Audirvana Plus 3 (official thread)

[Krutsch]

Quick issue found with 3.0.2: when setting the Forced Upsampling w/ Custom, regardless what values I select (e.g. 44.1 -> 88.2) when I restart A+ the drop downs revert back to 192 kHz for all sample rate values (192 is the max my DAC accepts).

 

EDIT: one other thing: if I enable system optimizations, I've noticed that Spotlight doesn't re-enable after stopping and even completely closing A+. I have to reboot my MacBook Pro (Early 2013 model) to get Spotlight back. Running macOS Sierra 10.12.3

[Krutsch]

20 hours ago, damien78 said:

Just released 3.0.3 with the said bug fixes:

•  
• Fix upsampling custom sample rate wrongly displayed in preferences
•  

 

This bug is still present in 3.0.3, using iTunes Integration Mode. I can change the custom settings, restart A+ and they revert back to the DAC's max sample rate.

 

Also, did you remove SysOpt when using iTunes Integration Mode?

[Krutsch]

58 minutes ago, damien78 said:

Just released 3.0.6 update that increases the license check grace period from 14 to 60 days, and also brings:

• Fix surround channels not played on a multichannel system
• Fix AudioUnits effects not working when upsampling to DSD

 

Awesome work and thanks for these two fixes, in particular.

[Krutsch]

5 hours ago, Innocent Bystander said:

 

1) So, first and foremost, how does the sound quality compare with Audirvana? ...

 

 2) How does the library compare?

 

3) Is is stable?

 

I've never personally used anything from Amarra that was even remotely stable and usable.

[Krutsch]

6 hours ago, alfamatt said:

Last night I was getting several error messages saying the system optimiser couldnt be loaded properly as an assistant file wasnt loaded. or words to that affect. When I clicked on updating the assistant, adding my password etc, the same message kept on reappearing. Anyone else had this or know whats going on?

 

I've seen that, as well, in the recent past. I've stopped using the "System Optimizer" as it doesn't seem to actually prevent Time Machine from running and, frequently, when I stop/exit A+, I have to reboot my laptop to get Spotlight to work again. Mac OS is a real pain to use without spotlight.

 

Honestly, this seems like a legacy feature; with my music files on a fast T-bolt drive and quad-core i7 w/ 16 GB of RAM, it's hard to imagine needing to "optimize" Mac OS for music playback unless you are upsampling to quad DSD or whatever.

[Krutsch]

On 5/29/2017 at 6:47 AM, steveoat said:

How to handle box sets.

 

Using audirvana, what is the best way to tag box sets.  I find that each individual disk is shown and I prefer to group all the discs into one box set.

 

The "Grouping" tag is your friend.

 

Make the Album name the same, across all discs, and set the Grouping tag to the unique disc name name within the box set. I did this, as one example, with the Simple Minds New Gold Dream box set.

 

The album for all 5 discs was "New Gold Dream [Super Deluxe]" and for each disc within the set, I set the Grouping tag for those tracks to the unique disc name (e.g. for disc #2: "Extended Versions"). I even set unique cover art for each of the sleeves within the box set.

 

A+ handles this really well and creates a bold out-dented line for each grouping; I do the same thing for classical "Works". Try it... you will be pleased with the results in A+.

[Krutsch]

9 hours ago, rickca said:

Well, it seems to have become more challenging than you expected.  You said the difficulty is different implementations on various network renderers.  If it's working well on the microRendu, I think many CA members will adopt it.  You don't like the idea of supporting additional devices in a subsequent point release?

 

 

If you've followed the history of MinimServer, Damien has bitten off a lot more than may be worth chewing, if his goal is to support arbitrary renderers. Simon seems to be an extremely competent developer and it took him years to really stabilize MinimServer/Streamer. And, Damien is actually supporting quite a bit more, if you include existing functionality in A+. I will not be surprised to see a microRendu -specific release (and that would be enough to get me to purchase a uRendu).

[Krutsch]

3 hours ago, Jud said:

...

