More > JRiver Media Center 21 for Linux
Stick for DACS which play well with Linux and JRiver?
Awesome Donkey:
Schiit DACs work fine on Linux.
In fact, most DACs should work fine out-of-the-box.
mwillems:
All USB Audio class 1 and 2 compliant devices "should" work out of the box with Linux. The "should" is in quotes because some devices claim UAC2 compliance when they are not actually remotely compliant. Note that UAC1 and UAC2 are not the same as USB1 or USB2 compliance. The USB Audio Class is a distinct standard from the main USB data transfer standard.
The authoritative source for Linux audio device support for non-UAC1 and UAC2 compliant devices is the ALSA matrix:
http://www.alsa-project.org/main/index.php/Matrix:Main
So when I buy DACs for Linux, I follow the following three steps:
1) Scour online reviews (Amazon, et al.) for mentions of people actually trying the device with Linux (this is by far the most reliable source of information).
2) If no help at 1), check and see if the device claims UAC1 or UAC2 compliance, and, if not
3) Check the ALSA matrix.
Both the DACs you mention advertise UAC2 compliance, and both the McIntosh is reported (in professional reviews) as working with Linux. If they're not working you may want to make sure you don't have a configuration issue.
zenpmd:
--- Quote from: mwillems on March 28, 2016, 04:46:46 pm ---All USB Audio class 1 and 2 compliant devices "should" work out of the box with Linux. The "should" is in quotes because some devices claim UAC2 compliance when they are not actually remotely compliant. Note that UAC1 and UAC2 are not the same as USB1 or USB2 compliance. The USB Audio Class is a distinct standard from the main USB data transfer standard.
The authoritative source for Linux audio device support for non-UAC1 and UAC2 compliant devices is the ALSA matrix:
http://www.alsa-project.org/main/index.php/Matrix:Main
So when I buy DACs for Linux, I follow the following three steps:
1) Scour online reviews (Amazon, et al.) for mentions of people actually trying the device with Linux (this is by far the most reliable source of information).
2) If no help at 1), check and see if the device claims UAC1 or UAC2 compliance, and, if not
3) Check the ALSA matrix.
Both the DACs you mention advertise UAC2 compliance, and both the McIntosh is reported (in professional reviews) as working with Linux. If they're not working you may want to make sure you don't have a configuration issue.
--- End quote ---
Thanks so much. Thats very helpful. Slightly different question, why dos windows require manufacturer specific drivers in order to play 192? (At least in the case of the Benchmark)
Thanks
mwillems:
--- Quote from: zenpmd on March 29, 2016, 12:36:55 am ---Thanks so much. Thats very helpful. Slightly different question, why dos windows require manufacturer specific drivers in order to play 192? (At least in the case of the Benchmark)
Thanks
--- End quote ---
The short answer is that 192 requires UAC2 support (UAC1 doesn't support 192), and Windows doesn't support the UAC2 protocol out of the box, it only supports UAC1 devices. In that respect, both OSX and Linux are "more compatible" than windows. Windows (for the moment) still has a dominant enough market position that they can effectively say to vendors "write a driver or risk incompatibility."
It's frustrating as that attitude has slowed UAC2 adoption among vendors as they know they have to write a driver for windows anyway, and that's most of their market share, so why bother with UAC2 at all? Which means that Linux and OSX get left in the cold sometimes despite "doing the right thing" with respect to standards compliance. That's changing (slowly), but mostly at the high end of the market. Budget and mid-range DACs are often entirely incompatible with Linux or only work with reduced UAC1 functionality.
zenpmd:
--- Quote from: mwillems on March 29, 2016, 09:45:00 am ---The short answer is that 192 requires UAC2 support (UAC1 doesn't support 192), and Windows doesn't support the UAC2 protocol out of the box, it only supports UAC1 devices. In that respect, both OSX and Linux are "more compatible" than windows. Windows (for the moment) still has a dominant enough market position that they can effectively say to vendors "write a driver or risk incompatibility."
It's frustrating as that attitude has slowed UAC2 adoption among vendors as they know they have to write a driver for windows anyway, and that's most of their market share, so why bother with UAC2 at all? Which means that Linux and OSX get left in the cold sometimes despite "doing the right thing" with respect to standards compliance. That's changing (slowly), but mostly at the high end of the market. Budget and mid-range DACs are often entirely incompatible with Linux or only work with reduced UAC1 functionality.
--- End quote ---
Thanks so much for educating me. This is wonderful. A total idiot as PS Audio asked the "software guy" within his own organisation who couldnt say whether the Sprout has UAC2. HOW CAN THEY NOT KNOW THIS!?!
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