ALLO USBridge Signature

[chipvn]

1 minute ago, antonellocaroli said:

the boot is right, it does not reach the login.

Strange that it doesn't see the network...no idea...have you modified any files?

but it worked for another user here...

That's screenshot is without any modification. Just booted straight from the image file downloaded from your site.

 

If I add in the otg_mode=1 in the config file, then it seem like the LAN port is powered on but the orange led keep blinking without success. I could not find it in my LAN Network.

 

Below is the screenshot with otg_mode=1

 

 

[antonellocaroli]

7 minutes ago, chipvn said:

That's screenshot is without any modification. Just booted straight from the image file downloaded from your site.

 

If I add in the otg_mode=1 in the config file, then it seem like the LAN port is powered on but the orange led keep blinking without success. I could not find it in my LAN Network.

 

Below is the screenshot with otg_mode=1

 

 

from this screenshot it seems that the network has started...

 

the green led should be steady and the orange one should be blinking

[chipvn]

11 minutes ago, antonellocaroli said:

from this screenshot it seems that the network has started...

 

the green led should be steady and the orange one should be blinking

Yes, green led is steady and orange blinking. However, it still stop at that step without progressing further.

Therefore, I could not find it in the network.

 

I always see the error mentions that the gprtclock failed to start. Not sure if there is any issue link to that or not.

 

I could install and run VitOS under otg_mode=1 and noeth.dtbo overlays without any issue, BTW.

[antonellocaroli]

3 minutes ago, chipvn said:

However, it still stop at that step without progressing further.

It doesn't have to go beyond that step. it does.
The errors you see are all expected, and have nothing to do with the network.

did you also put noeth.dtbo?

[chipvn]

8 minutes ago, antonellocaroli said:

It doesn't have to go beyond that step. it does.
The errors you see are all expected, and have nothing to do with the network.

did you also put noeth.dtbo?

Reboot my router and it works now.

 

I have not put noeth.dtbo at this stage yet.

 

Manage to connect to it via Web UI.

 

Let see how it works later.

 

Thanks you for the support.

[metronet]

7 hours ago, neukrisz said:

Is there any easy way to use this modified unit with full and latest Volumio?

 

Probably would work fine with recent Volumio images? I think the easiest setup would be using the revised CM3-CM4 I/O board/adapter with a CM4-Lite (since the USBridge sig has a dedicated power rail for the SD card)

 

Not sure if it would have any benefits over the CM3 though, are you having issues playing DSD-256 or higher?

 

The other thing we all noticed is the CM4 likes to run hot🔥 and a good heatsink is recommended before closing the case.

 

Hope it helps.

 

Cheers!

 

 

 

 

[chipvn]

17 hours ago, metronet said:

Exactly. sometimes less is more :)

 

Our VBAT is already 5V so there is no need to step-up from 3V3 using a converter such as the  ETA1096.

 

I am guessing this is the revised board to address the "buzzing" issue?

 

I have measured VBAT on my USBridge Sig and found that it is about 4.6VDC which is a bit low if use directly for the CM4.

The GPIO 5V use 5VDC from direct from the USB C power supply port so if you have good 5VDC LPS, it might be better to take it from there to power the CM4.

I'm using the Shanti LPS to power the USBridge Sig so I use the GPIO 5VDC (measured about 5.18VDC) to power the CM4. Completely removed the ETA1096.

 

With GentooPlayer installed, I can see that the CM4 CPU temperature is about 67-68 degree which is on the high side. Will need the good heatsink for the long run.

[antonellocaroli]

3 hours ago, chipvn said:

With GentooPlayer installed, I can see that the CM4 CPU temperature is about 67-68 degree which is on the high side

try to update the firmware

WI > Update/Install/Remove > Firmware Update

[viperrabbit]

I have just ordered an Allo USBridge Signature with Shanti LPS, pre-installed with Moode Audio.

 

1. I am currently using Squeezebox as my source.  Can LMS (Logitech Music Server) be installed on Moode and running off the USBridge Sig?

