Computer Audio Asylum

Music servers and other computer based digital audio technologies.

Return to Computer Audio Asylum

Message Sort: Post Order or Asylum Reverse Threaded

Apple OS 10.6.8 and Metrum Hex Incompatibility

108.223.71.78
Posted on November 20, 2014 at 04:05:30
humancomputervirus
Audiophile

Posts: 24
Location: so cal
Joined: April 27, 2005
 Hello all, need help. I am trying to get started in computer based audio. I just installed an M2tech USB interface into a Metrum Hex. According to Cees at Metrum, the Apple doesn't need a driver unless it is OS 10.9 or newer (Maverick or Yosemite). It should be plug-n-play, but mine is pluggin and not playin. Anyone have any ideas? My laptop is an early 2008 Macbook with OS 10.6.8 that Apple says will not run an OS beyond 10.8. My new Dell laptop works /interfaces just fine. I wanted to try one of the various Amarra/Audirvana/Puremusic players and use my old Mac as the platform/server. Thanks in advance.

 

Hide full thread outline!
    ...
RE: Apple OS 10.6.8 and Metrum Hex Incompatibility, posted on November 20, 2014 at 09:28:31
AbeCollins
Audiophile

Posts: 46302
Location: USA
Joined: June 22, 2001
Contributor
  Since: February 2, 2002
 Is it a MacBook or MacBook Pro? I have a 2007 MacBook Pro that runs Yosemite just fine.... just FYI.

Can you see the Metrum DAC in Audio MIDI Setup or in Preferences > Sound ? If yes, then make sure these are set for audio output from the DAC. If not, I'm not sure what to tell you.

All of my DACs have worked fine on my Macs, only one needing a driver from the manufacturer. This is from Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.6 to now with Yosemite 10.10. Good luck.



 

RE: Apple OS 10.6.8 and Metrum Hex Incompatibility, posted on November 20, 2014 at 12:13:47
humancomputervirus
Audiophile

Posts: 24
Location: so cal
Joined: April 27, 2005
 Success!!! Thanks a ton. All the instructions, from Hi-Fi Heaven to M2tech to Cees at Metrum left out that step. They all responded very rapidly and were very helpful. Next question - which Mac based music player is preferred to interface with itunes and has remote capability and sounds best? I'm leaning toward Puremusic then Audirvana.
Thanks!!

 

RE: Apple OS 10.6.8 and Metrum Hex Incompatibility, posted on November 20, 2014 at 13:19:53
AbeCollins
Audiophile

Posts: 46302
Location: USA
Joined: June 22, 2001
Contributor
  Since: February 2, 2002
 Both Pure Music and Audirvana work great.

However, many people do not like the new Audirvana that includes music Library management. I have an older version and use it in conjunction with iTunes. If you use the new Audirvana you'll have to be careful to set it up such that you still use iTunes. I believe it can be set up this way. I've read too many problem with Audirvana's new Library management feature and if you implement it, it might be a pain going back. Others will have to provide more detail in this regard. Like I said, I'm using the older version 1.5.x of Audirvana.

Pure Music sounds great too and you can use it with iTunes so iTunes remains your main interface and Library manager.




 

RE: Apple OS 10.6.8 and Metrum Hex Incompatibility, posted on November 20, 2014 at 17:52:17
mitch2
Audiophile

Posts: 1521
Location: Great Lakes
Joined: August 28, 2001
 I like Pure Music with the Hex DAC. When I tried the top three players about a year ago, Pure Music sounded more musical and analogue-like to me. I have been recently playing around with the Apple AU Parametric EQ which is accessible as a plug-in with the Pure Music program. It has been fun to research how certain frequencies affect certain sounds and how to best apply EQ, both for correcting speaker/room interactions and for minor adjustments to achieve sonic preferences. Pure Music allows the use of other EQ and room correction plug-ins also.

 

RE: Apple OS 10.6.8 and Metrum Hex Incompatibility, posted on November 20, 2014 at 21:59:47
AbeCollins
Audiophile

Posts: 46302
Location: USA
Joined: June 22, 2001
Contributor
  Since: February 2, 2002
 I haven't played with Pure Music in over a year and have never tried it with the Apple AU Parametric EQ plug-in. Where do you get and how do you access the plug-in? Thanks.



