Auralic Lightning DS App (Software) - Impressions and Information

[baddog]

It seems we need to host a wiki site for streaming product to face the tons of unusual problem...OK,start to preparing it!

 

Or perhaps setup either a forum where we can provide feedback ala JRIVER, or the type of support thread that Lumin has here on CA where PSME handles all Lumin queries from end users.

[Wang Xuanqian]

Or perhaps setup either a forum where we can provide feedback ala JRIVER, or the type of support thread that Lumin has here on CA where PSME handles all Lumin queries from end users.

 

That's a good idea!

[Distinctive]

That's a good idea!

I think as a minimum you should start with the basics, meaning listing the Aries default IP address given by the DHCP server (router) and maybe checking the connection via the Fing app (which also identifies the Aries mac address and may provide WOL).

BTW, do the Aries have a web interface?

 

I have asked for an owners manual for download, but couldn't find it.

 

Regarding the power chords;

I see that you benefit from delivering one type of Aries only, meaning that you do not need to provide one Schuko for Europe, one UK type and one US type in the same shipment, but not delivering this and not informing about it either does not build confidence.

[rwwjr44]

Ah the perils of being an early adopter I have been there too many times to jump this time. It appears the software is not ready for prime time and this should be no surprise to anyone carefully following the previous thread.

 

Patience is indeed good advice.

[Cebolla]

Thanks Mark. It's easy to get impatient about this stuff. I agree that a quick start guide is not nearly enough. I think Auralic underestimated how many non-DLNA people would be interested in this product (i.e it is stressing the fact that DLNA, UpNP, OpenHome are not normal audiophile domains, and yet Auralic has caught the attention of audiophiles everywhere with its Vega DAC).....education about music streaming, via a well-laid-out user manual, is in order.

Has everyone forgotten Chris's excellent guide to UPnP/DLNA in the CA Academy?

Computer Audiophile - The Complete Guide To HiFi UPnP / DLNA Network Audio

 

May be deserves an update to mention more current UPnP devices & software, like the Aries renderer and Lightning DS controller app, perhaps?

[ted_b]

Has everyone forgotten Chris's excellent guide to UPnP/DLNA in the CA Academy?

Computer Audiophile - The Complete Guide To HiFi UPnP / DLNA Network Audio

 

 

No, but I'm not sure Auralic wants to be "married" to CA, so they need to own this for their own users, and have the directions and examples from an Aries (renderer) and Lightning (control point) perspective, IMO.

[Cebolla]

Fair enough, with regards to Auralic. It was just a reminder that UPnP/DLNA streaming is not actually difficult to set up once you know the basics.

[alandbush]

Fair enough, with regards to Auralic. It was just a reminder that UPnP/DLNA streaming is not actually difficult to set up once you know the basics.

 

I greatly appreciated the post. Many thanks.

 

Alan

[esimms86]

No, but I'm not sure Auralic wants to be "married" to CA, so they need to own this for their own users, and have the directions and examples from an Aries (renderer) and Lightning (control point) perspective, IMO.

 

I agree that Auralic has to own it and I also agree that they should have their own moderated user forum, just as many other software and hardware developers have. At the same time, it would be realistic for Auralic to come up with a user manual that acknowledges other software apps, telling users how to integrate said apps with the Aries. I know that it's not the same, but Auralic already has proven experience with coming up with a useful online downloadable guide for using the Vega with 3rd party software products like jriver and Audirvana. Learn from PS Audio's experience by first making it easily usable.

 

In the end, though, Auralic has stated ambitious plans for coming up with exciting add on features (e.g., room correction) and that, to me, is one of the most promising aspects of what Auralic has envisioned for their own in house developed software.

 

Esau

[MarkS]

I'm trying to like this thing, but the software and setup/networking issues are making it really hard. While I do not know how this could be accomplished technically, Auralic should have found some way to make this thing work with JRiver (or similar) to face the user. I don't think this device will succeed without a simpler setup and better user interface. For example, for some reason, the Aries simply won't grab music from the minimserver on my NAS that I spent quite a while installing and configuring last night. I am not asking for help with this, I am simply stating that it worked last night; I listened to music, went to bed, woke up, worked, came home and now it doesn't play anymore. I didn't even shut anything off except my amps! If I cannot get this to work tonight, then I will offer up a 24-48 hour old Aries to someone here for a small discount from what I paid for it yesterday. I know these things are in demand, and perhaps someone with better skills and more patience will be better suited to the Aries.

[Jimmypowder]

Well this is not a promising post . Why would it work at night then the following morning it would

Not?,

 

And what's up with the marks near the power input? To mask a mistake on the polarity on the hardware,??? Never seen anything like that on any piece of hardware,ever,,!!

[Cebolla]

While I do not know how this could be accomplished technically, Auralic should have found some way to make this thing work with JRiver (or similar) to face the user.

Since JRMC contains a UPnP/DLNA control point, you should already be able to use it to control the Aries (doesn't need need anything 'extra' from Auralic), even when remote controlling JRMC via JRemote!

[Audio_ELF]

Since JRMC contains a UPnP/DLNA control point, you should already be able to use it to control the Aries (doesn't need need anything 'extra' from Auralic), even when remote controlling JRMC via JRemote!

