HQPlayer Desktop 3.4.0 for Windows, Linux and Mac OS X released!

[JohanJ]

I know that you and a pretty large handful of others have been waiting for me to report on CuBox-i versus Mac mini as NAA. So here goes:

 

Thank you very much Alex for sharing your experience with us.

Too bad to hear you negative listening experience with cubox. Mine is ordered and on its way.

 

Juussi made a version for cubox available through his website, using this link. That isnt the version you are talking about?

 

Because I couldnt wait and wanted to try NAA I installed networkaudiod_2.0.5-20_i386.deb on my iMac, running Ubuntu studio 14.04. I serve HQplayer for linux on a Macmini also running Ubuntu 14.04 Studio. I just installed the .deb file through the software center in Linux, connected a iFi nano iDSD dac plugged my earphones in... and it worked! I experienced an exceptional good SQ through that set up of a DSD version of Shostakovich first symphony. I didnt think it was that easy. However later on I couldnt get the iFi connected anymore, probably due to its battery power or because another process was claiming the ifi.

So I cant wait for the cubox and installing the software. The micro SD is allready made.

 

I will try to put my experiences in here.

 

About installing Ubuntu on a macmini, running alongside your OSX isnt too complicated if you use this guide . I had big issues in boot partitions, but following this guide works like a charm. Both on a macmini and an imac.

 

regards

Johan

[JohanJ]

I recently bought a CuBox-i4Pro, and using it with a custom slimmed and optimized Linux/NAA image (realtime kernel, virtually all processes off, etc.) that Miska provided to me as his "best build",

 

Alex, one thing I forgot to ask: the realtime kernel, is that the one opposite to the kernel low latency that i see in Ubuntu? Or are you talking about a specific kernel?

 

Johan

[AnotherSpin]

Alex, one thing I forgot to ask: the realtime kernel, is that the one opposite to the kernel low latency that i see in Ubuntu? Or are you talking about a specific kernel?

 

Johan

That is the question bothers me most. Maybe because I have no fuckin idea what these smart guys are speaking about.

[Superdad]

Alex, do I understand it right -

a) CuBox - no

b) Linux build you have from Jussi is not available for public and is difficult to install anyway.

 

Well... it leaves us with no way to run HQP without core audio. Or? What are the options or next steps to try?

 

Something like that, but to be clear:

 

I just prefer NAA on Mac over NAA on CuBox-i in my system. Maybe if I had never heard how good it sounds with my Mac I would be enjoying the CuBox-i.

 

And doing a comparison between CuBox-i/NAA and HQP in desktop mode with CoreAudio--screen sharing to the headless modified music mini--I think I would still pick the mini.

 

There was a week where I spent lots of hours fussing with installing--on the Intel Mac mini--Debian Jessie (Wheezy does not support new generation mini's Boradcom Ethernet chip). But I was unwilling to let it repartition my hard drive, so I tried to no avail to get it to boot from USB. Gave up on that and just stayed with the special, secret sauce Linux (not Debian or Ubuntu)/NAA image that Miska gave me way back in January (and which did not work on the 2010 Core 2 Duo I had at the time). This is the image that I use and which works, save for it not recognizing aluminum Apple keyboards and also it not being patient enough with my slow DHCP router to wait for an IP address through my switch (I have to hook the NAA machine directly to my DSL router; same with the CuBox-i NAA).

 

What Miska told me was that installing Linux (Debian or otherwise) on ARM CuBox-i is even more difficult than for Intel/AMD, and since he gave me an image that he said was just as minimal and optimized as the Mac one, but of course for the other processor, I just went with that. There was no "installation" of it for CuBox: all I had to do was properly copy the disc image I downloaded from him to a micro-SD card and power on the CuBox.

 

I think Miska needs to address the group about his plans for distribution or not of OS images and pre-installed NAA. Apparently there are support and legal issues regarding Linux distributions. But he needs to become public with some solution or decision in regards to users who wish to use his NAA. There are many novices (myself included) that enjoy HQ Player and think the split NAA-model is a great way to go, but as of now he is not making it easy for many to get on board. I have told him this privately--and now publicly--and I appreciate the fact that he is a one-person operation so support for complex s/w issues can be a monumental headache.

