Berkeley CA audiophile is desperate need of help

Hey Bander,

Did you try Music Lovers??

@Erik, yes I did. Selfishly they said no.

Does your post mean your Innuous server stopped working twice in 6 months? Once it stops, how long does it take to getting going again? Do you restart it? Is the software on the Innuous server up to date with all updates? Can Innuous customer support help you?

Or, are you saying your DAC stops working? My best guess it is a server issue and not the DAC. I agree that an audio system crashing is no fun but every six months is frustrating but not that bad

is it possible that an album (or streaming) you are playing is defective and that is causing the crash?

+1, Music Lovers Audio in Berkeley.

Are there any Innuous retailers in the San Francisco Bay Area that can help?  If not, call Alma Music and Audio in San Diego for help. 

agree Alex at Alma is a super awesome digital guru :-))))

A San Francisco audio shop sells Innuous.

He said no to my request to bring my server in to check ir out there. 

I have the latest version. It's unclear as to what in the chain is causing the

problem. At this point the only solution is to do what I have requested 

in my post. Thank you for your comments and suggestions.

 

 

@bander, Your original post says “ My digital system has crashed for the second time  in 6 months”.   It seems no local retailer is willing to help.  What did Innuous Customer Support say?

I suggest you provide more details of the crash including the equipment in use, what you were playing and as much other detail as possible. 

Maybe someone else on Audiogon will have a solution. 

 

It is hard to suggest fixed without knowing all the facts.  However one approach to server and audio electronic crashing occasionally is to be proactive - simply turn them off and on once month making sure they actually restart and not just go to sleep.  Essentially you want to reboot them.

I have a practically new schiit bifrost II you can borrow if you pay shipping.  --Jerry

@jgoldrick ,

Good advice. I power off my Innuos after listening ( power is expensive on Long Island).

@bander ,

Did you contact Innuos?

Also, have you checked your Ethernet connection. I have had a couple of issues when bandwidth wasn't large enough and Innuos just stopped working until it could  catch up.

PM me, maybe I can see if I can fix it. 

Otherwise, what equipment are you using? How are you connected to the Internet?

etc.

Bob

@bander, The strange thing is the crashing issue has only occurred TWICE in the last 6 months. Is it possible the stored album being played or the streaming album caused the server to stop working?   

What stored album was being played or steamed when the server crashed (stopped working)?   Could this be a software issue?  This might help identify the issue.  

The Internet connection questions asked by @gdnrbob above also need to be answered.   Please keep us posted

@bander : contact Innuos directly support@innuos.com

I believe they support their products even if not original purchaser if still in warranty. If they cannot fix it via email instructions, they will do a remote session log in and help you. Meaning they will connect remotely to a computer in your network, and access Innuos in the same network from that computer 

I have an Innuous Zenith 3 and PS Audio Directstream dac.  Occasionally, they stop speaking to each other or stop making music for some  reason .  I begin by powering off the Innuous, waiting a few minutes and powering it back on, as has been suggested.  If that doesn't restore the music, I do the same with my dac. I check all cable connections.  I've found that one of my usb cables  isn't very tight and can come lose.  I check the inputs on my preamp and dac to make sure they're set properly.  Sometimes the problem is just a stupid mistake like forgetting to turn on my power amp.  My Innuous is connected to an Orbi wifi mesh router. If the other steps haven't worked, I power cycle that.  If all else fails, I contact Nuno at Innuous (support@innuous.freshdesk.com).  He's very helpful.  I hate it when my system is down but so far, by trying each of these things in order, I've been able to resolve the problem. Good luck.

@Brownsf, I've done everything you've listed. I've 

used different USB cables and checked each and every thing. 

I've had remote support with Nuno as well. I thank you for your response!

Tomorrow I will start again by reconnecting and 

powering everything up, as if for the first time.

Thank you again.

 

 

@bander Hi, I’d first check your DAC is working by plugging a computer into it. I understand you’re using the USB input of the DAC.

If that works you’ve probably got a "handshake" problem with the server. Do a factory reset if possible and then connect to the DAC before you start the DAC up.

Also ensure your server updates are current.

 

@bander, Please also reboot your modem and router. These means power off for 2 minutes and then restart (remove batteries, if any in these devices).

If there are any software updates for your router, you should apply these updates.  

You might find it valuable to join your local audio lover's group, the San Francisco Audiophile Society.  I preferred the original name (Bay Area...) and the group's membership is even broader than that.  They have a forum where you could make this request, and hopefully find some local help.  More than that, there are meetings & guest presentations (Zoom for now), even the occasional sysHop to hear others' systems (alas, also rare in these times).

Digital is extremely sensitive to dirty electricity which will cause dropping the server, dac or both requiring powering off and on again. Is your digital on a good conditioner or being feed clean power.

I had these problems described above until I cleaned up my power , now no more.

just saying check your power

I think it’s really sad no dealer will help you especially the one who sold you the server, shame on them. 
 

let’s hope innuos will step up and help.

@Tecknik, actually it wasn't the dealer from whom

I bought the Innuous, but another store that sells 

Some Innuous products.

Hi from up the way in Davis. I had similar problems in the past and maybe/maybe not this will help. Poor bandwidth was the culprit (and the odd bout of fixing something that wasn’t broken as that’s my working definition of some audiophile upgrades).

1.) After the crash do you shut down and restart and then is your gear working again? If the crash is total with out the music resuming then that’s unfortunate. If it’s a "stall" then it’s likely bandwidth. Assuming you are using a streaming service and not sourcing from a NAS?

