10-Aug-2014, 16:27
Hello all,
I've been experiencing a long-standing problem with occasional drop-outs streaming to my 200 via AIR from a MacBook Pro. This post describes the problem in some detail. If any one else has come across it then perhaps we can pool resources to investigate. I have reported this to Devialet (several months ago), so I will also update the thread if/when I get some specific response.
Symptoms:
Streaming will run continuously without problems for some period of time, often up to several hours, but will then stop for no apparent reason. When streaming stops, the Devialet AIR icon in the menu bar is greyed out (rather than black). Opening the menu bar app shows that the Devialet's network interface(s) are not present, and only the Disable Devialet AIR option is shown (and selected).
After a few seconds, the Devialet's network interface(s) show up in the app and can be selected. Streaming can then be re-started. However, it will probably stop again a few seconds later with the same symptoms as above.
If instead of trying to re-start streaming immediately I leave it for a few minutes before trying again, it will then usually re-start reliably and may run for a long time before dropping out again.
System environment:
Devialet 200 (firmware 6.0.10, 7.1.0 and now 7.1.1)
Devialet AIR v2.1.2
MacBook Pro (Core 2 Duo, early 2008), running OS X 10.8.5
Apple Time Capsule 2 TB (5th generation)
MBP wireless to Time Capsule
D200 wired to Time Capsule (i.e. streaming via Ethernet interface)
Observations:
The problem occurs equally when playing music stored locally on the Time Capsule (ALAC, 16/44) via iTunes, and when streaming from Qobuz HiFi (FLAC, 16/44) via the Qobuz desktop app.
As far as I can tell, occurrences of the problem don't correlate with other activity on the MBP, Time Capsule or other items on the network.
As far as I can tell, changing the target device buffer setting in AIR doesn't seem to affect the problem.
The Devialet's network interfaces respond to ping throughout, with no obvious change in round-trip delay. Keeping ping running doesn't seem to affect the problem positively or negatively.
The problem occurs whether the interfaces are configured to use DHCP or fixed IP addresses set by the configurator. (I had wondered whether it was triggered by the DHCP lease renewal but this seems not to be the case.)
Putting the Devialet into standby when the first drop-out occurs, or power-cycling it completely, doesn't seem to make any difference - streaming will still most likely drop out again a few seconds after I re-start it. This was most apparent after I installed the 7.1.1 firmware this afternoon: I got into a drop-out mode within about 30 seconds of powering up after completing the update.
Quitting and re-starting the Devialet AIR app when the first drop-out occurs doesn't seem to make any difference (as above). The same is true if I log out of my user account and log in again.
Re-starting the MBP when the first drop-out occurs does seem to make a difference: on re-starting AIR, it will then run reliably for quite some time.
Speculation:
It looks to me like a problem in the part of AIR that lives in the OS X kernel.
That's about as much as I've gathered at the moment. I'd be very interested to hear from anyone who's experienced anything similar.
The frustrating thing is that I've just about convinced myself that I get better sound quality via AIR than from my directly-connected Sonos…but the less-than-perfect reliability may be too high a price. Such is life.
I've been experiencing a long-standing problem with occasional drop-outs streaming to my 200 via AIR from a MacBook Pro. This post describes the problem in some detail. If any one else has come across it then perhaps we can pool resources to investigate. I have reported this to Devialet (several months ago), so I will also update the thread if/when I get some specific response.
Symptoms:
Streaming will run continuously without problems for some period of time, often up to several hours, but will then stop for no apparent reason. When streaming stops, the Devialet AIR icon in the menu bar is greyed out (rather than black). Opening the menu bar app shows that the Devialet's network interface(s) are not present, and only the Disable Devialet AIR option is shown (and selected).
After a few seconds, the Devialet's network interface(s) show up in the app and can be selected. Streaming can then be re-started. However, it will probably stop again a few seconds later with the same symptoms as above.
If instead of trying to re-start streaming immediately I leave it for a few minutes before trying again, it will then usually re-start reliably and may run for a long time before dropping out again.
System environment:
Devialet 200 (firmware 6.0.10, 7.1.0 and now 7.1.1)
Devialet AIR v2.1.2
MacBook Pro (Core 2 Duo, early 2008), running OS X 10.8.5
Apple Time Capsule 2 TB (5th generation)
MBP wireless to Time Capsule
D200 wired to Time Capsule (i.e. streaming via Ethernet interface)
Observations:
The problem occurs equally when playing music stored locally on the Time Capsule (ALAC, 16/44) via iTunes, and when streaming from Qobuz HiFi (FLAC, 16/44) via the Qobuz desktop app.
As far as I can tell, occurrences of the problem don't correlate with other activity on the MBP, Time Capsule or other items on the network.
As far as I can tell, changing the target device buffer setting in AIR doesn't seem to affect the problem.
The Devialet's network interfaces respond to ping throughout, with no obvious change in round-trip delay. Keeping ping running doesn't seem to affect the problem positively or negatively.
The problem occurs whether the interfaces are configured to use DHCP or fixed IP addresses set by the configurator. (I had wondered whether it was triggered by the DHCP lease renewal but this seems not to be the case.)
Putting the Devialet into standby when the first drop-out occurs, or power-cycling it completely, doesn't seem to make any difference - streaming will still most likely drop out again a few seconds after I re-start it. This was most apparent after I installed the 7.1.1 firmware this afternoon: I got into a drop-out mode within about 30 seconds of powering up after completing the update.
Quitting and re-starting the Devialet AIR app when the first drop-out occurs doesn't seem to make any difference (as above). The same is true if I log out of my user account and log in again.
Re-starting the MBP when the first drop-out occurs does seem to make a difference: on re-starting AIR, it will then run reliably for quite some time.
Speculation:
It looks to me like a problem in the part of AIR that lives in the OS X kernel.
That's about as much as I've gathered at the moment. I'd be very interested to hear from anyone who's experienced anything similar.
The frustrating thing is that I've just about convinced myself that I get better sound quality via AIR than from my directly-connected Sonos…but the less-than-perfect reliability may be too high a price. Such is life.
Roon (Mac Mini), Wilson Benesch Full Circle, Expert 1000 Pro CI, Kaiser Chiara
Warwickshire, UK
