Rendu Support Thread

[Axiom05]

Hoping that someone can help me.

 

I have had my ultraRendu for less than a week and I have already experienced occasional dropouts during playback. Coincidentally, all incidents so far have occurred while playing DSD64 files (via DoP). I have played quite a bit of music since receiving the unit, mostly PCM ranging from 16/44 up to 24/192 files. I have had no issues to date with any PCM file. My set up is described below. This is the exact same set up that I was using before with a Linux NUC and MPD for playback (the ultraRendu simply replaced the NUC). During the three years that I had used the NUC/MPD system, I hadn't encountered a single issue with playback. I tried searching the forums but I didn't find anything relevant. I would really appreciate any suggestions on what the problem might be and on any possible fix. I am really enjoying the sound of the ultraRendu but I am starting to worry that I have taken a step backwards in terms of reliability of playback, which is why I dumped my Mac mini three years ago for the Linux NUC/MPD set up.
 

I have a Netgear switch which is connected to my home network via a MoCA 2.0 adapter. Music is stored on a Synology DS216 NAS which is connected to the Netgear switch. The switch is connected to the ultraRendu through the following: switch > TP-Link mc200cm FMC > fiber optic cable (10 ft) > TP-Link mc200cm FMC > cat 5e ethernet (1 ft) > ultraRendu > USB cable (3 ft) > Ayre QB9-DSD DAC.
 

TIA

[Axiom05]

4 minutes ago, vortecjr said:

It’s hard to narrow in on the issue with that many items on the network. Please connect the unit directly to your router and test it that way. Also let me know if you are using a managed switch.

Jesus, thanks for your response. I have already removed the fiber so will give that a try for a few days. The Netgear switch is not managed. I hope it sounds as good without the fiber network...

 

BTW, left out from original post: using MPD mode with Soundirok as client.

[Axiom05]

Synology DS216 NAS which is dedicated to my music.

[Axiom05]

Sorry, not following you. Nothing is needed for the uRendu to receive music from the Synology NAS. Nothing has been installed onto the NAS other than the Diskstation software.

[Axiom05]

4 minutes ago, vortecjr said:

So it’s DLNA. That DLNA server is very good and I use here all the time. 

OK, I'm with you now, pardon me being slow. I didn't actually realize that the DLNA aspect was being used.

 

Soundirok is a MPD client that runs on an iPad or iPhone. It is very similar to MPaD/MPod. Soundirok works quite well and, unlike MPaD, is supported and is actively being developed.

[Axiom05]

1 hour ago, vortecjr said:

How is a MPD client seeing a DLNA server?

It's not. Soundirok communicates directly with MPD, MPD connects to the NAS using the smb share feature from the Disk Mounter. DLNA is not involved at all. In order for Soundirok to "see" the NAS, you would need to set up a http: server on the NAS, much easier to point Soundirok directly to the uRendu. Same is true for a MPD client like Cantata.

[Axiom05]

3 minutes ago, vortecjr said:

Okay. I would connect both to you the router.

Both? uRendu is directly connected (wired) to network. Don't know what you are referring to for the other. iPad is connected via wifi to router.

[Axiom05]

13 minutes ago, .Will. said:

Hi, I'm new to this so am probably making a very basic mistake but I have mu ultrarendu linked via ethernet to a switch which my computer is also linked to, and the switch is linked directly to the ethernet in my home.  I know there is internet connection becasue my computer is working fine, but when I go to the http://sonicorbiter.com/ site as instructed to see if I can identify my ultrarendu on my network, nothing comes up.  It could be that I don't have power, as I am trying to power it from a Vinnie Rossi LIO - can I tell from the ultrarendu somehow?  Should the LED light on the back of the ultrarendu be glowing if it is getting power?  

 

Any help would be appreciated, or should I be calling the manufacturer for help? 

 

Thanks

Will

There should be three lights on the back: a yellow and green for network and a red one, which I presume is power.

[Axiom05]

2 minutes ago, .Will. said:

Hmmm .... I only have one LED - it is labeled "LED" - and it isn't shining at all.  Maybe that means no power?

The LED should be red. I don't see any network lights either (one on each side of network port) so it looks like no power.

[Axiom05]

Jesus, do you announce when updates are available and what is contained in the update? I ran an update yesterday from the Software Manager but the "Update" button still looks active, does it always look that way? Also, after the update process I chose "Reboot" from the System menu but I am not sure the uRendu actually rebooted, I still had to power it off and on again to reconnect to my DAC. I'm still trying to get familiar with the operational "character" of this thing. This was my first update so I didn't know what to expect. I have become very hesitant to do updates that may not benefit me for fear of breaking a feature that I use. TIA!

[Axiom05]

1 hour ago, msherman said:

undertook upgrade from 2.5 to 2.6 on my cherished ultrarendu....... update proceeded normally with no error messages. only message was pls reboot...... gui showed 2.6. I rebooted as instructed and now device can't be found on network. Can't ping device. LED on rear remains red.

What to do??

Shut down the unit and restart (disconnect power). Reboot through web page doesn't seem to always work. 

[Axiom05]

1 hour ago, Pepsican said:

To be clear, my issue did not happen with the UPGRADE (from 2.5 to 2.6), but with a simple UPDATE (the usual package updating because of bug fixes in Linux). I stayed on version 2.5.