 

RE: Apple OS 10.6.8 and Metrum Hex Incompatibility, posted on November 20, 2014 at 23:41:38
humancomputervirus
Audiophile

Posts: 24
Location: so cal
Joined: April 27, 2005
 Thanks for all the help! I got up and going today and tried both free trials of Pure Music and Audirvana. The PM sounded more neutral and a bit "bright" but revealing yet non-fatiguing. However, the GUI was a bit cumbersome and I had to restart it multiple times. The Audirvana sounded more full bodied, a bit "warmer", and perhaps a bit rolled off, but the GUI was simpler and easier to use, less vexing. I preferred the initial sound of the Audirvana, but I like both for different reasons. With time and experimentation, the PM seems infinitely more tweakable. The Amarra is too $$$. In the end, I might buy both, but for now, 1 day down, 14 to go!! My only regret is that I feel like I now have a ton of obsolete gear, media. and unopened vinyl. Is there a worthwhile streaming service out yet? Tidal seems to need some time to get the bugs out and the titles in. Otherwise, I'm super stoked about the results with using a 7 year old, almost obsolete computer.

 

RE: Apple OS 10.6.8 and Metrum Hex Incompatibility, posted on November 21, 2014 at 08:11:49
AbeCollins
Audiophile

Posts: 46302
Location: USA
Joined: June 22, 2001
Contributor
  Since: February 2, 2002
 I pretty much agree with you about Audirvana Plus vs Pure Music. They sound sound good, but a little different.

I didn't like the Pure Music GUI which in the past 'wrapped' itself around iTunes on the screen. That may have changed. Additionally, unless you need all the features in PM I found there were too many window panes for various settings and the whole thing was a bit cluttered and not well thought out. Just my opinion here.

I felt that Audirvana's settings were more streamlined and better organized and I like how their player can hide behind iTunes on screen so I don't have to see it. I have not tried the latest Audirvana Plus with it's Library management feature.

Once you're ready to 'rip' your CDs be sure to set iTunes for AIFF, WAV, or Apple Lossless (ALAC) with error correction..... if you choose to use iTunes to rip your CDs. AIFF is uncompressed like WAV. Apple Lossless compression provides about a 50% savings in disk space with no loss in audio quality. It is very similar to FLAC. Keep in mind that iTunes does not directly support FLAC so if that's a format you'll want long term, you might look into other players like JRiver Media Center for Mac.

Some folks also prefer XLD for 'ripping' their CDs instead of iTunes.

iTunes Preferences > General Tab > Import Settings

You can also digitize your vinyl using a AD converter like the PS Audio NuWave Phono Converter which is a phono preamp / AD converter combo, or something less expensive like the HRT Linestreamer that works with your existing phono preamp. You'll also need software. I used Audacity which is free. However, there are specialized software packages that make the process a bit easier.

As for streaming services, I've played with Pandora, iTunes Radio, Rhapsody, Amazon Prime Music, and Spotify. For use at home I like Spotify best. Amazon Prime Music and Pandora integrates very well with my car navigation / infotainment system. I havent' played with TIDAL yet. Spotify sounds pretty good but it's still a relatively low bit-rate service compared to listening to my own CDs or CDs 'ripped' to my music server.



 

RE: Apple OS 10.6.8 and Metrum Hex Incompatibility, posted on November 21, 2014 at 10:47:04
mitch2
Audiophile

Posts: 1521
Location: Great Lakes
Joined: August 28, 2001
 The Apple stuff should already be loaded. The AU Parametric EQ and other plug-in options are accessible by going to "audio set-up" within Pure Music. I don't have it in front of me but I believe there are two choices within "audio set-up" with the second choice being "plug-ins."

When you open plug-ins, you will see 14 rows of plug-in options which each row allowing an independent plug-in from one of many preloaded options (including AU Parametric EQ), or other options that you can download from outside of Pure Music. In my case, I have simply determined which frequencies I wanted to adjust and used a separate plug-in for each of those frequencies. Your settings, per each EQ plug-in, consists of frequency (the centerpoint of the correction), Q (the breadth of the correction with 1 being broadest to 20 being narrowest) and dB of cut or gain.

If a person wanted to use this EQ option for room correction, they could take and plot frequency response measurements from their listening location, select and apply EQ adjustments, take additional measurements, and then repeat and modify until the result is a flat response. It can also be used to adjust the sound to meet personal preferences, or for low frequency corrections in the event of boomy bass or incorporate a high quality subwoofer.

