indigo

I know this question has come up before and a conclusion is never reached but I'm wondering if things have changed with recent versions: For Windows 7, what is regarded as the best "Media Center" software? I've used J River, FooBar etc. I really like J River but stability is sometimes an issue. Is there anything better out there?

The Chord QBD76 isn't on there, that's the one I eventually bought (to answer your question). Reasons I bought it are: 1. It sounds great (Chord have their own custom made chip instead of using off the shelf like Burr Brown etc). 2. It looks really cool if you're into bling! 3. It has Bluetooth. So, when absolute perfect listening isn't required I can bring up Spotify on my IPhone and stream it via bluetooth to the DAC (I don't know any others that do this). 4. It as a RAM buffer to remove jitter (seems to work) 5. It cost £3000 but if you're not too concerned about getting the absolute best sound, you can get all the above with slightly less superior sound from it's little sister, the Chordette GEM for a quarter of the price (~£700 I think).

Jesk, I would hook up to the onboard DAC in your AV receiver and sit back and enjoy knowing you didn't spend a penny. With the money saved, buy a big crate of beer, after every bottle you drink the AV receiver DAC is going to sound better and better guaranteed! Either that or ask Charlie Sheen how he'd spend the money you've saved, either way you'll be glad you didn't blow it on a DAC you didn't need. Indigo

Just downloaded the latest version and it worked first time! Thanks for your help and sorry for ranting etc. Regards Indigo

So after messing about enablingdisabling options on the Media Network settings page I can now access the content in Twonky from MC. I've been here before though and know that when I start up tomorrow I'm back at square one trying to connect to it. There is a bug in MC, the options in the Media Network options page don't seem to persist correctly or something. It's basically just poor software, I have 15 days of the trial left, I'd really like to use MC since there is nothing else. Is there a release in the pipeline that fixes these issues? Can you please look to stabalise it before adding any new features?

....close to giving up. Please tell me how this is meant to work as it really is driving me nuts! How to I enable logging in J River so I can see what the hell it is doing, what error it is getting etc etc? iTunes is looking more and more like an option before my wife divorces me! What I don't understand is my goddam Iphone can connect to the server and browse and play the music, you need to hire the guys that wrote that software cause it works with no issues. Sorry, I'm losing patience again, I'll stop ranting.

Also, when I click on Search in the connect to library dialog window, it thinks about it for 10 seconds saying searching for library servers then the Media Center window losses focus and nothing happens.

Thanks for your responses, I don't mean to rant or attack the developers. I'm also a software developer and spend my days using buggy software as part of my job, I had a bad day yesterday and sat down to relax to listen to some music and got annoyed that once again I couldn't get to the FLACs on the NAS. I'll post on the JRiver site be here are the details: OS: Windows 7 32 bit NAS: QNAP Turbo (4gig Raid1) Media Center: 15.0.95 Tonky: 5.1.6 Media Type: FLAC 24Bit and 16Bit (only 12 albumns on there at the moment) Media Center 15.0.95 C:Program FilesJ RiverMedia Center 15 Workstation 6.1 (Build 7600) Intel Pentium 4 2966 MHz MMX / Memory: Total - 1047 MB, Free - 450 MB Internet Explorer: 8.0.7600.16385 / ComCtl32.dll: 5.82.7600 / Shlwapi.dll: 6.1.7600 / Shell32.dll: 6.1.7600 / wnaspi32.dll: N/A Ripping / Drive D: Mode:ModeSecure Type:Auto Speed:Max Digital playback: Yes / Get cover art: Yes / Calc replay gain: Yes / Copy volume: 32767 Eject after ripping: Yes / Play sound after ripping: No Burning / Drive D: _NEC DVD_RW ND-4550A Addr: 0:0:0 Speed:5 MaxSpeed:5 BurnProof:Yes Test mode: No / Eject after writing: Yes / Direct decoding: Yes / Write CD-Text: Yes Use playback settings: No / Portable Device Info Removed devices: Interface Plugins: last.fm (Active) TiVo Server (Active)