2.) Do you have a fast robust internet connection? Are you wired in or are you using wifi? Is ethernet hardware good stuff? Does speed test give you a good report?

3.142) Power good/great.(asked above)?

4.) Have you taken the DAC out of the chain and gone directly into your pre or integrated amp? Doubt this is it.

5.) Well vented? Gear run hot? Doubt this is it too.

5.5) Did you have an old system where this did/did not happen?

6.) Occam’s razor.

If I had a DAC you would be welcome to plug in here but my streamer has an internal DAC.

 

 

 

 

Hello...I live in Berkeley and work in Oakland. I have a spare DAC I'd be happy to lend you. It's currently at my office. You could come by and pick it up or if you wanted to, you could bring something of yours and attempt to connect it. I have a secondary system of leftover gear I pieced together that is fully functional but currently not in use.

Bandy, I have an Innuos Streamer and have good luck with the very responsive

Innuos team. I realize you tried that. Retailers these days are very understaffed

so for a dealer to turn down work on something they don’t carry seems logical

to me or did I miss something?

Easiest and cheapest solution, go to the SFAS website, join and attend a Friday Happy hour. Explain your problem. Someone there will know what to do.

I joined and I don’t live in the state.

Best of luck!!

Have you tried the DAC with other digital sources, such as a CD player?  If so, and it seems to work, then your problem is either: 1) Internet; 2) The server; 3) the hand off from server to DAC.

  Servers are networking computers that are gussied up to look like audio components.  They are subject to the same foibles that computers are.  Have you ever had a computer that was working fine and suddenly doesn’t “see” something, such as a printer?  The first step is to power everything down and then restart them.  If that doesn’t work after a few tries, then it may be that a software update in the server, or the DAC, may have “bricked” these two components 

Ime, most every problem with streaming I in the network.. Fwiw I just did get my streamer dad working consistently this past weekend after 6-8 month of problem after problem. I knew it was network related but I am weak on network issues. But I learned a lot over the weekend.

The problem for me was that i had not turned on the media streaming setting in Windows 10. 

What model is the DAC? Overall, it's far more likely to be on the internet/Innuos side of things.

This is precisely why I predominantly only use physical media...lp, cd, cassette, mini disc, 8 track, etc...I don't need the hassle of today's technology...jmo

If your TV is at all recent it probably has a digital audio output.  Try that.  Make sure you set the TV to output stereo only.

Please give us a call we used to sell a ton of Innousous products

Fom your post it isn’t clear what your problem is

 

Is the server falling off the network?

 

Is the issue sense or roon related?

 

If you are using Roon are you hooked up directly to the router?

 

Mesh networks or extenders can be problematic

 

Is the issue you can’t get sound out of the dac?

 

We can assist you but need to know these questions

 

Did you ask why your local dealer wouldn’t assist was the reason you did not purchase from them?

 

To rest your dac is easy download a free roon trial if you are not using roon hooke up a laptop to your dac using thesame USB cable and roon sees yourdac that will rules out your dac and and cable

 

Usb cables can be bad

 

NEXT GO TO BEST BUY AND PURCHASE ANY ROONCOMPATIBLE DEVICE AND SEE IF YOU CAN STREAM TO TEST IF YOU CAN STREAM TO IT VIA THE NETWORK

 

DAVE and Troy

AUDIO INTELLECT NJ

FORMER innous dealer

US IMPORTER 432EVO MUSIC SERVERS AND

STREAMING SPECIALISTS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then

 

 

 

 

My Innuos server stops working about once a month.  I unplug it for 10 seconds and let it reboot and so far that has fixed all problems.

@dougthe biker, I wish that would be the case with

me. Thanks.

 

I run Roon with a Pi 4 endpiont and core running on Linux.  The only times I've had a problem is that my DAC's sample rate would stick before I upgraded the DAC firmware.

 

This thread is a great reminder to myself of why I am absolutely not going with a dedicated streamer route.

Bander-hope your problem has been solved.  I didn't mention another obvious thing in my previous post--do you have other sources--a turntable, tuner, etc.--and did you check to see if they work?
 I assume the dealer who said no to bringing in your server is AudioVisions since I believe they are the only Innuous dealer in the Bay area.  I'm not surprised.  I could go on about my experiences with them and wouldn't buy from them under any circumstances  . I bought my Innuous from Dave at Audiotroy and he can be very helpful.  He offered to assist so you should call him.

Thank you one and all for your inputs. I appreciate 

you taking the time. In a day or 2 I'll be putting a dvd/cd

player in line for more diagnostics. I have music 

playing with my tuner. Audio Troy, thank you for your offer!

Innuous remote has been great. They looked at things and couldn't find a problem. I'll check out my router. 

@bander, Routers sometimes do STRANGE things. I suggest you upgrade your Router’s software, if needed, and power it down for 2 minutes and restart it. Please also power down your modem and restart it. I hope the above excellent suggestions help solve your problem.

BTW, my Linksys router dropped packages due to a software glitch and so I replaced it with a LUXUL EPIC 3 AC3100 Wireless Router & Controller.  

 

@bander Hello. Checking to see if you are still in need of a DAC for testing. Like others have suggested, reach out to a member of the San Francisco Audiophile Society, SFAS. I am a member and willing to help out a fellow listener! I reside in SF and have a DAC/PRE/STREAMER unit you may use if still needed.

 

All the best

 

Jerry

Jerry, thank you so much.  I will hopefully solve this 

this frustrating issue with the cd player added in.

You are most generous. 

Update , have you managed to get things working . 

tecknik, yes. The DAC was the culprit. The problem has been 

rectified and it's in transit back to me. It never should have taken so long.