2. @allo.com The tracking number provided cannot be found on the EMS website.  I have sent an email to [email protected] but there is no reply so far.  Please advise.

 

[Audio_Allo]

1 hour ago, viperrabbit said:

I have just ordered an Allo USBridge Signature with Shanti LPS, pre-installed with Moode Audio.

 

1. I am currently using Squeezebox as my source.  Can LMS (Logitech Music Server) be installed on Moode and running off the USBridge Sig?

2. @allo.com The tracking number provided cannot be found on the EMS website.  I have sent an email to [email protected] but there is no reply so far.  Please advise.

 

Can you please share your order number through PM so we can check with sales team and update you.

[chipvn]

On 9/12/2021 at 1:23 PM, antonellocaroli said:

try to update the firmware

WI > Update/Install/Remove > Firmware Update

Updated firmware seem to help the operation smoother but temperature remain almost no change (or 1-2 degree different at max).

Installed the brass heatsink purchased from AliExpress but the quality is not good so temperature only reduced by about 4 degrees. Need to order other Aluminum heatsink and try again.  

 

One of the interesting point is whenever I select new DAC, GentooPlayer will need to be restarted. However, this action will reset the config.txt file back to default and thus, will remove the "otg_mode=1" line which means the ASIX ethernet port will not work.

I need to edit the config.txt file again to add back that otg_mode line.

 

Luckily we don't need to change DAC so often.

 

[chipvn]

After installed a better Aluminum heatsink, I managed to bring CM4 CPU temperature down to a healthy range 57-58 deg C.

 

 

 

This is the first time I can run GentooPlayer64 100% from RAM with Profile 2 and RT kernel as HQPlayer NAA at DSD256.

Sounds much nicer now. Not sure whether I need to wait for the official new Allo USBridge Signature CM4 or not. 😅

 

[antonellocaroli]

On 9/14/2021 at 2:39 PM, chipvn said:

One of the interesting point is whenever I select new DAC, GentooPlayer will need to be restarted. However, this action will reset the config.txt file back to default and thus, will remove the "otg_mode=1" line which means the ASIX ethernet port will not work.

I need to edit the config.txt file again to add back that otg_mode line.

gp-update fixes this...

[Zauurx]

On 9/26/2021 at 6:09 AM, chipvn said:

...

 

This is the first time I can run GentooPlayer64 100% from RAM with Profile 2 and RT kernel as HQPlayer NAA at DSD256.

Sounds much nicer now. Not sure whether I need to wait for the official new Allo USBridge Signature CM4 or not. 😅

 

Good work and good adaptation. 😉
But in the end, it's just to benefit from the RT core ?
The investment is really worth it vs. the USBRidge CM3 (?) which works very well in DSD256 under NAA (and even under PCM 1.5 with 4x more ethernet streams than DSD.. but I prefer DSD).
I'm taking a look at the iFi Stream (waiting for a new USBridge). But you are right, at some point the gain is on the hardware.

[chipvn]

1 hour ago, Zauurx said:

Good work and good adaptation. 😉
But in the end, it's just to benefit from the RT core ?
The investment is really worth it vs. the USBRidge CM3 (?) which works very well in DSD256 under NAA (and even under PCM 1.5 with 4x more ethernet streams than DSD.. but I prefer DSD).
I'm taking a look at the iFi Stream (waiting for a new USBridge). But you are right, at some point the gain is on the hardware.

I really like the design approach from Allo on this USBridge Signature, not much on the IFI Zen Streamer.

 

To my ears, the RT-Min-Nograph-EPU100 kernel on this CM4 configuration sounds nicer than the original CM3 configuration with CK equivalent kernel. The CM4 with RT kernel is less sharp (a less harsh) and a bit warmer.

 

I'm using this USBridge Signature as HQPlayer NAA running at DSD256.

 

The additional cost is not that high and you have more fun by DIY as well! 🙃

[Svampebob]

Can I ask; do the compute modules have similar processing power to the "real" pi 3/4 respectively? I'm upsampling everything and using a 3B now, which is ok but more power would be great. Been waiting for Allo's cm4 version for some months, but I am awfully impatient..

