resolve my issue.   I shutdown and removed power from my audio gear as well as my modem/router before I left.   I returned earlier this week and powered all again.   The condition of indicating Offline still persisted.  I decided to try enabling Minimserver as well as Roon on my K50 Server Dashboard.  That did result in Minimserver (Antipodes) showing in Lumin App Library as available.  Selecting it allows music to play.  A prior K50 Server option in library shows but is Offline.  Enabling Minimserver on K50 Server Dashboard along with Roon has not affected Roon working.  I previously did not have to enable Minimserver on the K50 for the Lumin App to show and play music from hard drive installed on the K50 and managed by the Server Dashboard.  I just tried toggling Minimserver off on the Server Dashboard, and Library again went offline.   As noted, this was not the case prior.  Possibly there were software changes pushed through that did not require user participation.   I will post this in the Antipodes forum for Antipodes response.   I am fine with needing to enable Minimserver in the K50 Dashboard but am curious why now and not prior.  Should I get further info from Antipodes on this, I will post a followup.   As always, I appreciate the support you provide here and in other forums.

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On 5/5/2022 at 10:18 AM, EastBayBob said:

I'm sure this is a very basic question, I have a Lumin T2, I don't have enough information to set it correctly. If the DAC is so good, how do I connect it to use the DAC. I have mine connected with analog to my AVR receiver. I was told to turn signal processing off to use Lumin DAC but that means I lose room correction(ARC) and I can't use my subs. I have tried this way and it just sounds better with processing on. I have thought about buying a separate preamp with a much higher end DAC than my AVR 

Are you using your room correction and your subs just for home theater/mulit-channel only or also for 2-channel music?   If the former, there should be a way with your processor to configure an input as direct (without processing) or home theater bypass and another configuration that uses the same input but is set to go through your processor converting analog to digital for processing and back to analog again, allowing processing for subs and room correction.   Some users do not wish to go through additional conversions like this, but some report their room correction hardware/software produce superior results for them.

 

You may wish to try your T2 direct to amps utilizing Leedh option available to your Lumin.  Leedh really is quite good and would give you a chance to evaluate sound quality of your T2 without additional processing.   I do believe Leedh can provide you with better sound quality results that many preamps will and even possibly your processor.   I have an X1 and used Leedh prior.  I now have a Mola Mola Makua preamp with the DAC (similar to Tambaqui).   The preamp on the Makua is very good, and I currently use the X1 through the Makua utilizing the Makua volume control.  I could configure the X1 to use Leedh and the Makua as bypass/ direct for that input,  and have in the past but , for now, prefer Makua for volume control.  My front speakers have aged quite a bit now (not as much as me ;-} ) and have low end down to 20 Hz.  I do not use separate subs with them for 2-channel, but do utilize subs through my Marantz processor for home theater for my surrounds and the dedicated sub channel.  I have one input for the Makua set up for direct/bypass that connects to the Marantz processor for home theater usage.

 

I appreciate how confusing and involved this can be, but simply purchasing additional unit(s) without knowing they will integrate with your system and your objectives can be a very expensive and frustrating route.  I do encourage you to first experiment further with your T2 before replacing.  The new P2 has some preamp capabilities the T2 does not have.   I have found Lumin support here and other forums to be great.  A local dealer may also be very beneficial for you to trial and assist in setup for you to achieve the results and desired configuration you  wish.