HQplayer 4 and Mac-mini M1

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3 hours ago, musicjunkie917 said:

Except I still use a tube preamp....well, it's actually a tube line stage.

As do I.

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3 hours ago, Reg19 said:

@Miska Need some help:

 

Roon (on Intel NUC) —> HQPD (on base level M1 Mac Mini) —> opticalRendu (powered by the Sonore Audiophile Power Supply) —> Holo May DAC

 

Intel NUC and M1MM are both connected to network via ethernet.

 

The M1MM is not headless and not dedicated - but it is not running any other apps or browser at this time - only HQPD.

 

I can run, say, DSD256 using poly-sinc-ext2 / ASDM7ECv2 fine without any issues.

 

However, whenever I switch to DSD256 poly-sinc-short-mp / ASDM7EC for 1x, I get the ‘spinning wheel of death’ on my Mac Mini M1.

 

Additionally: has anyone run tests on whether there is a benefit gained by getting a Mac Studio running M1 Max with 32GB memory? I know that Apple typically has a 14-day return policy on their computers. :)

 

Lastly, (1) would my setup benefit in any way from using a LPS on my M1 Mac Mini? (2) Can you briefly explain potential leakage current issues by using ungrounded LPS? I think the LPS powering my NAA may not be grounded.

PS ext-2 is a 2s filter in SDM so I would try ps short-mp 2s and see if that works.

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Jussi, Have you been able to get Apple Music and HQPlayer connected together on your Mini M1? I haven't tried this recently but as I remember the problem with the loopback programs (like Black Hole) was automatic rate switching. I would really like to be able to access the Apple Music catalog but I want to play it to my NAA devices using HQplayer. I wish they would let you put it on the Client, but if not I would use the Apple Music app on my Mini M1 if I could get it connected to HQPlayer on the same machine. If not possible now, is this on the to do list?   Thanks

 

 

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9 minutes ago, Miska said:

 

AFAIK, Apple Music doesn't switch rates on macOS in first place. It always goes through the CoreAudio rate converters/mixer.

 

In order to avoid this, people have been playing Apple Music on iPad, since there it appears to be switching output rate. To make this work to a HQPlayer running on macOS, you'd need a suitable Linux-based NAA.

 

The solution I prefer to use is RME ADI-2 Pro as input device to HQPlayer Embedded. This gives coaxial and optical S/PDIF, AES/EBU and analog inputs into HQPlayer with automatic rate switching. Through those S/PDIF and AES/EBU, you can get even DSD64 using DoP to HQPlayer. A bit more limited solution (due to drivers) I also use is RME HDSPe AIO PCIe card.

Hopefully one day Apple will straighten this mess out. Thanks, but all of the things you mentioned are much more than I want to take on ( or spend for) right now. What a sad state of affairs!

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44 minutes ago, AudioDoctor said:

Bob, I have an M1 mini and a 2011 i5 mini running Kubuntu right next to each other and to my ears the 2011 running Kubuntu sounds better than the M1 mini even though it can't do much more than 24/192 upsampling. What this tells me is that Linux is a far better OS for HQPlayer than Mac OS, and as far as Desktop OS's go, Kubuntu is the best I have heard yet.

Thanks Doc, I also run regular Ubuntu 22.04 as a dual boot on another Intel machine with HQPlayer Desktop. I was hoping to try Apple Music on my M1 as I have a desktop license for that machine as well. Thanks for the tip on Kubuntu. I will check it out.

BTW, how is your flight schedule? Are you back to your pre-pandemic amount of flight time yet? I remember how hard it was to stay current as a single pilot when I became an officer. I pretty much insisted that someone come with me when I hadn’t been up much. Anyway, thanks and best wishes.  Bob 

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3 hours ago, Schafheide said:

My system is NAS > cat 6A > Router > Mac Mini > Router > ultraRendu NAA > Sonore SU-6 DDC ..........

Would an EtherRegen improve the SQ?  If so, where would be the best place to insert the EtherRegen ?

The ER is no longer in production, a new version maybe later this year.

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46 minutes ago, Schafheide said:

I have located a local distributor who has a couple of these in stock.

Which brings me back to my original question - will it improve the SQ of my setup, and if so, where would be the best place to insert it?

