Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.

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TJHUB

Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #720 on: 20 Jul 2011, 12:47 pm »
IS this the DAC you have? Link: http://www.musichallaudio.com/detail.php?p=68 Were you able to confirm that mpd and ALSA are not resmapling any of your data?

Also, the switching wall wart isn't terrible. The problem is that with different types or equipment and house wiring, it can introduce noise in some setups and maybe not in others.

You could also try a simple battery setup, i.e., 8 Lithium AA batteries and see if that is an improvement over the wall wart.

That is the DAC, but I have the previous version (25.2) and it's modified with Burson opamps, a Dexa clock, and some hexfred diodes on the PS.  I do not use the tube output any longer as the solid state ouputs sound MUCH better after the upgrades.  Although, I did try the tube output with the Alix, and the solid state outs still easily win.

I'll look into the battery setup as that should be cheap to at least test. 

How do I confirm what MPD and ALSA are not resampling?




TomS

Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #721 on: 20 Jul 2011, 01:00 pm »
I'm using the KECES linear supply with very good result. As Nick said, clean power to the Alix is a rather critical factor. Depending on your USB implementation that also matters. Cleaning up the Alix 12v supply indirectly cleans up the 5v going to USB and makes a big difference there. The other option, which I use, is to supply independent linear 5v to my USB device. I have a Wireworld Purple USB cable, but haven't really tried anything other than cheapo's for comparison.

Keep in mind there is also a certain synergy between the USB sender and receiver, in your case the DAC. Perhaps the Music Hall and Alix are not the best match. I suspect somehow Alix and my AP1 just get along very, very well for whatever reason.

jtwrace

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Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #722 on: 20 Jul 2011, 01:03 pm »
but haven't really tried anything other than cheapo's for comparison.


That's about to change.   :wink:

TJHUB

Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #723 on: 20 Jul 2011, 01:13 pm »
I'm using the KECES linear supply with very good result. As Nick said, clean power to the Alix is a rather critical factor. Depending on your USB implementation that also matters. Cleaning up the Alix 12v supply indirectly cleans up the 5v going to USB and makes a big difference there. The other option, which I use, is to supply independent linear 5v to my USB device. I have a Wireworld Purple USB cable, but haven't really tried anything other than cheapo's for comparison.

Keep in mind there is also a certain synergy between the USB sender and receiver, in your case the DAC. Perhaps the Music Hall and Alix are not the best match. I suspect somehow Alix and my AP1 just get along very, very well for whatever reason.

How much was your KECES PS?  Also, I noticed this morning that the Alix's wall-wart is 15v.  Is 12v not enough?  I was surprised to see 15v on the supply.

There is no doubt that synergy between components is critical.  I don't know if my DAC is the problem or not. I plan to listen to my DAC later today with my netbook as a source to see how different that sounds from the Alix.


nyc_paramedic

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Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #724 on: 20 Jul 2011, 01:15 pm »
How do I confirm what MPD and ALSA are not resampling?

Can you attach your entire mpd.conf to a post?

nyc_paramedic

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Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #725 on: 20 Jul 2011, 01:17 pm »
  Is 12v not enough?  I was surprised to see 15v on the supply.

Alix will will work from 7v to 18v. The 15volt supply is used because there can be a voltage drop when using Power Over Ethernet when using Alix in a router or wireless access point.

For music server role 12 volts is fine.

rklein

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ebag4

Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #727 on: 20 Jul 2011, 05:07 pm »
The output would easily handle the Alix with tons of current to spare, but did you see the input voltage?

Input 230VAC.

Best,
Ed

rklein

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Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #728 on: 20 Jul 2011, 05:08 pm »
Thanks Ed

My bad... :duh:

Randy

rklein

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Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #729 on: 20 Jul 2011, 05:27 pm »
OK... I will start over... :lol:

I am thinking a used Acopian A12MT400 should fit the bill in regards to the Alix.  Below is a link to the Acopian website that shows the specs for this model.  What do you guys think?

http://www.acopian.com/store/9-(7).aspx?min=12&max=16

Thanks,

Randy

TomS

Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #730 on: 20 Jul 2011, 05:34 pm »
How much was your KECES PS?  Also, I noticed this morning that the Alix's wall-wart is 15v.  Is 12v not enough?  I was surprised to see 15v on the supply.

There is no doubt that synergy between components is critical.  I don't know if my DAC is the problem or not. I plan to listen to my DAC later today with my netbook as a source to see how different that sounds from the Alix.
$250 plus shipping for the dual supply 12/15 and 5v version. Very nice construction.

http://www.acoustic-fun.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=73

Alexdad54

Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #731 on: 20 Jul 2011, 05:53 pm »
$250 plus shipping for the dual supply 12/15 and 5v version. Very nice construction.

http://www.acoustic-fun.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=73
A second vote for the Keces, made a noticeable improvement for my Alix. Next up a new custom Legato...... :thumb:

rklein

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Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #732 on: 20 Jul 2011, 06:08 pm »
The Keces looks very nice!!