 

Regards,

--Alex C.

[Superdad]

Jussi made a version for cubox available through his website, using this link. That isnt the version you are talking about?

 

That is the same one. It is also one of the ones he asked me not to share publicly. Oops; better you than me…

 

Alex, one thing I forgot to ask: the realtime kernel, is that the one opposite to the kernel low latency that i see in Ubuntu? Or are you talking about a specific kernel?

 

Johan

 

Ask Miska. I don't know s**t about Linux. I just repeated what he told me.

[Superdad]

That is the question bothers me most. Maybe because I have no fuckin idea what these smart guys are speaking about.

 

You are not alone Sergii! See my reply to Johan above.

 

I just try to be careful and clear about what I am changing and report only what I can repeatably hear with my own ears in my own system. Such is the only integrity I possess.

[AnotherSpin]

I just try to be careful and clear about what I am changing and report only what I can repeatably hear with my own ears in my own system. Such is the only integrity I possess.

Alex, please use any language you choose, we cherish your findings and wait for them.

[AnotherSpin]

If we, dummies would rush in. Is there a way to use linunx in our beloved mac mini?

[Miska]

I've been providing link to the CuBox-i image only on request, because the server where it is located has only 1 Mbps uplink bandwidth. So please be tender with it... For the same reason, hosting multiple different versions (plus FOSS sources) is not feasible.

 

Installing Debian on a standard PC is not that hard. I don't really see a reason for using Mac Mini as NAA, it is total overkill in terms of resources, because in most cases it takes just couple of % on the CuBox. And around 10% on 400 MHz ARM9 that does fine without even heat sink.

 

Most people using a PC would choose something fan-less, like cheaper FitPC, Alix or Atom like MinnowBoard. (Fit-PC Intense would be good for running full HQPlayer) And run it dedicated to NAA, something like 4 GB USB-stick is also fine.

 

If you use MacMini, at least remove the internal HDD and replace it with some tiny SSD.

 

Here are step-by-step instructions for installing NAA based on Debian Wheezy from netinst-image. It should also work for Debian Jessie (current development version). These exactly assume i386 architecture, but pretty much same works with arm-hf architecture too (CuBox-i, WandBoard, BeagleBoard, etc) after extra hoops to make netinst boot there.

NOTE! THESE INSTRUCTIONS WILL WIPE OUT EVERYTHING YOU POSSIBLY HAVE ON THE HDD/SSD AND REPLACE IT WITH DEBIAN! So DO NOT do it on any device that has any data you would like to keep.

 

Compared to my very minimal NAA image, you can install additional tools on this kind of system for example to adjust output volume of devices like Resonessence Labs HERUS and Audioquest DragonFly.

 

 

P.S. On Mac Mini, you may have better success with Debian Jessie.

P.P.S. This is a bit wrong thread for NAA details, it would be probably better for future archival reasons to use the NAA thread instead.

[wdw]

I've been providing link to the CuBox-i image only on request, because the server where it is located has only 1 Mbps uplink bandwidth. So please be tender with it... For the same reason, hosting multiple different versions (plus FOSS sources) is not feasible.

 

Installing Debian on a standard PC is not that hard. I don't really see a reason for using Mac Mini as NAA, it is total overkill in terms of resources, because in most cases it takes just couple of % on the CuBox. And around 10% on 400 MHz ARM9 that does fine without even heat sink.

 

Most people using a PC would choose something fan-less, like cheaper FitPC, Alix or Atom like MinnowBoard. (Fit-PC Intense would be good for running full HQPlayer) And run it dedicated to NAA, something like 4 GB USB-stick is also fine.

 

If you use MacMini, at least remove the internal HDD and replace it with some tiny SSD.

