Combo384 Amanero firmware upgrade for DSD256 Lampizator Lite 7

[bodiebill]

My Lampizator Lite 7 (L7) was upgraded to DSD256 in 2013. It probably has customised Amanero firmware. It plays DSD256 well on Windows but on Linux only up to DSD128.

 

Will it be safe to flash the latest Amanero firmware to the Combo384 onboard the Lite 7? Or could I break something? Is there any way to find out what the current firmware version is, so that I could revert to that version in case something goes wrong?

 

I already asked Lampizator a few times, but no response so far. Any advice will be appreciated!

[bodiebill]

Reply Lukasz Fikus:

The firmware is available only if you get and install OEMTOOL and the tool will find firmware automatically. You can install newer ones and older ones, upgrade and downgrade. The manual is inside OEMTOOL package. It is on-line at amanero website.

 

So I will go ahead and use oemtool117 soon.

[volpone]

30 minutes ago, bodiebill said:

Reply Lukasz Fikus:

The firmware is available only if you get and install OEMTOOL and the tool will find firmware automatically. You can install newer ones and older ones, upgrade and downgrade. The manual is inside OEMTOOL package. It is on-line at amanero website.

 

So I will go ahead and use oemtool117 soon.

 

Hi @bodiebill , interested in your finding on which (new) Amanero firmware version number is OK to play DSD 256 / 512  native without glitches.
 

Thank's

[bodiebill]

5 hours ago, volpone said:

 

Hi @bodiebill , interested in your finding on which (new) Amanero firmware version number is OK to play DSD 256 / 512  native without glitches.
 

Thank's

 

Hi @volpone, I am currently travelling abroad, but hope to try the upgrade early next week and will post the results here. 

[bodiebill]

Today I managed to do the Amanero firmware upgrade and it was partly successful. I erased the existing firmware, then used oemtool117 to flash the CPLD with 1080, and flash the CPU with 2003be_71a. Finally, I ticked the F0-1,2,3 box on the last tab in the oemtool. 

Result: I can now play raw DSD256 with wtfplay (Linux). However, DSD no longer plays in Windows. Maybe I will try different firmwares later to see whether I can make it work with Linux and Windows.

 

 

[seatrope]

Hi bodiebill, I’ve been experimenting with the new firmware quite a bit. Google “GitHub amanero Linux DSD” and you can get more info from that thread. 

 

The answer to your question is that a new driver for Windows is needed, per Domenico of Amanero, due to the new DSD handling method in the new firmware. 

 

Yeang

[shadowlight]

Did Amanero really release a firmware that was compatible with both Windows and Linux for DSD?  I thought the firmware could only support one of the two.

[shadowlight]

3 minutes ago, seatrope said:

Hi bodiebill, I’ve been experimenting with the new firmware quite a bit. Google “GitHub amanero Linux DSD” and you can get more info from that thread. 

 

The answer to your question is that a new driver for Windows is needed, per Domenico of Amanero, due to the new DSD handling method in the new firmware. 

 

Yeang

 

Yeang, would you happen to have the link for the driver?  The GitHub does not have any information that states the high pitch whine that you had reported was fixed. 

[seatrope]

Hi guys. The high pitched whine has NOT been fixed. 

 

I think Domenico said he had completed the windows driver but i wasn’t paying attention as I am Linux only thru mrendu. 

 

Might be best to ask him at github. He was extremely responsive for a while and has now dropped off the map. Having dealt with him it’s understand why L and company are frustrated!

[volpone]

37 minutes ago, seatrope said:

Hi guys. The high pitched whine has NOT been fixed. 

....
Having dealt with him it’s understand why L and company are frustrated!

 

Could you please explain the pitched whine, and difficulties with AMANERO from your point of view ? 

I've heard Lampizator upgraded some DACs with new firmware (from AMANERO) at RMAF isn't it ?

[seatrope]

12 hours ago, volpone said:

 

Could you please explain the pitched whine, and difficulties with AMANERO from your point of view ? 

I've heard Lampizator upgraded some DACs with new firmware (from AMANERO) at RMAF isn't it ?