I'm interested in the QBD76 and INT202 integration issues? I've ordered the Chord Signature AES EBU cable (should arrive next week) so I can finally get hi res. What issues have you been seeing and what software are you currently using? Also, did you notice a difference using the AES connection for 24/96 files? Regards Indigo

The problem is I try to connect to "Library", "Connect to DLNA server" and it just says "There was a problem trying to load a library from the selected DLNA server". I can however browse and play music from my Iphone using the Media:Connect application. A message or easy access to the logs at this point showing a) what it just tried to do (connecting to server x on port etc), message received from server is x etc... would be really useful. Instead I just get a message that tells me it failed but with zero help on how to go about correcting the issue. The app on my iphone connects to the network over wifi, discovers all DLNA servers available, shows them in a list, lets me select one then browse and play the music. Why can't J River do that??

Before you think I'm Ol' Grandad Smith smoking his pipe trying to get some media software working on his 486, I've been a programmer for 15 years and know when software is good or just plain bad. I feel J River is probably the most feature rich of the selection for Windows 7 etc but it's as reliable as a cadbury's flake at hanging together. I just wish there was a media player that did everything J River promised but worked reliably. Connect J River up to a NAS drive using Twonky and your family are soon to start avoiding you, your dog no longer sits are you feet, vains start popping in your forehead...welcome to software as it was back in the 90's. If anyone know of an alternative to J River please let me know, the missus and my daughter will be glad when I finally give up getting J River to work. For the J River Devs - Less time messing about with Visualisations etc and getting the basics to work and J River could acually be a winner!!! Typically feature driven technical leaderhship letting more important QA slip.

I'm writing this as J River which I believe is one of the better Media "Audiophile" players is in my opinion still in Beta! I laugh when it asks would I like to purchase it on the splash screen. WTF? I've been a software developer for 15 years and always have got the foundations right before adding the "un-necessary" features, J River on the other hand think they've got one feature working and move onto the next - so wrong! I really had hoped this product would work but after searching the forums to determine whether I was doing something wrong it appears it's just common buggy software that's untested. How do software companies hope to make a living while producing software that isn't tested? I've spent so many hours trying to get J River working with Twonky on my NAS, it's not even funny anymore. If any J River developers read this then I hope you sort your game out as it is seriously bad. If there's an error, tell the user why? not just that there was a problem??? some info please? I get it working, reboot and I'm back at square ONE! why??? you expect me to buy this? Please sort it out, despite the RANT and think you potentially have a very good product in the pipeline, just please finish it before release it (that includes unit testing, integration testing etc...)

Thanks Eloise, after your last post I did a bit of searching through the forums and the Weiss INT 202 does seem to be quite a favourite so I'll give that a go. Many thanks for your advice. Indigo

Thanks very much for your response Eloise. By Dual inputs you're referring to the EAS XLR inputs on the Chord? I was going to buy a cable to try with the HiFace Evo but sounds like this won't work Out of the devices you mention, which one in your opinion will give the best results? Also, my PC doesn't currently have Firewire, will a PCI firewire adapter do the job? Thanks Indigo

I collected my Chord QB76. I'm wondering what other owners of this DAC are usng to connect from their PC? I'm currently have J River Media -> Kernal Streaming to HiFace Evo -> QDB76 (via Optichord). I've also tried the USB interface direct on the QDB76 but only Direct Sounds seems to work. The HiFace Evo sounds okay but I'm wondering if it's really doing the DAC justice, CDX2 + XPS sounded better. What are other's experience? Should I be considering a Weiss INT202 or something else instead of the hiface EVO? I'm pretty new to the whole using PC as a music source and am keen to get the best I can out of this DAC. The rest of the setup is Windows 7 HTPC (Borg heatsinks etc), Chord 2600 Amp, B&W 802D speakers, chord signature speaker cable. Any advice, tips or shared experiences appreciated. Regards Indigo