 

Here are step-by-step instructions for installing NAA based on Debian Wheezy from netinst-image. It should also work for Debian Jessie (current development version). These exactly assume i386 architecture, but pretty much same works with arm-hf architecture too (CuBox-i, WandBoard, BeagleBoard, etc) after extra hoops to make netinst boot there.

NOTE! THESE INSTRUCTIONS WILL WIPE OUT EVERYTHING YOU POSSIBLY HAVE ON THE HDD/SSD AND REPLACE IT WITH DEBIAN! So DO NOT do it on any device that has any data you would like to keep.

 

Compared to my very minimal NAA image, you can install additional tools on this kind of system for example to adjust output volume of devices like Resonessence Labs HERUS and Audioquest DragonFly.

 

 

P.S. On Mac Mini, you may have better success with Debian Jessie.

P.P.S. This is a bit wrong thread for NAA details, it would be probably better for future archival reasons to use the NAA thread instead.

 

Hello Miska,

I've read too many accolades for HQPlayer to not take notice and it has piqued my interest but when logging into your site I have to admit I don't understand what you're selling and how I would use it. I see that I can purchase the software but must also use an NAA...so wtf is this? Hardware, software, a dongle...and then lots of mention of Ubanta...is this an African dialect?

Then the Dweezy something....and other gear head stuff. Are you selling a music player or communicating to the aliens amongst us, all waiting for the word to begin the alien uprising...

Best wishes but I truly don't get it, ;-).

Regards,

Warren

[Miska]

I see that I can purchase the software but must also use an NAA...

 

Which site are you looking at? Requirement for NAA was lifted on Mac OS X version when 3.4.0 was released.

 

so wtf is this? Hardware, software, a dongle...

 

Software, running on hardware of your choice, but it runs only on Debian Linux (for now). Ubuntu is derived from Debian, so may work there also.

 

and then lots of mention of Ubanta...is this an African dialect?

 

The leading OS for PC, tablet, phone and cloud | Ubuntu

 

Most popular GNU/Linux distribution, produced by Canonical Ltd. More background on the naming and details here:

Ubuntu (operating system) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Then the Dweezy something....and other gear head stuff.

 

Many Linux distributions name releases a bit like Apple names OS X releases. Wheezy is Debian's latest stable release:

Debian - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Are you selling a music player or communicating to the aliens amongst us, all waiting for the word to begin the alien uprising...

 

There's wide spectrum of people using computer music players, HQPlayer is geared towards the technical end with some special features people want (or at least I wanted and for that reason I'm developing it).

[fabiodeluca]

Hello Miska,

Are you selling a music player or communicating to the aliens amongst us, all waiting for the word to begin the alien uprising...

Warren

 

I could not avoid to laugh when I read the great mail form Warren, which I 100% agree on

 

Miska is doing a truly wonderful job, as many other forum members trying to improve our music experience.

But many of us are not technicians and yet we want to enjoy HQPlayer features possibly at the best...it would be also beneficial to Miska future profits since I assume non technician population is larger than technicians one....

 

Hence please to all the 'aliens' please try to speak a little bit more of our language...this is feasible in my opinion while it is pretty unlike that we learn alienish language by ourselves...;-)

 

Thanks

[AnotherSpin]

Hello Miska,

I've read too many accolades for HQPlayer to not take notice and it has piqued my interest but when logging into your site I have to admit I don't understand what you're selling and how I would use it. I see that I can purchase the software but must also use an NAA...so wtf is this? Hardware, software, a dongle...and then lots of mention of Ubanta...is this an African dialect?

Then the Dweezy something....and other gear head stuff. Are you selling a music player or communicating to the aliens amongst us, all waiting for the word to begin the alien uprising...

Best wishes but I truly don't get it, ;-).

Regards,

Warren

 

Jussi is selling wonderful player, named HQPlayer. You could purchase it, install on Mac and just go on. What we discuss, or trying to understand here is more sophisticated way of using two separate computers or linux based OS which presumably bring us closer to audio walhalla. But, even common man distribution of HQP is giving lot of fun to play. And LISTEN.

