HQ Player

[zorntel]

Wondering if anyone has tried HQplayer with a Mytek Brooklyn yet...have one on order but no idea on when I will receive it...I know the first ones have landed. Supposed to be USB-2 driverless with mac and linux up to DSD256. Also curious about integration with linux NAA's. Looking to pump a IFI micro iDSD from my second system.

 

Robert

[Samuel T Cogley]

I have tried that (and probably every conceivable filter/noise shaping/upsampling combination as well).

 

Just tried closed form/NS9/PCM4x again though. I still feel the same way.

 

Compared to closed form/NS9/PCM4x, no filter and no upsampling sounds more natural, more organic, more holographic, less constricted and has better dynamics and better bass response.

 

It doesn't sound bad with closed form/NS9/PCM4x. It just sounds better the other way.

 

I should reiterate that with all the other DACs I've used with HQPlayer (other than the Yggdrasil), HQPlayer's filters and upsampling blew away what the DACs themselves could do.

 

+1

 

I currently own (among other DACs) a Yggdrasil and an iDSD Micro. HQPlayer is just wonderful with the iDSD. But the Yggy? It does best with unmitigated data. For this reason, I typically use Audirvana (with no upsampling) with the Yggy.

[Miska]

Just tried closed form/NS9/PCM4x again though. I still feel the same way.

 

Compared to closed form/NS9/PCM4x, no filter and no upsampling sounds more natural, more organic, more holographic, less constricted and has better dynamics and better bass response.

 

It doesn't sound bad with closed form/NS9/PCM4x. It just sounds better the other way.

 

Remember that you must set "DAC Bits" to 20 for Yggdrasil in HQPlayer settings? Otherwise the noise shaping goes completely wasted, because Yggdrasil is 20-bit DAC and any extra bits will just get thrown away (as a result any noise shaping).

 

I recommend also trying all poly-sinc filter variants to 192 (-ext to 176.4 in case of RedBook) as well as closed-form. For starters, just make sure DAC bits is set to 20 for Y and set dither to TPDF. Once you have found best filter, you can experiment with NS9 and Gauss1.

 

For Gungnir DAC bits must be set to 18 and for Bifrost MB it must be set to 16. Otherwise you get incorrect and suboptimal results.

[clipper]

Remember that you must set "DAC Bits" to 20 for Yggdrasil in HQPlayer settings? Otherwise the noise shaping goes completely wasted, because Yggdrasil is 20-bit DAC and any extra bits will just get thrown away (as a result any noise shaping).

 

I recommend also trying all poly-sinc filter variants to 192 (-ext to 176.4 in case of RedBook) as well as closed-form. For starters, just make sure DAC bits is set to 20 for Y and set dither to TPDF. Once you have found best filter, you can experiment with NS9 and Gauss1.

 

For Gungnir DAC bits must be set to 18 and for Bifrost MB it must be set to 16. Otherwise you get incorrect and suboptimal results.

 

Awesome!

 

I have never tried this, but I will.

 

Thank you for this. I never would have thought of it.

 

I'll report back after some listening.

[clipper]

Thank you for the reply. Yeah my poor old outdated Luxman CDP/DAC. I am planning to upgrade that so that I can get rid of the USB converter. I also want to try DSD conversion which is why I am also upgrading my control PC soon. Based on your comments I will give HQPlayer a try on my ATOM.

 

Last question, I assume you think HQPlayer outputting to Jplay is better than Jplay by itself? What was your configuration prior to using HQPlayer? I am hoping to pretty much keep my configuration the same using Minimserver and BubbleUpnP. Looks like the only change will be to specify HQPlayer as renderer in Bubble.

 

 

When you say JPLAY by itself, do you mean using JPLAYmini as a player or using JPLAYStreamer with MinimServer?

 

In both cases I still prefer HQPlayer outputting to JPLAY. This is especially true with a DAC that benefits from upsampling, PCM to DSD conversion, better filters, etc.

 

I could easily be wrong, and I'll let someone else confirm, but I have a feeling you can't do the MinimServer/BubbleUPnP thing (and just choose HQPlayer as a renderer) unless you go the HQPlayer Embedded (running on Linux) route.

 

What did I use before HQPlayer? I think I luckily found HQPlayer within a week or two of getting my first DSD DAC (an Eastern Electric Minimax Supreme). But I'm pretty sure I started with Audirvana on a mac for a short time. Then I read about Audiophile Optimizer and JPLAY, tried them with JRMC and preferred that. Tried the JPLAY dual PC thing and liked it even more. Then I tried HQPlayer (upsampling to DSD128) with AO and JPLAY and 2 PCs and there was no going back...

[tboooe]

 

I could easily be wrong, and I'll let someone else confirm, but I have a feeling you can't do the MinimServer/BubbleUPnP thing (and just choose HQPlayer as a renderer) unless you go the HQPlayer Embedded (running on Linux) route.

