INTERACT FORUM

More => Old Versions => JRiver Media Center 20 for Mac => Topic started by: BartMan01 on December 27, 2014, 11:01:36 pm

Title: MC won't run at 94k/24?
Post by: BartMan01 on December 27, 2014, 11:01:36 pm
I have my Mac digital out configured to 96k/24 for output (highest quality setting it lets you use).  Everything on my Mac other than MC (that I have tried) is running at 96/24.  As soon as I start playback on my Mac, the digital out is switched down to to a lower setting.  My DAC display changes from 96/24 to 48/16 (it shows 48 for both 48 and 44.1) and the audio setup on the Mac changes to 44.1/24 in the output section.  MC shows that it is processing 44.1/16.  I have been testing with 96/24 native files, and both with output format off and on but set to pass 'as is'.

Screen shots show what OSX is set to output without MC playing (96/24) and with MC playing.

Playing the same files back using VLC, everything stays at 96/24.
Title: Re: MC won't run at 94k/24?
Post by: JohnT on December 28, 2014, 10:00:20 am
What happens if you set output format explicitly to 96/24?
Do you have exclusive mode (hog mode) enabled?
Title: Re: MC won't run at 94k/24?
Post by: BartMan01 on December 28, 2014, 01:18:05 pm
What happens if you set output format explicitly to 96/24?
Do you have exclusive mode (hog mode) enabled?
If I turn on 'Output Format' and force everything to 96,000, then it DOES use 96/24 to the DAC - but DSP studio in MC shows the source as being 44.1/64 (see attachment) when the source is actually 96/24.  Using the exact same DAC in Windows MC with the exact same tracks it works 100% as expected.

I do have exclusive mode on.

Edit:  I also just tried a 5.1 96/24 track, and MC is still reporting the source as 44.1/64/2 channel.  MC Windows properly reports the same track as a 96/24/6 channel source.
Title: Re: MC won't run at 94k/24?
Post by: BartMan01 on December 28, 2014, 11:55:25 pm
Been messing around more, but it seems that no matter what I do MC on the Mac 'sees' everything in my library as 44.1/2 channel audio no matter what it actually is.  Is that 'normal' and if not, any ideas why that is happening?

Edit: I take that back a little.  My 'normal' use of MC on this machine is as a client to the master library.  If I play the files from the local library, as opposed to using the master library then MC does see the files correctly.  It is only seeing them as 44.1/2ch when running in client mode.

Library settings are at their defaults with audio set to convert when necessary - but it is not necessary to convert these files as they play back fine in native form.  Set to 'do not convert', it is working correctly, but that should not be necessary should it?
Title: Re: MC won't run at 94k/24?
Post by: mstan on December 29, 2014, 10:00:48 am
In MC client on the Mac what settings do you have under tools->options>media network->client options-> audio->encoder?
Also check DSP output format under audio settings.
Title: Re: MC won't run at 94k/24?
Post by: BartMan01 on December 29, 2014, 11:09:48 am
In MC client on the Mac what settings do you have under tools->options>media network->client options-> audio->encoder?
Also check DSP output format under audio settings.

The 'encoder' is MP3, high bandwidth - but it should pretty much never be using the encoder.  The ultimate issue is that 'convert audio if necessary' is converting audio even when it is not necessary for playback on the client.

DSP output settings work exactly as expected, it is the input (from the server) that was the problem due to converting the files.
Title: Re: MC won't run at 94k/24?
Post by: mstan on December 29, 2014, 11:52:25 am
The 'encoder' is MP3, high bandwidth - but it should pretty much never be using the encoder.  The ultimate issue is that 'convert audio if necessary' is converting audio even when it is not necessary for playback on the client.

DSP output settings work exactly as expected, it is the input (from the server) that was the problem due to converting the files.
I have understood that the "necessary" in <convert audio if necessary> to mean convert when you have  a setting, for example in <output format> or <client encoder> or some other setting, that dictates a change from the original.   In your case I would think that MP3 would have been both displayed and sent to the DAC rather than pass 96/24 and display 44.1/64.    Sounds like a bug or something corrupt locally.    What happens if you set the client encoder to PCM 24?   Anything change when you reboot and/or hard restart your DAC?
Title: Re: MC won't run at 94k/24?
Post by: mwillems on December 29, 2014, 04:13:10 pm
The 'encoder' is MP3, high bandwidth - but it should pretty much never be using the encoder.  The ultimate issue is that 'convert audio if necessary' is converting audio even when it is not necessary for playback on the client.

You should really try it with conversion disabled.  To my knowledge "convert when necessary" converts any file that doesn't match the selected format (at least that's how it's always worked for me).  If your client instance is JRiver, it can do its own conversion on playback if necessary.
Title: Re: MC won't run at 94k/24?
Post by: BartMan01 on December 29, 2014, 07:10:38 pm
You should really try it with conversion disabled.  To my knowledge "convert when necessary" converts any file that doesn't match the selected format (at least that's how it's always worked for me).  If your client instance is JRiver, it can do its own conversion on playback if necessary.

That is how I am running it now (disabled), and it is working fine.  If 'convert when necessary' really means 'convert when the file is not the encoder format', than that is VERY counter-intuitive.  Not really sure why the default behavior (I have not touched these settings until now) is to convert everything to MP3.