Put it in front of the HQP NAA.  Also, keep the cable between the ER and the NAA as short as possible and use a CAT 6 with no grounding (plastic ends). Blue Jeans Cables are reasonable and good quality. Also, power it with a Linear power supply if possible and use a good quality cable for that as well (Ghent makes reasonable quality DC cables). Lastly, don't put any other devices on the ER.

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1 hour ago, Schafheide said:

Thank you for the info - I am guessing that you have some experience with it.  A couple of questions -

1. The manual says that the supplied PS is all that you need.

2. Metal-ended Cat 6A cables are fine, so long as there is only one connected on the "B" side.

 

Your comments would be appreciated.

Yes, the included PS should work fine. You might get a boost in performance with a LPS but start with the included PS. Also, Ethernet cables with metal ends can be fine if the ground wire is only connected at one end. I have many Audioquest cables that are built this way. They are Cat 7 or Cat 8. The Cat 6 spec calls for no end to end ground connection thus the use of plastic ends. As to whether it will improve your system, only you can make that decision after you test it.

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12 minutes ago, Schafheide said:

Given that I already have the Cat6A (metal end) cables installed, I wonder if it is possible to find an RJ45 Cat 6A coupler (which is insulated), then a short length of Cat 6A (metal end) cable.  Or else a coupler which is not insulated, and then use a short length of Blue Jeans (plastic end) Cat 6A cable.

Before looking for such, do a simple multi meter test to see if the cable you have has the ground connected at both ends. If it does just buy a Ghent or Blue Jeans cable with plastic ends. Neither one is expensive. A coupler would cause some signal loss and possibly defeat what you are trying to do with the ER. You can then A-B test the two. Don’t overthink this.

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9 hours ago, Schafheide said:

Of course you are both correct, but, unfortunately, the cables (which do have the ground connected at both ends) are inside the walls plus both Ghents & Blue Jeans are very expensive here in Oz.  So I am looking for a cheap work-around.  Maybe wrap Polyimide Hi-Temp Tape around one metal end - I have done this on the USB cable into my SU-6.  A pity that the socket in the EtherRegen is not insulated, thus eliminating the need for plastic end cable.

I would try that, it will probably work fine. I don't think there is any adapter like the one you want but Google is your friend if you must go that route.

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9 hours ago, Schafheide said:

Of course you are both correct, but, unfortunately, the cables (which do have the ground connected at both ends) are inside the walls plus both Ghents & Blue Jeans are very expensive here in Oz.  So I am looking for a cheap work-around.  Maybe wrap Polyimide Hi-Temp Tape around one metal end - I have done this on the USB cable into my SU-6.  A pity that the socket in the EtherRegen is not insulated, thus eliminating the need for plastic end cable.

The other thing you could do is re-terminate the in-wall cable with plastic ends. It is a fairly easy DIY project or any tech could do it.

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12 hours ago, Schafheide said:

Of course you are both correct, but, unfortunately, the cables (which do have the ground connected at both ends) are inside the walls plus both Ghents & Blue Jeans are very expensive here in Oz.  So I am looking for a cheap work-around.  Maybe wrap Polyimide Hi-Temp Tape around one metal end - I have done this on the USB cable into my SU-6.  A pity that the socket in the EtherRegen is not insulated, thus eliminating the need for plastic end cable.

These are network isolation transformers that would accomplish what you want to do:

 

https://www.dxengineering.com/parts/dxe-iso-plus-2

 

https://jcat.eu/product/net-isolator-gigabit-network-isolator/

 

and there are others.

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39 minutes ago, Miska said:

No need for isolator is such, here's one example, for $7 for 5 pieces:

https://www.amazon.com/Rapink-Keystone-Connector-Ethernet-Extender/dp/B0916W7LYN/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=rj45+female+to+female&qid=1665943373&qu=eyJxc2MiOiIzLjk1IiwicXNhIjoiMy42MyIsInFzcCI6IjMuNTgifQ%3D%3D&sr=8-6

 

Or another one:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09D39C59R/ref=sspa_dk_detail_1?psc=1&pd_rd_i=B09D39C59R&pd_rd_w=JWDu9&content-id=amzn1.sym.25e96bbe-93d6-4790-9c18-ab0bc96db737&pf_rd_p=25e96bbe-93d6-4790-9c18-ab0bc96db737&pf_rd_r=NPEJJFCT8DW9J577C85V&pd_rd_wg=zHRez&pd_rd_r=1f096a23-be98-4718-9466-32336146539b&s=industrial&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9kZXRhaWxfdGhlbWF0aWM&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyTFQ1UzlBVFM1STdHJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNzI1Njk0MUs3UUNTRUM4MlE1VSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMDQyMzQ2WEc3OVNBU05ESlBLJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfZGV0YWlsX3RoZW1hdGljJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

I wasn't sure that these would actually lift the ground but looking at them it appears that the all plastic shell should do that.