[chipvn]

On 10/12/2021 at 2:09 AM, Svampebob said:

Can I ask; do the compute modules have similar processing power to the "real" pi 3/4 respectively? I'm upsampling everything and using a 3B now, which is ok but more power would be great. Been waiting for Allo's cm4 version for some months, but I am awfully impatient..

The CM3/CM4 have the same processing power as the respective Pi3/Pi4 cause they share the same processor (per generation) and running at the same speed.

The difference is CM3/CM4 give more flexibility for manufacturers to design their own I/O board to suit specific purpose instead of limiting themselves on what have been put in the standard Pi3/Pi4

[Svampebob]

10 hours ago, chipvn said:

The CM3/CM4 have the same processing power as the respective Pi3/Pi4 cause they share the same processor (per generation) and running at the same speed.

The difference is CM3/CM4 give more flexibility for manufacturers to design their own I/O board to suit specific purpose instead of limiting themselves on what have been put in the standard Pi3/Pi4

 

Thanks very much chipvn. Am I correct that the usbridge is the only option for cm3/cm4 if our goal is sound quality? I really only need ethernet in and i2s out (I think🙂)

[chipvn]

17 hours ago, Svampebob said:

 

Thanks very much chipvn. Am I correct that the usbridge is the only option for cm3/cm4 if our goal is sound quality? I really only need ethernet in and i2s out (I think🙂)

I think the main selling point of the USBridge Signature is for those who need to have a cleanest USB output for a USB DAC.

If you need to have S/PDIF and / or I2S, you will need to have another GIPO head board to have that output. Most of those good designed additional GIPO boards could have it own clean power supply and very clean output. Therefore, a use of a generic Pi4 might be a more cost effective I believe.

[Svampebob]

Thanks chipvn. I have a pi2aes on top of 3B, AES out. I'm just trying to get the last ‰ out of my setup. I believe others heard improvements with using usbridge instead of pi, even though the hat above is separately powered. I had an Allo isolator in between, which I very effectively killed with 30v one sunday morning. Lesson learned, never play with the stereo before morning coffee.

[alexkosha]

Started to hear pups and click during playing Qobuz content on my USBridge (USB output to Quanghao DAC)). Reloaded fresh Volumio and installed update for ASIX driver, Can't check installed version with that command: 

modinfo ax88179_178a | grep version

Please help. It might be some spelling issue and etc. Do not understand that symbol either - "|".

I just Copy/Paste that command (above) and click Enter. 

[Audio_Allo]

11 hours ago, alexkosha said:

Started to hear pups and click during playing Qobuz content on my USBridge (USB output to Quanghao DAC)). Reloaded fresh Volumio and installed update for ASIX driver, Can't check installed version with that command: 

modinfo ax88179_178a | grep version

Please help. It might be some spelling issue and etc. Do not understand that symbol either - "|".

I just Copy/Paste that command (above) and click Enter. 

Login to volumio as a root user and check

 

login : volumio

 

password : volumio

 

sudo su

 

password : volumio

 

modinfo ax88179_178a | grep version

[Mark Dirac]

16 hours ago, alexkosha said:

Started to hear pups and click during playing Qobuz content on my USBridge...

Hello Alex. There is an existing thread about this issue, here:

I thought that the problem had gone away, after plaguing a few users for years (it has for me), but perhaps not.

 

Do you get the problem even at CD bit rates, or only at hi res rates?

[alexkosha]

I thought that the problem had gone away, after plaguing a few users for years (it has for me), but perhaps not.

 

Do you get the problem even at CD bit rates, or only at hi res rates?

 

Answer: I do. I assume is related to Asix Driver that I couldn't install via link from manual.

That Link instead worked out totally fine: http://3.230.113.73:9011/Allocom/asix2v0/install.sh

 

Need to test now again.

 

BUT, I have an issue to connect my Hard Drive via "dirty USB" ports. It is not visible to the system now.

 

 

 

[alexkosha]

I can't post anything and got that massage: Sorry, you have been blocked