 

 

 

Can anyone confirm that in order to use HQPlayer as a renderer I need the embedded version running on Linux? @Miska??

 

I would like to use BubbleUPnP as a control point, Minimserver as the media server, and HQPlayer as the renderer.

[shadowlight]

Can anyone confirm that in order to use HQPlayer as a renderer I need the embedded version running on Linux? @Miska??

 

I would like to use BubbleUPnP as a control point, Minimserver as the media server, and HQPlayer as the renderer.

 

To use BubbleUPnP to control HQPlayer you will need Linux Embedded version, which is what I am currently playing around with.

[tboooe]

To use BubbleUPnP to control HQPlayer you will need Linux Embedded version, which is what I am currently playing around with.

 

Thank you. Now this is getting complicated because I still want to use JPLAY in a 2 PC configuration and BubbleUPnP as a control point. JPLAY is not available in a Linux version. I know I could use HQPlayer Windows version but I prefer not to use remote desktop to control playback.

[Miska]

Can anyone confirm that in order to use HQPlayer as a renderer I need the embedded version running on Linux? @Miska??

 

I would like to use BubbleUPnP as a control point, Minimserver as the media server, and HQPlayer as the renderer.

 

Yes, that's the case. HQPlayer Embedded is for Linux only (targeted for ODMs). And unsupported, because it requires fair amount of Linux knowledge to set it up and I don't have resources to offer any help.

[james45974]

I have a general question, without reading through the many pages of this thread can someone give me info about CPU use. Understanding the option to use various filters, is it, generally speaking, more CPU intensive to upsample redbook to DSD than to a higher PCM rate?

[Miska]

I have a general question, without reading through the many pages of this thread can someone give me info about CPU use. Understanding the option to use various filters, is it, generally speaking, more CPU intensive to upsample redbook to DSD than to a higher PCM rate?

 

Yes, significantly more so...

[james45974]

Yes, significantly more so...

 

Thanks, that's all I needed to know!

[Ipoci]

...

For Gungnir DAC bits must be set to 18 and for Bifrost MB it must be set to 16. Otherwise you get incorrect and suboptimal results...

 

What about JLsounds, it's a AK4490 based unit, so I set it to 32 bits ... is it right ?

 

Have nice day. Massimiliano

[clipper]

Thank you. Now this is getting complicated because I still want to use JPLAY in a 2 PC configuration and BubbleUPnP as a control point. JPLAY is not available in a Linux version. I know I could use HQPlayer Windows version but I prefer not to use remote desktop to control playback.

 

I know it's not what you wanted, but you could try Roon on a computer or tablet (iOS or Android) to control HQPlayer playback (with 2-PC JPLAY).

 

It's pretty great. I like it MUCH better than BubbleDS Next (which I use once in a while with MinimServer and JPLAYStreamer).

 

14 day trial of Roon...

[tboooe]

Yup, I was looking at Roon, seems like an awesome front end to use in conjunction with HQP. The cost though...ouch! I dont really need anything fancy. Just something to show my library in a visually pleasing manner and make it easy to browse and select what albums/tracks to play. I guess my other option is use remote desktop from my tablet but the responsiveness and overall user experience is not very good. I really want to try out HQP but I need to have the ability to control playback and access my library from my android phone/tablet.

 

Just tried to do the Roon trial but its asking for a credit card? I thought I read that a cc was not needed now?

 

I know it's not what you wanted, but you could try Roon on a computer or tablet (iOS or Android) to control HQPlayer playback (with 2-PC JPLAY).

 

It's pretty great. I like it MUCH better than BubbleDS Next (which I use once in a while with MinimServer and JPLAYStreamer).

 

14 day trial of Roon...

[Priaptor]

I know it's not what you wanted, but you could try Roon on a computer or tablet (iOS or Android) to control HQPlayer playback (with 2-PC JPLAY).

 

It's pretty great. I like it MUCH better than BubbleDS Next (which I use once in a while with MinimServer and JPLAYStreamer).

 

14 day trial of Roon...

 

tboooe,

 

I can't tell you it is worth it, only you can determine that. I can give you my perspective. Roon by itself, after being an early adopter I wouldn't recommend over JRiver on AO in Core. First, I think JRiver + AO running Core is better than Roon and Roon can't run with AO in core.

 

HQPlayer by itself I never gave a chance as it was just too much of a pain in the rear end and that is not what I got into computer audio for.

 

HOWEVER, Roon + HQPlayer on my desktop with all the computing power I need ------> NAA on my CAPS Zuma running AO Core with Server 2012 R2 is just amazing. In fact, my new recommendation to anyone considering an upgrade of anything is to try this first. Really a tremendous experience.