I was thinking Acopian (along with a Felix conditioner) as you can find them used on Ebay for around $40.

Randy

jrebman

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Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #733 on: 20 Jul 2011, 09:11 pm »
Randy,

Got your PM and will let you now when I can check out the various links.  BTW, a 9 volt 1 amp supply should be plenty for the alix and something like an HRT MS II+.  All voltage above 7.5 is basically just turned into excess heat from the on board regulator chips on the alix, and since we're not using PoE here, the lower voltage headroom shouldn't be an issue.

More later,

Jim

TJHUB

Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #734 on: 20 Jul 2011, 09:27 pm »
Can you attach your entire mpd.conf to a post?

Here it is:


# An example configuration file for MPD
# See the mpd.conf man page for a more detailed description of each parameter.


# Files and directories #######################################################
#
# This setting controls the top directory which MPD will search to discover the
# available audio files and add them to the daemon's online database. This
# setting defaults to the XDG directory, otherwise the music directory will be
# be disabled and audio files will only be accepted over ipc socket (using
# file:// protocol) or streaming files over an accepted protocol.
#
music_directory      "/mnt/tunes"
#
# This setting sets the MPD internal playlist directory. The purpose of this
# directory is storage for playlists created by MPD. The server will use
# playlist files not created by the server but only if they are in the MPD
# format. This setting defaults to playlist saving being disabled.
#
playlist_directory      "/mnt/tunes/mpd/playlists"
#
# This setting sets the location of the MPD database. This file is used to
# load the database at server start up and store the database while the
# server is not up. This setting defaults to disabled which will allow
# MPD to accept files over ipc socket (using file:// protocol) or streaming
# files over an accepted protocol.
#
db_file         "/mnt/tunes/mpd/tag_cache"
#
# These settings are the locations for the daemon log files for the daemon.
# These logs are great for troubleshooting, depending on your log_level
# settings.
#
# The special value "syslog" makes MPD use the local syslog daemon. This
# setting defaults to logging to syslog, otherwise logging is disabled.
#
log_file         "/mnt/tunes/mpd/mpd.log"
#
# This setting sets the location of the file which stores the process ID
# for use of mpd --kill and some init scripts. This setting is disabled by
# default and the pid file will not be stored.
#
pid_file         "/mnt/tunes/mpd/pid"
#
# This setting sets the location of the file which contains information about
# most variables to get MPD back into the same general shape it was in before
# it was brought down. This setting is disabled by default and the server
# state will be reset on server start up.
#
state_file         "/mnt/tunes/mpd/state"
#
###############################################################################


# General music daemon options ################################################
#
# This setting specifies the user that MPD will run as. MPD should never run as
# root and you may use this setting to make MPD change its user ID after
# initialization. This setting is disabled by default and MPD is run as the
# current user.
#
user            "root"
#
# This setting sets the address for the daemon to listen on. Careful attention
# should be paid if this is assigned to anything other then the default, any.
# This setting can deny access to control of the daemon.
#
# For network
bind_to_address      "any"
#
# And for Unix Socket
#bind_to_address      "/var/run/mpd/socket"
#
# This setting is the TCP port that is desired for the daemon to get assigned
# to.
#
port            "6600"
#
# This setting controls the type of information which is logged. Available
# setting arguments are "default", "secure" or "verbose". The "verbose" setting
# argument is recommended for troubleshooting, though can quickly stretch
# available resources on limited hardware storage.
#
#log_level         "default"
#
# If you have a problem with your MP3s ending abruptly it is recommended that
# you set this argument to "no" to attempt to fix the problem. If this solves
# the problem, it is highly recommended to fix the MP3 files with vbrfix
# (available from <http://www.willwap.co.uk/Programs/vbrfix.php>), at which
# point gapless MP3 playback can be enabled.
#
#gapless_mp3_playback         "yes"
#
# This setting enables MPD to create playlists in a format usable by other
# music players.
#
#save_absolute_paths_in_playlists   "no"
#
# This setting defines a list of tag types that will be extracted during the
# audio file discovery process. Optionally, 'comment' can be added to this
# list.
#
#metadata_to_use   "artist,album,title,track,name,genre,date,composer,performer,disc"
#
###############################################################################