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10 hours ago, semente said:

How loud is the M1 fan when upconverting '44.1k' to '48k x256'?

 

My 2018 i7 mini is somewhat noisy with '44.1k x256' but if I turn on '48k DSD' the fan jumps to its full max-noise speed...

Redbook settings are 'poly-sync-gauss-long' + 'ASDM7ECv2' with no Matrix or Convolution EQ filters activated.

My M1 under those circumstances is dead quiet. 

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2 hours ago, ripples said:

does anybody have this SDM issue with M1 or M2   ?  on my M2 Pro i get HQPlayer desktop using the CPU on 100% .

i have to kill the process via command prompt. 

 

this only happens with  poly-sinc-lp and  44.1 source material to  dsd256.

no issue if i use.  poly-sync-lp-2s, poly-sinc-ext2 ,etc.  

 

 

That filter is a CPU hog and can take forever to initialize. Just use the 2s version.

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12 minutes ago, James Stephens said:

Hi there. Help/advice needed please.

 

I am new to HQPlayer and I am having 2 issues.

 

I hearing a couple of small popping sounds at the start of each track when doing SDM conversion.

 

I am also hearing occasional pops during playback .. maybe once every other track or so and always from the left speaker.

 

My playback chain is Roon on an Intel NUC to HQPlayer Desktop 4.22.0 running on an M1 Mac Mini with 16GB RAM.

 

My NAA is a Holo Audio Red and I have a Holo Audio May KTE DAC. My May KTE has the Gen 2.0 USB and is running the original 30.14 firmware.

 

See signature for more info on my setup.

 

My HQPlayer settings are attached. These seem, from other postings I have come across, to be within the capabilities of the M1 Mini.  My CPU runs around 270% with these settings.

 

With hopes of solving the pops during playback I have tried dropping down to ASDM5EC which runs a shade under 200%. It still occurs.

 

The pops between tracks are quieter if I use my preamp for volume control instead rather HQPlayer and keep the volume in HQPlayer at the -5dB maximum.

 

Thoughts?

 

Thank you!

 

James

 

 

Put SDM pack to none. Put Adaptive Output to grey box not checked.

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47 minutes ago, James Stephens said:

 

 

I just listened to some 44/16 for an hour. I counted 2 tiny pops during playback. That's definitely better.

 

I then played some DSD64 ripped from an SACD and took a trip to pop town right away. (That might have been why I enabled SDP Pack to DoP to begin with)

 

.. so I'm not sure re the SDM Pack setting.

 

Adaptive Output setting grayed has definitely made a positive difference .. but why? - doesn't the May support both rate families? I read the HQPlayer manual and figured that it would be desirable to force the upsampling within the same rate family by having the Adaptive Output box checked.

 

James

 

 

Holo DACs cannot use DOP so don’t use that setting. It is for DACs that can only take DSD in as PCM and then convert it back internally. Holo DACs accept native DSD. Yes Holo DACs can do either rate family but your computer can make the conversion so stick with it. Try some different buffer settings. Start at 100ms and work down. I cannot help with the DSD part as I don’t have any.

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22 minutes ago, James Stephens said:

 

Thanks very much. The Specs for the May show it supports DoP or Native PCM. The manual for the Red though, only appears (at the moment) to list support for DoP over I2S and I am using USB. 

 

Thanks for the tip re buffer size.

I did not know that the May would take DoP, my Spring 2 doesn’t. Still, it is an unnecessary conversion. It cuts in half the DSD rate so 256 becomes 128. Speaking of I2S, if you have an HDMI cable handy you may want to try the I2S output of the Red into the I2S input of the May. I am using I2S on my Spring and like it. If you want to use it as primary then get a high quality HDMI cable and only as long as needed to get to the input and no more. I am sure someone here can help with the DSD settings.