[EuroDriver]

The SOTM SMS-100 has a version of the HQP NAA already installed. I have heard it driving a OPPO 105D very nicely. The improvement in sound quality compared to going direct from an Item Audio T1 i5 with a cheap Voltcraft LPS was fairly dramatic

 

I am patiently waiting for the Linux driver for my Exasound E20 so I can try out the NAA

[nodolby]

You have to be deaf to criticize a product like hq player, in conjunction with my mac mini I found the most sonically today that you can achieve with the liquid music.

thanks Miska.-

[AnotherSpin]

 

Here are step-by-step instructions for installing NAA based on Debian Wheezy from netinst-image. It should also work for Debian Jessie (current development version). These exactly assume i386 architecture, but pretty much same works with arm-hf architecture too (CuBox-i, WandBoard, BeagleBoard, etc) after extra hoops to make netinst boot there.

NOTE! THESE INSTRUCTIONS WILL WIPE OUT EVERYTHING YOU POSSIBLY HAVE ON THE HDD/SSD AND REPLACE IT WITH DEBIAN! So DO NOT do it on any device that has any data you would like to keep.

 

P.S. On Mac Mini, you may have better success with Debian Jessie.

 

I feel we are moving closer, still there are some questions:

 

- as I understand, here we have an installer for linux-based OS which is not possible to combine with regular Mac OS on the same mac - is it correct?

- could it be installed on USB or sd card and run from there?

- is it make sense to try linux installation + HQP for linux on partitioned mac ssd as a standalone set, without NAA?

[JohanJ]

That is the same one. It is also one of the ones he asked me not to share publicly. Oops; better you than me…

 

I didnt realise it could be a problem. It is true, never can find it on the site, so i just type in Google cubox NAA HQplayer and I get a link through the facebook page of HQplayer... Maybe, Miska, arent you aware anymore it is there on Facebook?

[Miska]

I didnt realise it could be a problem. It is true, never can find it on the site, so i just type in Google cubox NAA HQplayer and I get a link through the facebook page of HQplayer... Maybe, Miska, arent you aware anymore it is there on Facebook?

 

I don't want to censor it, it is not secret in that sense, it probably appears on some other forums too. This way it requires little bit of effort to find it, or get it by asking. Keeps the amount of traffic (hopefully) from becoming excessive.

 

There's now new official kernel available for CuBox-i, I'll try to make a new build soon with updated kernel and maybe some updates to the networkaudiod software module too. I just need to clean up the kernel's default config which is crazy... (spent two hours last night doing it, and then hit a wrong button and the changes were lost...)

[Miska]

- as I understand, here we have an installer for linux-based OS which is not possible to combine with regular Mac OS on the same mac - is it correct?

 

Maybe, but I never tried it myself. I keep NAA machines dedicated for the purpose, so there's only single OS installed with nothing but the essentials needed for NAA.

 

- could it be installed on USB or sd card and run from there?

 

That's very easy to do with any normal PC, but Mac's may not be that easy...

 

- is it make sense to try linux installation + HQP for linux on partitioned mac ssd as a standalone set, without NAA?

 

Definitely, here are Mac specific Ubuntu 14.04.1 install images:

Ubuntu 14.04.1 LTS (Trusty Tahr)

(note, scroll down and take the 14.04.1 amd64+mac desktop -image)

 

I don't have a PPC Mac, so HQPlayer is only available for 64-bit Intel architectures. (amd64 = 64-bit Intel architecture, the name is because the 64-bit variant was originally designed by AMD and later implemented also by Intel)

[JohanJ]

Yes..my cubox i4 pro did arrive this afternoon...

So I unpacked it put the SD card I made before in it, hooked it up. No boot! I made the SD card with Netinboot in Ubuntu Studio. Not good...

On the cubox site is a good instruction of making a bootable SD card, so that was done in a few minutes. After that the cubox booted attached to an iFi Nano DSD dac.