I agree with Cebolla this should work out of the box with JRiver... Can anyone who has the Aries confirm or deny compatibility?

 

Eloise

[Wang Xuanqian]

I agree with Cebolla this should work out of the box with JRiver... Can anyone who has the Aries confirm or deny compatibility?

 

Eloise

 

Switch to uPnP AV mode and it will be compatible with all uPnP control software. However, you wont have on-device playlist, radio, streaming, airplay and songcast at all.

[ted_b]

I agree with Cebolla this should work out of the box with JRiver... Can anyone who has the Aries confirm or deny compatibility?

 

Eloise

 

Yes, I reported several times using JRiver as a DLNA server, doing PCM and DSD, and reported using JRemote as a "control point" (JRemote is not DLNA-compliant and knew the Aries as "Zone 3"). However, as pointed out, metadata scrubbing, smart playlists, etc were not part of the capability.

[MarkS]

Deny (no JRiver - at least not that I can reasonably figure out). I'm getting rid of this thing tomorrow. Frankly, it's too much of a hassle for me (software and setup) to even give the hardware a full shot. That said, I got it working for a few hours last night, and, to me, it did not sound as good as my present Mac mini system, but I don't think it was a full and fair test.

 

I've reconnected my USB cable to my Mac mini and am happily listening to music now. Oh well.

 

My guess is that there will be a renderer one day with a polished user experience that will be a true high end source. The Aries might even be that device, but I'm not willing or able to spend the amount of time required to get it working right in my system.

 

I paid $1700 for it with tax. It's the upgraded one with the better PSU. I understand these things are hard to get, and the people on this forum are great, so I'll send it FedEx for $1500 to the first interested person (who is better at this sort of stuff than me) that sends me a PM before noon tomorrow, otherwise I will just take it back to the store tomorrow afternoon and get all my money back.

[jtwrace]

Do any of the other beta testers know how to make DS play through an entire album? It will play a track from the album that I pick but then goes back to a previous album/track that I played. Pretty sure I do not have random or shuffle checked on the top right of the counter. Well, they're not highlighted anyway.

 

I have a pretty decent list of items that need to be addressed but since there isn't an official forum I'll hang onto them so they do not get overlooked. The above is an item that I'm probably just missing the setting.

[ted_b]

Jason, the DS app is very playlist oriented, so it sounds like you are "inserting" tracks into a playlist (queue) rather than replacing an existing queue with a new album. Pick an album, click on the icon next to the album name, and choose "new playlist now" in the pop up when it asks Now , Next or Later. If you pick Next, for example, it will insert the whole album but will have the other album before and after it. Click the queue icon in the right side to show what the queue looks like currently.

[jtwrace]

Ah yes, that's what it is. Not a fan of that. I want to play a whole album unless I want to add it to a playlist. At least make this an option.

 

And of course, some pictures for peeps.

 

 

 

[Wang Xuanqian]

I think the online user's guide has been a couple of minutes ago.

[firedog]

I tried going to the Auralic site to get the guide, but the site isn't working for me other than the home page.

 

edit: after about 10 minutes the site started to respond. all I see is the quick start guide:

 

http://www.auralic.com/download/aries_quick_start.pdf

[firedog]

I don't have an Aries yet but am trying to use the DS app with my server as a test to see if the software meets my needs.

 

I've got it working pretty good now with minimserver and my iPad.

 

After a few tries, it seems to have found and catalogued all the albums and album art correctly. Took a couple of reinstalls, and even then you have to wait a while for it to work properly the first time, even after it has told you that it has loaded the library in question.

 

My basic reaction to it is this: it looks nice, but seems way too limited in function for what we want a CA UI to be. It's also very slow to respond, and they need a way to make it much snappier.

 

For those of you who actually own an Aries, how is the more advanced functionality like smartlists? Is your early impression that the DS is something you can happily live with as your control software?

 

I realize Mr. Wang said they designed to it to be simple because that's what most users want. I'm not sure that's true. The device is expensive enough that it isn't mass market. The price and audiophile nature are going to mean that a fair number of pretty savvy, serious users are going to be interested. I think maybe there should be more advanced features added that you can use if you wish. They could still keep the basic interface simple.

[dr.sah]

Why DSapp can not make it's own library index like Sonos? In that case you can get fast response, fast app. I believe that hardware is light year ahead of Sonos, and sonos is fast.

[Wang Xuanqian]

I tried going to the Auralic site to get the guide, but the site isn't working for me other than the home page.

 

edit: after about 10 minutes the site started to respond. all I see is the quick start guide:

 

http://www.auralic.com/download/aries_quick_start.pdf

 

Inside App setting menu

[Wang Xuanqian]

Why DSapp can not make it's own library index like Sonos? In that case you can get fast response, fast app. I believe that hardware is light year ahead of Sonos, and sonos is fast.

 

It has and is not slow at all. The App will download cover art at background AFTER index setup but going without any hint. It is indeed slow (on old iPad) before all cover has been loaded, but will return to normal speed after all covers have been loaded. We will add a hint in next version.

 

The search function will return result instant after you click 'enter' on keyboard which indicate the database is fast enough.