# Symbolic link behavior ######################################################
#
# If this setting is set to "yes", MPD will discover audio files by following
# symbolic links outside of the configured music_directory.
#
#follow_outside_symlinks   "yes"
#
# If this setting is set to "yes", MPD will discover audio files by following
# symbolic links inside of the configured music_directory.
#
#follow_inside_symlinks      "yes"
#
###############################################################################


# Zeroconf / Avahi Service Discovery ##########################################
#
# If this setting is set to "yes", service information will be published with
# Zeroconf / Avahi.
#
#zeroconf_enabled      "yes"
#
# The argument to this setting will be the Zeroconf / Avahi unique name for
# this MPD server on the network.
#
#zeroconf_name         "Music Player"
#
###############################################################################


# Permissions #################################################################
#
# If this setting is set, MPD will require password authorization. The password
# can setting can be specified multiple times for different password profiles.
#
#password                        "password@read,add,control,admin"
#
# This setting specifies the permissions a user has who has not yet logged in.
#
#default_permissions             "read,add,control,admin"
#
###############################################################################


# Input #######################################################################
#

input {
        plugin "curl"
#       proxy "proxy.isp.com:8080"
#       proxy_user "user"
#       proxy_password "password"
}

#
###############################################################################

# Audio Output ################################################################
#
# MPD supports various audio output types, as well as playing through multiple
# audio outputs at the same time, through multiple audio_output settings
# blocks. Setting this block is optional, though the server will only attempt
# autodetection for one sound card.
#
# See <http://mpd.wikia.com/wiki/Configuration#Audio_Outputs> for examples of
# other audio outputs.
#
# An example of an ALSA output:
#
audio_output {
   type      "alsa"
   name      "My ALSA Device"
   device      "hw:0,0"   # optional
   format      "44100:16:2"   # optional
   mixer_device   "default"   # optional
   mixer_control   "PCM"      # optional
   mixer_index   "0"      # optional
}
#
# An example of an OSS output:
#
#audio_output {
#   type      "oss"
#   name      "My OSS Device"
#   device      "/dev/dsp"   # optional
#   format      "44100:16:2"   # optional
#   mixer_device   "/dev/mixer"   # optional
#   mixer_control   "PCM"      # optional
#}
#
# An example of a shout output (for streaming to Icecast):
#
#audio_output {
#   type      "shout"
#   encoding   "ogg"         # optional
#   name      "My Shout Stream"
#   host      "localhost"
#   port      "8000"
#   mount      "/mpd.ogg"
#   password   "hackme"
#   quality      "5.0"
#   bitrate      "128"
#   format      "44100:16:1"
#   protocol   "icecast2"      # optional
#   user      "source"      # optional
#   description   "My Stream Description"   # optional
#   genre      "jazz"         # optional
#   public      "no"         # optional
#   timeout      "2"         # optional
#}
#
# An example of a httpd output (built-in HTTP streaming server):
#
#audio_output {
#   type      "httpd"
#   name      "My HTTP Stream"
#   encoder      "vorbis"      # optional, vorbis or lame
#   port      "8000"
#   quality      "5.0"         # do not define if bitrate is defined
#   bitrate      "128"         # do not define if quality is defined
#   format      "44100:16:1"
#}
#
# An example of a pulseaudio output (streaming to a remote pulseaudio server)
#
#audio_output {
#   type      "pulse"
#   name      "My Pulse Output"
#   server      "remote_server"      # optional
#   sink      "remote_server_sink"   # optional
#}
#
## Example "pipe" output:
#
#audio_output {
#   type      "pipe"
#   name      "my pipe"
#   command      "aplay -f cd 2>/dev/null"
## Or if you're want to use AudioCompress
#   command      "AudioCompress -m | aplay -f cd 2>/dev/null"
## Or to send raw PCM stream through PCM:
#   command      "nc example.org 8765"
#   format      "44100:16:2"
#}
#
## An example of a null output (for no audio output):
#
#audio_output {
#   type      "null"
#   name      "My Null Output"
#}
#
# This setting will change all decoded audio to be converted to the specified
# format before being passed to the audio outputs. By default, this setting is
# disabled.
#
#audio_output_format      "44100:16:2"
#
# If MPD has been compiled with libsamplerate support, this setting specifies
# the sample rate converter to use.  Possible values can be found in the
# mpd.conf man page or the libsamplerate documentation. By default, this is
# setting is disabled.
#
#samplerate_converter      "Fastest Sinc Interpolator"
#
###############################################################################


