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Mac => JRiver Media Center 32 for Mac => Topic started by: zyss on June 07, 2024, 07:51:11 am

Title: MC 32 with DAC (RME-2), stuttering audio
Post by: zyss on June 07, 2024, 07:51:11 am

While MC24 worked just fine with DAC, MC32 outputs stuttering audio (almost no sound, just very short impulses). It works fine with internal audio of my notebook (Big Sur, 11.6, Macbook Pro Retina 13" 2015 early). I have both MC24 and MC32 installed on this device. No software upgrade made for DAC for years. I am afraid to upgrade the DAC (drivers etc.), risking that it stops working with MC24 too. Please comment.

Title: Re: MC 32 with DAC (RME-2), stuttering audio
Post by: JimH on June 07, 2024, 09:35:03 am

Settings?

Or this problem?
https://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php/topic,137837.msg955920.html#msg955920

Title: Re: MC 32 with DAC (RME-2), stuttering audio
Post by: zyss on June 08, 2024, 04:59:42 am

I found the cause of malfunction. My ADI-2 DAC does not accept certain settings in MC 32 which it did accept, the same settings, in MC 24! Namely: when both "exclusive access" and "integer mode" boxes are checked, there is a problem (stuttering sound) in the new version of JRiver, while all is fine with this setting in the old version. Interestingly, when either box is checked alone, the playback in the new version is fine. Please comment. Would it be good for sound quality to use both exclusive access and integer mode? If impossible to use both (as it is now), which one should I choose for sound quality (convenience is not important)?

Title: Re: MC 32 with DAC (RME-2), stuttering audio
Post by: Awesome Donkey on June 08, 2024, 07:03:23 am

If you care about bit-perfect audio, then exclusive mode is a must. When exclusive mode isn't being used it goes through the system mixer and is dithered/resampled/etc.

Try just unchecking integer mode and see if it works.

Title: Re: MC 32 with DAC (RME-2), stuttering audio
Post by: bob on June 10, 2024, 09:13:52 am

One of the differences is that the older versions of MC only supported 24 bit integer mode.
Some DACs  only support 32 bit integer mode (they ALL support floating point mode).
Current MC versions will try 32 bit mode first then 24 bit if 32 isn't supported. It will try neither integer modes if the integer mode checkbox isn't checked.
Exclusive mode is almost always required for integer mode to work but as AD said it's also used to ensure bit-perfect playback.
The logic is extensively logged when you turn on logging so you can see exactly what is happening.

Title: Re: MC 32 with DAC (RME-2), stuttering audio
Post by: Manfred on June 12, 2024, 09:33:51 am

I have also rme ADI-2 DAC FS, but use it with MC32 on Windows. I use the rme ASIO Drivers and I have no problems.
In the past I had also a macBook Pro and I had no issues, but it was before MC32.

rme also has developed a new driver kit for macOS which should replace the old kernel extension drivers.

https://rme-audio.de/driverkit-vs-kernel-extension.html (https://rme-audio.de/driverkit-vs-kernel-extension.html)