 

Hi @volpone, the high pitched whine is a bug in the latest firmware (and so far the best one supporting DSD512 in Linux, using native DSD not DoP). After you stop playback, maybe 50% of the time there is a soft but annoying high pitched whining sound about 5 seconds after you hit stop. sometimes after about 10 seconds it goes away by itself. It is probably an issue with MUTE assertion in the DAC. Jussi has confirmed the same bug with his DAC as have some others on that github thread. more info there.

 

Upgrading the firmware is very easy, if you have ok from your distributor that popping the lid doesn't void warranty. I am not sure what version Lampi was placing on DACs in RMAF... let me ask Fred. They are equally frustrated with Amanero, as Amanero's promises have led to premature announcements that the Linux DSD issue was "fixed"... I now understand having dealt with Amanero directly. He's great when he replies, but when he goes off contact....

 

Yeang

[volpone]

@seatrope : Thank's a lot Yeang for you detailed insights.

 

So we are all hoping AMANERO will soon succeed to fix the "high pitched whine" bug on LINUX (and new updated ASIO for WIN). Finger crossed again !

 

I understand the tough situation for DAC makers ( Lampizator, T+A ... )

[4est]

2 hours ago, volpone said:

@seatrope : Thank's a lot Yeang for you detailed insights.

 

So we are all hoping AMANERO will soon succeed to fix the "high pitched whine" bug on LINUX (and new updated ASIO for WIN). Finger crossed again !

 

I understand the tough situation for DAC makers ( Lampizator, T+A ... )

In all fairness to Domenico of Amanero, the Combo384 was, and still is ahead of its time in respect to this. I have waited years for this to happen, and cannot help thinking that someone else could have done this by now. Heck, someone could write the drivers and firmware and charge for it as it is at present the only non proprietary DSD512 device out there that I am aware of.

[volpone]

 

+1 @4est  Seems Domenico did a very good job. Hope we are close ...

[twluke]

2 hours ago, 4est said:

In all fairness to Domenico of Amanero, the Combo384 was, and still is ahead of its time in respect to this.  -snip-

 

+1. A few months ago, I thought native DSD512 by Amanero on Linux would be never achieved but the successful release of recent firmware by Domenico taught me how superficially I'd been seeing things.

 

4 hours ago, volpone said:

@seatropeSo we are all hoping AMANERO will soon succeed to fix the "high pitched whine" bug on LINUX (and new updated ASIO for WIN). Finger crossed again !

 

First of all, I'd like to apologize for not being a Lampizator owner but as a user of Amanero board on Linux, I'd like to address that I've never experienced this kind of "high pitched whine" when playing upsampled DSD512 sources via HQ player (with or without Roon) running on Ubuntu 16.04.1 LTS (GNU/Linux 4.9.43-jl+ x86_64) since I updated the board firmware to the latest 2003be_71A almost two months ago. The board has been also working well with playing DSD512 sources, though quite limited in number, by MPD (native, not upsampled) on an Arch Linux kernel (4.13.7-1-ARCH, non-rt) running on a Beaglebone Black. On both examples, there has been no inter-track noise when playing DSD512.

 

BTW, my Amanero is i2s/dsd-connected to a Buffalo 3SE via Teleporter, all from TPA (Twisted Pear Audio). Sorry for cutting into this thread.

 

Regards,

[bodiebill]

On 22/10/2017 at 9:50 PM, seatrope said:

Hi bodiebill, I’ve been experimenting with the new firmware quite a bit. Google “GitHub amanero Linux DSD” and you can get more info from that thread. 

 

The answer to your question is that a new driver for Windows is needed, per Domenico of Amanero, due to the new DSD handling method in the new firmware. 

 

Yeang

 

Thanks Yeang, I am currently using combo384_drivers_w10_1062 which seems to be the latest version on the Amanero website. Do you mean a later version exists or is forthcoming?

[seatrope]

Hi @bodiebill, yes indeed. I just heard back from Domenico of Amanero that the final windows driver is just about done. Windows certification took longer than expected. I’ll post a link here soon when he sends it out.

