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[ferrarabrainpan]

I think I know how to configure Auto-Import settings so I can import my library but I am concerned about the Tag On Import feature. I have spent a lot of time tagging my audio files and I understand it won't overwrite fields that are tagged but I don't think I want any auto-tagging done, like Rating field or other tags that I choose to leave blank (FYI I manage my ID tagging with dBpoweramp).

I have three main folders for music on three different internal drives on my Windows 10 PC: Lossy, Lossless, and Hi-Res. So I will want MC to monitor and import all the files in those folders except data files that are created during CD ripping... so that means audio files (MP3 in Lossy folder, FLAC and AIFF in Lossless, and AIFF and DSD in High-Res) and the accompanying JPG album art files which I've spent time formatting so I don't want those messed with by any CARNAC or auto-tagging business.

The other thing is setting the Audio Output because I am a bit stumped by things like WASAPI and ASIO etc. I have two external DAC devices which are connected to my PC via USB. The default audio device is a Rega DAC-R which I will want to handle ALL of my music files EXCEPT for DSD because Rega decided not to support DSD files with this device. So in the case of DSD playback I will want those audio files streamed to my OPPO UDP-205 which does handle DSD.

So can anyone either help me figure out how to set this up properly the first time with a simple 1-2-3 procedure to follow, or point me to the tutorials which will make it easy for me to learn and configure this on my own?

I am thinking I want to choose WASAPI but I am not sure where to go from there. Obviously I am not using my Windows default audio apps to handle audio because I've got these two outboard DAC devices enabled as my audio devices with Rega (XMOS) as the default one. And the only time I need to switch audio devices is when I am going to play DSD files and then switch over to the OPPO.

It sounds straightforward but when I start reading about all the options I get sucked into a rabbit hole and like I said, I'm a newbie. A newbie with aspirations to properly manage and enjoy high-res music on my new sound system, or else I'd just be using iTunes and my Windows Real-Tek for audio playback.

Any help anyone can offer will be much appreciated!

[JimH]

Welcome to the forum. 

Auto import won't change your tags unless you tell it to.  No need to worry.

Audio setup is explained in the Audio Setup topic on our wiki.  WASAPI is a good choice.

For using a different device for DSD playback, read about Zones and ZoneSwitch on the wiki.

If you have more specific questions, or you get stuck somewhere, please ask.

[ferrarabrainpan]

Thanks for that reply. So I am not sure what the default "Player" zone is, but I added a PCM zone for playback of WAV, AIFF, FLAC and MP3 and set audio output option to go to my Rega XMOS device as WASAPI (still unclear about why I should choose WASAPI over ASIO if both options are available in the dropdown menu as well as kernel streaming and direct sound, what virtues one has and how to know which is most appropriate). Then I added a DSD zone and set it to output to the OPPO device, also WASAPI.

What about Exclusive Access in WASAPI? Is this going to create conflicts that will have me fumbling around to try to get my music files to play, e.g. if Windows 10 is trying to output system sounds or sounds from open webpages on my browser while I am wanting to just listen to music? I am fine if all other sound sources on my PC are muted when I'm playing music on MC, but it seems Windows has a habit of trying to commandeer my computer use in conformity with what Windows likes (e.g. switching default settings after an OS update).

So should I set the DSP studio output to stereo in both zones since I am using a stereo setup, not surround (Rega DAC is stereo only, OPPO has multi-channel capacity but I use only the stereo outs)?

Could you tell me how to create a rule that automatically routes playback of DSD files (do I need to specify a list of file formats) to the DSD zone, while routing playback of all other files (95% of my library at this stage since most of my DSD music is on SACD which I play on the OPPO).

I suppose I will be using MC to handle playback of video files stored on my hard drive but I need to get the audio part configured first, since that is what I bought this program for: to listen to music that is stored on my PC.

[ferrarabrainpan]

Now that I think about it, perhaps I would best simplify things by having one zone and setting the audio output to convert any DSD files to equivalent high-res PCM output during playback and then my Rega (which has superior DAC compared with the OPPO) would handle all of my music playback in MC. This is what the dealer who sold me my system suggested. DSD files are so enormous I don't plan on collecting a large library of them, I'd rather listen to DSD music from an SACD disc and the only reason I bought that one DSD album by the Carpenters is that it was not offered on the sites where I buy PCM hi-res music and the SACD version of that album is out of print and going for too high a price on the collector's market.

How would I go about setting it up so any .dsf files are output as PCM data to my Rega DAC at equivalent bitrate and sampling frequency?

[kr4]

How would I go about setting it up so any .dsf files are output as PCM data to my Rega DAC at equivalent bitrate and sampling frequency?

Turn off DSD streaming.