A little, somewhat related update.  I had one of the Empirical Audio USB filter short blocks--this has been spoken about earlier on this forum.  I had originally intended to use it to see if it would help with the FIFO/Stream errors.

Anyway, since the new Phisolator cable fixed the FIFO/USB error I thought I would try the USB filter with the Phisolator cable.  SQ was considerably worse.  Dynamics muted, soundstage compressed, some loss of clarity.

All,

Wondering if anyone has tried/used the multi-channel option on the Orelos. Want to clarify a few points.
- With the input selected for "multi-channel" are the inputs expecting line level signals for bass, mid, and high?  Or are inputs speaker-level inputs that bypass the amps in the Orelo?
- Is the internal DSP bypassed?
- Is the internal passive cross-over for the BMS driver also bypassed?

Thanks,

Ramesh

Moved the Orelos apart a bit, 4 inches.  Increased the toe-in a slight bit.  Good balance between soundstage and image.

And then I played Leonard Cohen's "You want it Darker" album  STUNNING! Chilling.  Immersed in the music, the words, the instruments flowing through.

The SQ is absolutely astonishing.  Astonishingly good.  One clear sign to me is the desire to replay some favorite albums.

I've finally had a chance to listen to 2.11 without the USB error glitches. This is a big upgrade in SQ.  Some context.  I want to first list the upgrades that have affected SQ significantly in order of impact.

- Mach III audio PC.  This upgrade remains for me critical.  There is no way to overestimate the impact of the Mach III.  I would recommend this upgrade to everyone.  Music takes on a different dimension with the Mach III.  I do not want to say "live" as simulating the musical event, because I fundamentally feel that playback is in a world by itself and not to be compared with live sound.  But music with Mach III crosses a threshold, where it becomes part of the sounds of everyday life.  The most telling quality is that sometimes it is hard to distinguish whether a sound (clap, bell, etc.) was in the music or something in the house.

- G3, Phisolator.  Peter has used the word "electrifying" to describe this upgrade, and that is probably the right word.  There is an energy to reproduction with the G3 upgrade that borders on uncontrollable, but never quite.  It is the reason I kept trying to fix the USB errors with the Phisolator cable.  The NOS1 does not sound the same without the Phisolator. 

- Lush^2 and Blaxius^2.  The best way to evaluate the impact of these upgrades is to try going back.  I tried going back to the regular Blaxius and Lush, and was quite shocked with the improvement with these upgrades.  The impact of these upgrades, however, is one of degree unlike Mach III and G3, which seem to me more fundamental. I also wonder if the difference would be as great without the Mach III and G3 upgrade first.

- 2.11.  With all of the above 2.11 adds clarity, dynamism, detail and balance.  I think all of the upgrades are preparation for 2.11, and now exploited further by it.

I'm currently using the A: BW&YR, B: BW configuration for Lush^2 which I prefer over the standard configuration that ships: A:BWYR, B: BWR.  I also listen with the Orelo Mk II active speakers.

The music is glorious.  I spent some time fiddling with the placement of the Orelos--it does make a difference!  The one area of further improvement I can see relates to dense orchestral music with massed strings and horns.  Symphonies in particular.

Thank you Peter for the journey.  I hope we have not reached the end

Ramesh

Peter,

The stock cable with standard length did not work for me.  Not sure why.  I even tried a ferrite choke on it.  I was not able to try the Lush^2  in place of the short cable, because I could not get XXHE to see the DAC with the regular Lush cable.  Not sure why.  I tried rebooting, etc. but could not get XXHE to see the NOS1 with the standard Lush cable.

Anyway, I listened for about 8 hours yesterday, not critically, but just enjoying the glorious music. 

The overall system is fantastic!  Will write more on my perceptions of SQ with the latest.

Ramesh

Quick update:

The USB Stream and FIFO errors are related to the short USB cable. 

I now have a 3' cable from Amazon (cheap Monoprice cable advertised as shielded and containing a ferrite core).  Put tape over the 5V pin on the USB A side, and the errors are gone.

Before this, I tried a million different "fixes" including moving and reconnecting all components.  Nothing really worked.  Some lessons to share:
- Installing dedicated lines for the audio system eliminated most of the external influences (LED lights, dimmers, refrigerators, etc.);
- Keeping the interconnects away from power cables helped, but I could not completely isolate these from each other, and it did not fully resolve problems;
- I tried a few different USB cables before this one for the short connector but forgot to tape over the 5V pin, so maybe that could be a source of problems.