 

yeang

[seatrope]

7 hours ago, twluke said:

 

+1. A few months ago, I thought native DSD512 by Amanero on Linux would be never achieved but the successful release of recent firmware by Domenico taught me how superficially I'd been seeing things.

 

 

First of all, I'd like to apologize for not being a Lampizator owner but as a user of Amanero board on Linux, I'd like to address that I've never experienced this kind of "high pitched whine" when playing upsampled DSD512 sources via HQ player (with or without Roon) running on Ubuntu 16.04.1 LTS (GNU/Linux 4.9.43-jl+ x86_64) since I updated the board firmware to the latest 2003be_71A almost two months ago. The board has been also working well with playing DSD512 sources, though quite limited in number, by MPD (native, not upsampled) on an Arch Linux kernel (4.13.7-1-ARCH, non-rt) running on a Beaglebone Black. On both examples, there has been no inter-track noise when playing DSD512.

 

BTW, my Amanero is i2s/dsd-connected to a Buffalo 3SE via Teleporter, all from TPA (Twisted Pear Audio). Sorry for cutting into this thread.

 

Regards,

Hi Luke, glad to see you here as a transplant from that thread.

 

i guess it might be how Amanero interacts with our DACs differently then, makes sense as it is a mute assertion. I know Jussi said he reproduced the high pitched whine on his unit.

 

@bodiebill do you get this high pitched whine at all with your setup using wtfplay in Linux? Perhaps your F0-1,2,3 setting is what did it.. do you know what that does? I have not been doing that.

[twluke]

11 minutes ago, seatrope said:

Hi Luke, glad to see you here as a transplant from that thread.

 

@bodiebilli guess it might be how Amanero interacts with our DACs differently then, makes sense as it is a mute assertion. I know Jussi said he reproduced the high pitched whine on his unit.

Hi Yeang, nice to see you here. I remember that the comment by Jussi was on the older version than 2003be_71A and there has been no verification of the issue since then... I hope your problem will be solved by Dom in the future.

 

Regards,

 

[bodiebill]

10 hours ago, seatrope said:

Hi @bodiebill, yes indeed. I just heard back from Domenico of Amanero that the final windows driver is just about done. Windows certification took longer than expected. I’ll post a link here soon when he sends it out.

 

yeang

 

@seatrope Great news, thanks!

[bodiebill]

10 hours ago, seatrope said:

 

@bodiebill do you get this high pitched whine at all with your setup using wtfplay in Linux? Perhaps your F0-1,2,3 setting is what did it.. do you know what that does? I have not been doing that.

 

So far I did not have the whining phenomenon. Just a very brief hiss/tick when the player releases the connection with the DAC at the end of a playlist. Not a problem at all for me.

 

The F0-1,2,3 setting was inspired by this post and I actually do not know myself what it does :-|

 

However much I like the DSD engine of my Lampizator DAC, I was never impressed by its PCM engine, which is the main reason I only use it with DSD. My Audio Aéro Prestige Signature is still my preferred DAC for PCM. But the good news is that after the firmware upgrade, I believe that the Lampizator PCM engine SQ has improved!

 

Also, I believe that after the firmware upgrade L/R has switched to R/L.

 

Any of you have similar experiences?

[volpone]

10 hours ago, seatrope said:

....  I just heard back from Domenico of Amanero that the final windows driver is just about done. Windows certification took longer than expected. I’ll post a link here soon when he sends it out.

 

Hi Yeang,

Great news if you heard back from Domenico. Thank you to post here if any move !

[twluke]

3 hours ago, bodiebill said:

Also, I believe that after the firmware upgrade L/R has switched to R/L.

 

Any of you have similar experiences?

Open ConfigTool from oemtool117 and check the CPLD Firmware Selection pop-up. You'll find "CPLD_1080_DSDSWAPPED". Use it instead of "CPLD_1080", then your problem will be solved. BTW, careful reading of the Github thread is always of great help and will lead you to this solution.

 

Regards,

[bodiebill]

Yes, I remembered that today. Will apply it as soon as I find the time. Thanks!

[bodiebill]

done; L/R is right again.