 

Now the bad news. It is still a work in progress but knowing these guys the "issues" will be remedied quickly

[4est]

HQPlayer integrates well with Muso too btw-including a remote IIRC.

 

http://klarita.net/muso.html

 

tboooe,

 

I can't tell you it is worth it, only you can determine that. I can give you my perspective. Roon by itself, after being an early adopter I wouldn't recommend over JRiver on AO in Core. First, I think JRiver + AO running Core is better than Roon and Roon can't run with AO in core.

 

HQPlayer by itself I never gave a chance as it was just too much of a pain in the rear end and that is not what I got into computer audio for.

 

HOWEVER, Roon + HQPlayer on my desktop with all the computing power I need ------> NAA on my CAPS Zuma running AO Core with Server 2012 R2 is just amazing. In fact, my new recommendation to anyone considering an upgrade of anything is to try this first. Really a tremendous experience.

 

Now the bad news. It is still a work in progress but knowing these guys the "issues" will be remedied quickly

[tboooe]

HQPlayer integrates well with Muso too btw.

 

http://klarita.net/muso.html

 

Thank you for the suggestion. I looked at Muso too this morning but it does not have an android app so I wont be able to control it. To my way of thinking, there is no point in having a great library and playback software if I cannot not easily browse and play my music. For me this means a nice app I can run on my Android phone/tablet. I really do not want to have a PC + monitor + keyboard in my music room.

[Priaptor]

Thank you for the suggestion. I looked at Muso too this morning but it does not have an android app so I wont be able to control it. To my way of thinking, there is no point in having a great library and playback software if I cannot not easily browse and play my music. For me this means a nice app I can run on my Android phone/tablet. I really do not want to have a PC + monitor + keyboard in my music room.

 

Well life is too short. I can't speak for your economic situation but you obviously enjoy music like the rest of us and while I can only speak for myself, Roon blew me away initially based on UI and HQP based on SQ. The fact they are now able to interface is a bargain relative to any piece of audio equipment I own. Maybe the Roon guys can give you a year's subscription with ability to convert if you so choose.

[bibo01]

Thank you for the suggestion. I looked at Muso too this morning but it does not have an android app so I wont be able to control it. To my way of thinking, there is no point in having a great library and playback software if I cannot not easily browse and play my music. For me this means a nice app I can run on my Android phone/tablet. I really do not want to have a PC + monitor + keyboard in my music room.

 

You can use any web browser, so also on Android, and digit IP address of Muso PC

 

[Miska]

What about JLsounds, it's a AK4490 based unit, so I set it to 32 bits ... is it right ?

 

Yes, but better get the display unit for it and switch it to Direct DSD mode and then play everything just as DSD256. That way you'll get a DAC that only converts digital to analog, but doesn't mess around with the data...

[funtez]

Hi All, absolute HQ Player noob here so please excuse my ignorance if this has been discussed as an issue already, I did try and search for other users of my DAC. While trying roon recently, and now testing the HQplayer integration I realised the DAC in my Moon NEO 430ha-d is DSD compatible. I decided to jump onboard with trying to convert PCM to DSD256 in HQplayer. I am on OSX and had a little trouble getting anything at first although now it seems to be working when I select any of the standard rate DSD modes, but when I try to run with the 256+fs modes, the link is broken between roon and HQplayer. I checked and the DAC is definitely compatible with DSD256 via usb which I am using from my iMac. Does anyone have any ideas as to why HQplayer isn't playing nice with these modes?

Any advice greatly appreciated.

[bibo01]

Hi All, absolute HQ Player noob here so please excuse my ignorance if this has been discussed as an issue already, I did try and search for other users of my DAC. While trying roon recently, and now testing the HQplayer integration I realised the DAC in my Moon NEO 430ha-d is DSD compatible. I decided to jump onboard with trying to convert PCM to DSD256 in HQplayer. I am on OSX and had a little trouble getting anything at first although now it seems to be working when I select any of the standard rate DSD modes, but when I try to run with the 256+fs modes, the link is broken between roon and HQplayer. I checked and the DAC is definitely compatible with DSD256 via usb which I am using from my iMac. Does anyone have any ideas as to why HQplayer isn't playing nice with these modes?

Any advice greatly appreciated.

Your Mac is probably connected directly to your DAC. OSX supports DSD through DoP and for your Moon maximum rate is DSD128.

[funtez]

Thanks for the quick reply, Indeed I did activate Dop to get DSD working with Coreaudio on OSX. So just confirming, you are saying the maximum DSD rate over DoP is DSD128?

 

Thanks again

[ted_b]

Your Mac is probably connected directly to your DAC. OSX supports DSD through DoP and for your Moon maximum rate is DSD128.

 

Yes, your Moon Neo dac is driverless for OSX, so you have no custom driver to possibly get OSX to DSD256. You are "stuck" with DSD128 via DoP and Core Audio.