 

If I may add my 2 cents..., posted on November 21, 2014 at 11:56:21
DAVID
Audiophile

Posts: 763
Joined: September 26, 1999
 ...I use the previous version of Audirvana and do find it more listenable than PM. I also recently tried the newest Audirvana /w Library feature. I really didn't have any problems w/ the Library although it's not as good as iTunes. The new Audirvana is less warm, perhaps more neutral. One thing to keep in mind is that if you do try the new Audirvana make sure you keep both the old install file AND your license as you will not be able to re-install your old version of Audirvana should you decide to stick w/ that version.

 

RE: Apple OS 10.6.8 and Metrum Hex Incompatibility, posted on November 21, 2014 at 14:08:05
AbeCollins
Audiophile

Posts: 46302
Location: USA
Joined: June 22, 2001
Contributor
  Since: February 2, 2002
 That's great information. I've heard of Pure Music being able to use these plug-ins but never bothered to dig deeper. I may have to fire up PM again. I had some bass issues in my small room that have been somewhat resolved with speaker placement but it's still not quite right. I like it at low to modest volume levels at night but at louder listening levels the bass is a little too strong.

 

RE: Apple OS 10.6.8 and Metrum Hex Incompatibility, posted on November 21, 2014 at 22:30:44
mitch2
Audiophile

Posts: 1521
Location: Great Lakes
Joined: August 28, 2001
 Abe, you may be further along in knowledge than I was, but the linked chart and other informational sites were helpful to me.

 

RE: If I may add my 2 cents..., posted on November 21, 2014 at 23:22:14
AbeCollins
Audiophile

Posts: 46302
Location: USA
Joined: June 22, 2001
Contributor
  Since: February 2, 2002
 That's good info, thanks.

A couple quick questions for you.... When you tried the Audirvana library management feature, did it in anyway mangle or alter the library as laid out by iTunes? When you decided Audirvana library management wasn't for you, were you able to revert back to iTunes w/o any issues?


 

RE: Apple OS 10.6.8 and Metrum Hex Incompatibility, posted on November 22, 2014 at 09:07:38
mitch2
Audiophile

Posts: 1521
Location: Great Lakes
Joined: August 28, 2001
 "The PM sounded more neutral and a bit "bright" but revealing yet non-fatiguing........The Audirvana sounded more full bodied, a bit warmer, and perhaps a bit rolled off"

I had the opposite experience and impression between Audirvana and Pure Music, which I found to sound more full-bodied than Audirvana during my trials a year ago. I will be downloading the newest version of PM soon, and was encouraged to find out the download is free for me. I may need to give Audirvava another try.

 

another thought about Pure Music, posted on November 22, 2014 at 09:09:48
mitch2
Audiophile

Posts: 1521
Location: Great Lakes
Joined: August 28, 2001
 In my system, Pure Music sounds best in Memory mode, with upsampling by a factor of two, and through their "Less is More" feature. The handshake with iTunes works here with not problems and is easy to use.

 

It did not mess w/..., posted on November 22, 2014 at 22:20:57
DAVID
Audiophile

Posts: 763
Joined: September 26, 1999
 ...the iTunes library at all. Once I got rid of it iTunes worked just as before, no changes. I don't think Audirvana creates it's own library. It's library file was small, way too small to hold all the music that's in my iTunes music file. W/ the Audirvana Library you can choose how you want it to be catagorized ie song title (playing it this way is the way to listen to your music in random style), artist etc. None of this affected iTunes. Hope that's the info you looking for.

 

RE: It did not mess w/..., posted on November 22, 2014 at 22:45:52
AbeCollins
Audiophile

Posts: 46302
Location: USA
Joined: June 22, 2001
Contributor
  Since: February 2, 2002
 Yes, thank you. I loaded the latest Audirvana 2.x today but left it in Legacy mode. I played with some settings including the equalizer plug-in.



 

Page processed in 0.023 seconds.

[ Top Top of Page ] [ Contact Us ] [ Support/Wish List ] [ Copyright © 2024, Audio Asylum, all rights reserved ]
[ General ] [ Speakers ] [ Tubes ] [ Vinyl ] [ Digital ] [ Hi-Rez ] [ Video Asylum ] [ Cables ] [ Tweaks/DIY ] [ Music ] [ Films ]