Anyway I am FINALLY able to listen carefully and without stress to 2.11 and will comment soon on SQ.

I will try a shorter USB cable soon with the 5V taped up, but its nice to not have the occasional glitches because of USB errors and probably leave things as they are for a while.

Not sure exactly what a USB cable with ferrite core is, and if this is detrimental to SQ.  I worry about that more than the 3' length.

Ramesh

I've had a chance to do some reasonable testing. 
- With standard connection (Lush^2 + standard short USB cable) I get USB Stream and FIFO errors.  However, some times after reconnecting error rate is higher.  After a few trials, I usually get to an error level where I can "live" with it, although the glitches these errors cause in SQ is distracting;
- Replacing Lush^2 with Lush.  Error rate goes up;
- Lush^2 + other short shielded USB cables; not much change;
- Lush in place of Lush^2, and Lush^2 in place of short USB cable--maybe slight reduction in errors.

I have not tried different configurations on Lush^2 used in place of the short USB cable.  Used the standard configuration.

Peter: I'd be glad to order another Lush^2 and experiment a bit more. Should I do standard 40 cm?  The Lush^2 is hard to squeeze in there, especially with the Blaxius^2.

Any other thoughts?  I'm thinking of doing another extreme organizing of cables and re-arranging components. 

Peter,

Thanks for responding.  Just amazing the level of support you provide! I do have a Lush^1, and will try what you suggest.  If it works then I'd like to order a shorter Lush^2 so I can have it for both cables.

Will let you know soon.

Ramesh

Reviving this thread with an experience update.  Recently reconnected the small USB cable connected to the Phisolator and started to get the USB Stream/FIFO errors again, and no buffer settings would resolve the errors. After much fiddling around connecting and reconnecting the small USB cable, after about the 10th try doing this, the errors mostly went away.  Now I get occasional FIFO errors, no USB Stream errors.

In my system, something is very sensitive to how the small USB cable is connected.  Wondering if this might just be the cable, and what everyone else's experience is.  When I was fiddling around I tried other USB cables, but they did not make a difference.  I did not try using the short Clarixa cable, as the last time I tried that, it affected SQ badly. 

I'm afraid to touch anything now!!  This one issue continues has restricted my ability to really comment on 2.11, which I hope to do. 

Just sharing with others.  Of course many have commented on this in the past.

Hoping everyone is well,

Ramesh

All,

I had the same problem as Paul a few days ago, and was going to comment on it, but got caught up in other stuff.  Just tried again, and all is working well.  Assuming it has something to do with the offline mode features of Tidal that are now back.

Ramesh

Peter,

Happy Easter to all!!

After much fiddling around and frustration, the problem seems to be on the Tidal side, with some particular albums.  I just tried other albums and all works fine.  The one I had a problem with was:

Dinu Lipatti Chopin 14 Waltzes (the EMI Classics recording).

Still have a problem with it, after upgrading to 2.11, deleting the TidalSession.dat a number of times and logging in.

Ramesh

Just ran into a problem I have not had before

Running XXHE 2.10c on music server.

About two hours ago, I can no longer prepare Tidal streams.  I can search, and get search results.  When I prepare streams, the preparation starts, but stops after a few seconds.  If I check the XXTemp folder, I can see that the dummy.wav is unpacked and I can see tracks listed, but no "Streams" folder.

I tried deleting the TidalSession.dat file.  But somehow it did not force a relogin into tidal.

Not quite sure how to proceed.  Any thoughts?

Thanks for this clarification Peter.  I was initially confused that 2.11 was not activated when I saw this!

Peter,

Thanks very much for responding during this crazy time.  I think I'm good now.  I started with a backup version of XXHE 2.10c and applied the patch properly.  After a minor glitch with Explorer disappearing, I seem to be OK now.  Just finished a full album in unattended without a problem.  Trying another one.

Once this is stabilized--I might also try what you suggested if there is a problem--I will write more about the SQ.

R.

This probably needs to go in a separate thread.  Mostly fixed now but for one thing.  Playing in unattended, XXHE stops after a few tracks.  Mapped network drives show up as if disconnected, but they are not.  I've had this before and fixed by not requiring password for RDC.  Wondering if anyone has ideas.