Your uSD card was probably corrupted during the update. Unfortunately, this is always a risk (no matter how small) with any update. Are uSD cards more prone to problems? I don't know, but I wish they had used a regular SD card instead of these tiny things. A back-up image of a working card would get you up and running again while you waited for a new card from Sonore.

 

I am assuming that you did a power-down and restart on your mR and didn't just rely on the reboot selection from the web browser? When I did the same update as you on my ultraRendu, the reboot did not work and I had to pull the plug and restart to get my unit working again.

[Axiom05]

5 hours ago, simon_pepper said:

So, as you create/test a new build and push it to the update servers, could you add it to a page somewhere ideally this forum as your Support channel or the Roon forum, that a new release is available & a comment as to why.

Something just as ‘Sonicorbiter 2.5.1 - bug fixes for ...., RoonReady 1.1.29 adds ....’

Thanks, Simon

 

 

+1. Would be nice if there was a separate thread, with no comments permitted, just to announce that updates are available and a brief description of the changes.

[Axiom05]

Just did an update on my ultraRendu, the first since the SO 2.6 update. Everything looked OK except for two warnings (see attached screen shots). Now I can't get the uR to do anything, it cannot see my DAC in DAC Diagnostics. Everything still works fine using a backup uSD card.

 

 

 

 

[Axiom05]

It seems that once you add attachments, you can no longer add text.

 

Went into Settings - DLNA/MPD and clicked Save Changes but that did not help. I restarted MPD but nothing.

[Axiom05]

OK, finally everything is working. I have no idea what the problem was and I can't remember everything I did but it is now playing music. At one point, my backup card, which was working earlier, stopped working. Not a lot of fun! Ignore previous posts.

[Axiom05]

9 hours ago, vortecjr said:

I didn't see any obvious issues and I'm not sure what you did either:) After the update you just need to reboot and when the unit comes back up go to Settings / MPD DLNA and press Save. This reconfigures the output for proper playback.  

Jesus, if only it was always that simple. ? My update from 2.5 to 2.6 was trivial, performed update, restarted uR, started playing music again. This time required over an hour of fiddling to get this up and running again. It appears that changes at the uR can have unexpected effects on the connection to the DAC and it is not predictable. What was puzzling was that I could not play music from the ultraDigital (BNC) or directly from the uR using USB to DAC. This is the first time that a complete power cycling of the QX-5 Twenty was needed to get everything reconnected.

 

One frustration that I have been continuing to have relates to inserting the uSD card. I find it extremely difficult to get the card inserted correctly, it seems to keep going above the card slot and into the uR itself. Yesterday, my card actually fell into the uR and had to be retrieved by removing the front panel. With all of the connections to the unit in place, it is not easy to maneuver the unit into a position where you can clearly see what you are doing. There seems to be little margin for error in the process. I really hate uSD cards. I realize in a perfect world you would never have to remove the card, just keep running updates and everything should work fine. Unfortunately, it helps to have a working backup card for times when you need to trouble shoot and switching cards has proven to be a frustration in its own right.

 

I am starting to long for the days of using a CD player.

 

Cheers!

Bob

[Axiom05]

Any benefit to uninstall Apps that you are not using?

[Axiom05]

24 minutes ago, vortecjr said:

Not really. The output modes that are not selected are not active. Things like LMS, SonoreUPnP Bridge, and BubbleUPnP server when installed are always on, but they can be turned off and kept installed.  

OK, thanks.

[Axiom05]

33 minutes ago, acousticmood said:

You might have corrupted the card and need a new one -

If the microRendu can be seen on the network then it is likely that the card is fine.

[Axiom05]

2 hours ago, Distinctive said:

And sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn't.

If it was never working I would have understand it.

What I can't understand is the intermittent discovery success I am experiencing.

I have used these DAC's with other sources without issues. 

This is obviously very frustrating and there may be no satisfactory solution. Why don't you provide more detail about your setup including network components. Maybe someone can suggest something if they can see the entire system relationships. An intermittent problem may be related to something other than the mR or your DAC. Do you have access to another DAC to try?

[Axiom05]

I'm assuming that the microRendu is visible on the network. Try disconnecting the USB cable from both mR and DAC.Turn off DAC, reconnect USB cable and restart DAC.

[Axiom05]

11 minutes ago, Theobetley said:

How do I check if Rendu is visible on network?

http://docs.sonore.us/microrendu/

 

Scroll down to bottom of page.

[Axiom05]

6 minutes ago, vortecjr said:

i’m not following you:)

Jesus, I think what he is saying is that the web site says that SO 2.5 is required in order to update to SO 2.7. Apparently you can update from SO 2.4 directly to SO 2.7 by purchasing a new card, SO 2.5 is not specifically required. This should probably be stated clearly on the web page.

 

What is the difference between SO 2.4 and SO 2.5+? Is this just a card capacity issue?

[Axiom05]

3 minutes ago, jaaptina said:

I believe you need to have music playing to see the dac in dac diagnostics. 

This is not true, the Rendu needs to see the DAC before you can play music. To get full diagnostics, then yes, music does need to be playing. The attached screen shot shows how it should look with no music playing.