I run HQplayer on a dedicated late 2012 macmini, running on Ubuntu Studio 14.04. HQplayer saw my ifi, but didnt play. Back to the settings and the whole thing frose. After restart the ifi was gone and wasnt selectable. I tried the same not with an iFI but with an Audiophilleo 1 Spdif converter. HQplayer detected it right away. But it didnt play and after that the selectbar was empty again. So it isnt the dac.

I than I started HQplayer from my iMac, also running the same OS, Ubuntu Studio. HQplayer detected the ifi, and playing wasnt a problem...It works great.

So now I am puzzled. iMac and Macmini running the same OS, the same HQplayer version. From the iMac NAA works, from the macmini it doesnt

Anybody an idea?

[JohanJ]

Great to hear you working on a new version for the cubox. Good to hear that hiting a wrong button isnt only for newbies like me...

I guess we will hear in here when it is available? Thanks in advance...

Johan

[sonata]

After reading others comments regarding HQPlayer I just had to try it - and I was not disappointed. Here is my experience.

 

I had originally been using Audirvana 1.5.12 on a 2012 Mac Mini, booting from an SD Card with the CAD 1.2.2 script, ejecting the HDD and running A+ from a RAM Disk. I was quite pleased with the SQ. I then tried playing my music files from a RAM Disk, resulting in very good SQ. But because it was not very convenient, I tended not to use a RAM Disk for my music files.

 

Then I installed A+ 2.01, running it from RAM Disk and playing music files from HDD. For me, this seemed to give a slightly better SQ.

 

But given the comments of others regarding HQP, I decided to install it on my Mac Mini, which was still optimised with the CAD script. With no NAA between the DAC and the Mac Mini, I thought the SQ was about the same as I was getting from booting from SD Card, CAD Script, A+ on RAM Disk and music files on HDD.

 

But I also had an old X86 laptop (1.4 GHz Celeron, 1 Gb RAM) not being used, so I installed Debian Wheezy on it. HQP was able to detect the laptop NAA but not my DAC (a Meridian Explorer). This was not unexpected, as Meridian do not supply drivers for Debian Linux. However they mention that the Explorer DAC will work ‘out of the box’ with Ubuntu 12.04 - but I had trouble installing it from the iso file, and instead installed a cut down version of Ubuntu 14.04 from here, following the steps Miska outlined here. And now my DAC was detected by HQP. My NAA laptop boots to the command prompt in 35 seconds, and shutdown takes 4 seconds - all nicely optimised.

 

How does HQP sound on my system - absolutely amazing. It is not easy to do a direct comparison with what I previously considered gave me the best SQ (boot from SD Card, CAD Script, A+ on RAM Disk, music on RAM Disk). But I do believe HQP is better - lots of detail and clarity - so much like being there with the performers. Well done Miska!

 

What I would like to see is the interface improved, along with an iOS app for control. And it would be great to be able to create playlists that are not confined to an album - or is this already possible? I have not come across a manual, but maybe it is possible. I always like to randomly play tracks from my whole music collection, but cannot see that it is possible with HQP. So improvements would be welcome.

 

Again, thank you Miska.

 

Rob

[Geoffrey Armstrong]

Hi Rob,

 

Glad you've discovered HQP.

 

All you need to do is export playlists from iTunes or J River. You can open these from within HQP and it will play them just fine.

 

it's a question of horses for courses.

 

Hope it helps!

 

Geoff

[Miska]

I always like to randomly play tracks from my whole music collection, but cannot see that it is possible with HQP. So improvements would be welcome.

 

One possibility to achieve it is to drag-and-drop highest level folder of your music library from Finder on the HQPlayer window which results in all contained (supported) files being added to the playlist. Be ware that this operation may take a while to complete... And then save it as a playlist for future use. You can then start random playback.

[sonata]

One possibility to achieve it is to drag-and-drop highest level folder of your music library from Finder on the HQPlayer window which results in all contained (supported) files being added to the playlist. Be ware that this operation may take a while to complete... And then save it as a playlist for future use. You can then start random playback.

 

Thanks Miska, this is just what I am looking for. I will give it a go.

 

Rob