 

I re-tagged everything that needed it with Yate when my collection was still fairly small.  Now I rip with XLD, which is pretty good with metadata, and touch up as needed with Yate at the time of ripping/download.

 

I do the same, as XLD ripping works with the AccurateRip database. But every now and then I am forced to rip with iTunes because iTunes uses Gracenote for tagging which is better than freedb, et al., for obscure albums - especially classical collections.

[Krutsch]

On 7/14/2017 at 9:54 AM, zackthedog said:

I have the same problem.  I've been using an old Doug script to grab the data from iTunes and load it into MAX for ripping.  But as someone pointed out in a recent thread, if you open the CD in iTunes first, then open it in XLD, XLD will see the Gracenote info for the CD.  Very handy!

 

I recall reading that and thanks for the reminder... I need to try that out.

[Krutsch]

8 hours ago, trybeingarun said:

Now that v3.1 is almost ready, here's the feature I wish v3.2 had. I have a couple of desktop gigs (Aune X1s & Matrix M-stage v3) and a portable gig (fiio X5ii). One feature I sorely miss is the ability to save settings (Upsampling, steepness etc) as profiles which can be reused when I change dacs.

 

+1 on that feature request.

[Krutsch]

On 6/11/2018 at 10:32 AM, buonassi said:

Is anyone here using A+ 3.2.7 with AU plugins sent to a renderer?  If so, which protocol and renderer are you using?  I want to try the network renderer route, but won't if I can't keep my AU plugins as they are a vital part of my chain.

 

I've asked the same question a couple of times in another thread:

 

Quote

 I am playing 3.2.7 to a DLNA renderer and using the Sonarworks AU. Realtime audio units and control does not appear during playback and I don't believe I am hearing any difference in sound. Direct connected via USB, everything works as expected.

 

The A+ website does say AU are compatible with uPnP; just curious if anyone else is seeing the same behavior.

 

My DLNA renderer is a Bryston BDP-1. My experience: the answer is 'no' to support for AU plug-ins with A+ and DLNA.

[Krutsch]

FYI: lots of problems with A+ and Mojave. I upgraded to the GA release (10.14), this morning.

 

A+ crashing, unable to open/access audio devices, preferences dialog crashes on opening, et al.

 

I *do* follow this thread, and I hadn't heard of problems with the Mojave betas.

[Krutsch]

53 minutes ago, Krutsch said:

FYI: lots of problems with A+ and Mojave. I upgraded to the GA release (10.14), this morning.

 

A+ crashing, unable to open/access audio devices, preferences dialog crashes on opening, et al.

 

I *do* follow this thread, and I hadn't heard of problems with the Mojave betas.

 

Hmmm... I am having so many other problems with Mojave, that I am restoring a Time Machine backup to my last, good High Sierra backup. For example, any attempt to change *any* audio settings was crashing the Finder and returning me to the Login screen.

 

I also tried BitPerfect and noticed similar behavior - none of my audio devices appeared in the selection drop-down (not even the Internal Speakers option). I am guessing that a last minute change to Mojave broke something with audio devices.

 

You would think I’d have learned by now not to update to a major release on initial launch.

[Krutsch]

On 9/30/2018 at 6:07 PM, RunHomeSlow said:

 

All good for me 10.14 fresh install.

 

I decided to do just that: a fresh install (Nuke-and-Pave). Everything is working now.

[Krutsch]

On 10/17/2018 at 11:30 AM, Matias said:

Does A+ support parametric equalizer over DLNA server?

Never mind, found my answer: yes. "All audio filters (such as “Upsampling to PCM and DSD”, “AudioUnits effects” (e.g. for equalization and digital room correction)) are available."

https://audirvana.com/network-playback/

 

I know the site says that, but I've never been able to get audio units to work with DLNA. I've tried enabling Sonarworks headphone processing (Audio Unit) via DLNA, but absolutely no change in sound. I've asked the same question you are asking a couple of times here, but no response.