# Volume control mixer ########################################################
#
# These are the global volume control settings. By default, this setting will
# be detected to the available audio output device, with preference going to
# hardware mixing. Hardware and software mixers for individual audio_output
# sections cannot yet be mixed.
#
# An example for controlling an ALSA, OSS or Pulseaudio mixer; If this
# setting is used other sound applications will be affected by the volume
# being controlled by MPD.
#
#mixer_type         "hardware"
#
# An example for controlling all mixers through software. This will control
# all controls, even if the mixer is not supported by the device and will not
# affect any other sound producing applications.
#
#mixer_type         "software"
#
# This example will not allow MPD to touch the mixer at all and will disable
# all volume controls.
#
#mixer_type         "disabled"
#
###############################################################################


# Normalization automatic volume adjustments ##################################
#
# This setting specifies the type of ReplayGain to use. This setting can have
# the argument "album" or "track". See <http://www.replaygain.org> for more
# details. This setting is disabled by default.
#
#replaygain         "album"
#
# This setting sets the pre-amp used for files that have ReplayGain tags. By
# default this setting is disabled.
#
#replaygain_preamp      "0"
#
# This setting enables on-the-fly normalization volume adjustment. This will
# result in the volume of all playing audio to be adjusted so the output has
# equal "loudness". This setting is disabled by default.
#
#volume_normalization      "no"
#
###############################################################################


# MPD Internal Buffering ######################################################
#
# This setting adjusts the size of internal decoded audio buffering. Changing
# this may have undesired effects. Don't change this if you don't know what you
# are doing.
#
#audio_buffer_size      "2048"
#
# This setting controls the percentage of the buffer which is filled before
# beginning to play. Increasing this reduces the chance of audio file skipping,
# at the cost of increased time prior to audio playback.
#
#buffer_before_play      "10%"
#
###############################################################################


# Resource Limitations ########################################################
#
# These settings are various limitations to prevent MPD from using too many
# resources. Generally, these settings should be minimized to prevent security
# risks, depending on the operating resources.
#
#connection_timeout      "60"
#max_connections      "10"
#max_playlist_length      "16384"
#max_command_list_size      "2048"
#max_output_buffer_size      "8192"
#
###############################################################################


# Character Encoding ##########################################################
#
# If file or directory names do not display correctly for your locale then you
# may need to modify this setting. After modification of this setting mpd
# --create-db must be run to change the database.
#
filesystem_charset      "UTF-8"
#
# This setting controls the encoding that ID3v1 tags should be converted from.
#
id3v1_encoding         "UTF-8"
#
###############################################################################

follow_outside_symlinks "yes"
follow_inside_symlinks "yes"
zeroconf_enabled "yes"
zeroconf_name "Voyage Music Player"
mixer_type "software"

TJHUB

Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #735 on: 20 Jul 2011, 09:28 pm »
Alix will will work from 7v to 18v. The 15volt supply is used because there can be a voltage drop when using Power Over Ethernet when using Alix in a router or wireless access point.

For music server role 12 volts is fine.

Great.  Thanks for this information.


TJHUB

Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #736 on: 20 Jul 2011, 09:32 pm »
$250 plus shipping for the dual supply 12/15 and 5v version. Very nice construction.

http://www.acoustic-fun.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=73

Thanks Tom.  That does look impressive.  I saw your pic as well.

A second vote for the Keces, made a noticeable improvement for my Alix. Next up a new custom Legato...... :thumb:

Again guys, what exactly changed for you with the addition of the Keces?  Do you use the USB output to your DAC or do you use a USB to S/PDIF converter?


ted_b

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Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #737 on: 20 Jul 2011, 10:01 pm »
I'm not the best at this but looks like you have set your DAC to do 16/44 only (everything else is downsampled).  Maybe that's part of the reason it sounds worse than Squeezebox, etc.  I'd comment out that line (   format      "44100:16:2"   # optional).

TJHUB

Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #738 on: 20 Jul 2011, 10:26 pm »
I'm not the best at this but looks like you have set your DAC to do 16/44 only (everything else is downsampled).  Maybe that's part of the reason it sounds worse than Squeezebox, etc.  I'd comment out that line (   format      "44100:16:2"   # optional).

That shouldn't be the difference in sound as my Duet is 16/44 only.  I don't have a Touch.

Alexdad54

Re: Dead silent dedicated Linux music server for USB DAC's.
« Reply #739 on: 20 Jul 2011, 10:37 pm »
Thanks Tom.  That does look impressive.  I saw your pic as well.

Again guys, what exactly changed for you with the addition of the Keces?  Do you use the USB output to your DAC or do you use a USB to S/PDIF converter?
I'm not that experienced at this but the addition of the Keces seemed to make the music more clearly defined and did tone down the small amount sibilance I had. I'm using an Audio-GD Digital Interface usb to spdif converter with a Black Cat Veloce cable into my modded Havana DAC. I'm just waiting for my new Legato that will replace the DI.