XP, kernel streaming and Engine4

[Spardeck]

Hi everybody,

I’m new to this forum and also a newbie with XXHE I discovered only recently.

Until now, my digital audio source consist of a Dell laptop [Intel Core 2 Duo T9400 2.5Ghz + 3Mb DDR2 memory + XP SP3] linked through an USB/SPDIF adapter [AR-T Legato] to a conventional 16/44.1 DAC [a Wadia 12 that should shortly be tweaked to better match the 0.4p/S rms jitter of the Legato].

My music is stored on a NAS [Synology DS411Slim acting as a DLNA server], sent to the PC without any compression via a WiFi N transmitter [Airport Extreme], read from memory by an ASIO player [JRiver Media Player 17 acting as a DLNA renderer].

All that works quite satisfactorily and with an optimal SQ but, from the moment on I discovered it COULD work better yet with XXHE - thanks to its ability to use the XP kernel streaming which is presumably superior to ASIO, WASAPI and Core Audio in MacOS- I eagerly awaited to explore this new opportunity.

I downloaded, dezipped and “installed” the last version [0.9z-6-1] with Engine4 in accordance with your Installation guide for Dummies but my first attempts to run the player unfortunately failed: the Legato is not recognized by XXHE as a KS: device (while it works with the kernel streaming output on JRMC – albeit with a poor and clinking sound).

So my question is: is there a workaround tip to fix this problem or maybe something I could have missed in the XXHE settings?

Best regards,
Spardeck

[PeterSt]

Hi there !

Ok, I am not sure what happens in your situation. Can you :

1. Switch on logging at the bottom of the Settings Area;
2. Quit XXHighEnd;
3. Start it again;
4. Grab the newest X3PB log file from the TemporaryData subfolder under your XX folder and post that as an attachment here.

Hopefully I can see something in there.

Thanks !
Peter

[Spardeck]

Hi Peter,

Thanks for your reply. Please find attached the logfile you asked for and screen captures of three error windows displayed when trying to start a playback.

From what I experienced, I understand that the AR-T Legato is not recognized as a KS device by XXHE (nor is the Musical Fidelity V-Link I use on my desktop) and it can't be unless it gets the extra help of a legacy driver. Right?

If ever a dedicated driver is mandatory for each device to get the most out of kernel streaming and #4Engine on XP, I'm afraid XXHE may prove to be useless for a greater part of XP users!

Later...
Gérard

[PeterSt]

Hi Gérard,

Thanks for the screen shots and the log file. However, the log file you posted is the XX log file, and I need the X3PB log file. So, can you post that one ? (see my before post about the procedure to follow).

Btw, this is nothing about dedicated drivers or something. Something just does not work.

Edit :
No ! I just checked because I didn't trust it, and no X3PB log file is there without playing. Now, you tried to play I think (looking at the errors on your screen shots) and maybe an X3PB log file comes from there, depending on the situation.
When not, I'm not sure what to do. So let me know first.

Regards,
Peter

PS: Maybe you can play via the motherboard's sound device ? If so, that's the trick to get the X3PB log file there ...

[PeterSt]

Btw, in that log file you will be looking for something like you see in the attachment. In my case this is about the Phasure NOS1 and it "succeeds". In your case anything could be there, up to your device not showing anywhere at all.
You could try the same for the V-Link.

Also, in your XX folder a file XXDevices.dat is maintained at each time XXHighEnd is started or when you drop down the "Device" list in Settings. But I'm afraid it will show the same as the list you receive, and I guess the file will remain empty in your case.

Peter

[Spardeck]

Hi Peter,

Hard to get an X3PB file in the TemporaryData folder despite several attempts to playback files on my desktop! I eventually succeeded (please find it below, along with a copy of thhe XXKSDevice.dat file) but I'm not sure if it can help.

When I set the output device up to KS: Realtek HD Audio output >> rearlineoutwave3 (default motherboard audio), I get a sound. Clean but still lacking that “weight and texture” I usually get with the asynch USB V-Link and JR Media Center.

If I try to swap the output device to Musical Fidelity V-Link, I get no sound at all which seems logical since this thing is not listed as a KS device and then can’t work with #4Engine. A message reminds me that “For XP, only kernel streaming (KS:) devices are allowed”.

Here we are sent back to my former question: is there a mean XXHE can be compelled to look upon the V-Link or the Legato as kernel streaming devices? Finally, it’s what I’m aiming at.

Best regards,
Gérard

[PeterSt]

Aha ...

I had a much longer story here, but I think it comes down to this :

Your Périphérique will be in the data of some registry keys  while at least one of those entries will be in a key which lists like this : Peripherique
and this does not match. So, your device is found all right, but it is not consistent in the registry (those é's may not be allowed as registry keys - not sure).
You may try to look in the .inf files of the drivers, whether there the Périphérique exists, and if so, change it into normal e's, uninstall the driver and reinstall it.
If you want to go that far of course.

What I do not understand is why you didn't tell that your KS: entry just shows in the XXHighEnd "Device" dropdown. I mean, isn't it ? your XXKSDevices file shows that it should ...

Concluded : at least your Périphérique device (whether that's the Legato or the V-link) are able to do KS via XXHighEnd in XP. But it needs some changes somewhere.

This comes from your X3PB log file :

\\?\usb#vid_4d46&pid_0001&mi_00#6&12dd4a84&0&0000#{6994ad04-93ef-11d0-a3cc-00a0c9223196}\global

Copy that and past it into Search of Regedit. You will find it in a few places. This is the actual driver data.
As I expect, you will find Périphérique in the data somewhere. Now look in which keys it sits. Never mind completely different keys, but look for the Peripherique (but what I mean is : try to prove that both with é and e exist).
Let me know whether you find this. If so, at least I know what's going on, and I may even be able to solve it from here ...
(and might you want to try, you can change the data, but you can't change those keys - so better don't bother to go that route).

Best regards,
Peter


PS: The problem may also be that something which is officially denoted as "global", is now written in French as Périphérique. I mean, those words have the same meaning, right ? So that can be the problem just as well ...


PPS: I attached my own XXKSDevices file for your reference; both mine and yours are "comparable" and show that all actually is right.

[Spardeck]

What I do not understand is why you didn't tell that your KS: entry just shows in the XXHighEnd "Device" dropdown. I mean, isn't it ? your XXKSDevices file shows that it should ...

Apologies. I didn't notice it first. It shows: KS : P•riph•rique audio USB >> #global (with debased characters). But when I select it, I get the message: "Allocate streaming audio device: Selected device not suitable for kernel streaming".

So, I made the search on the driver data in the registry. Here are the five keys under which the driver is listed:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\J. River\Media Center 17\Plugins\Output\MJ Output

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\DeviceClasses\{6994AD04-93EF-11D0-A3CC-00A0C9223196}\##?#USB#VID_4D46&PID_0001&MI_00#6&12DD4A84&0&0000#{6994ad04-93ef-11d0-a3cc-00a0c9223196}\#GLOBAL

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet003\Control\DeviceClasses\{6994AD04-93EF-11D0-A3CC-00A0C9223196}\##?#USB#VID_4D46&PID_0001&MI_00#6&12DD4A84&0&0000#{6994ad04-93ef-11d0-a3cc-00a0c9223196}\#GLOBAL

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\DeviceClasses\{6994AD04-93EF-11D0-A3CC-00A0C9223196}\##?#USB#VID_4D46&PID_0001&MI_00#6&12DD4A84&0&0000#{6994ad04-93ef-11d0-a3cc-00a0c9223196}\#GLOBAL

HKEY_USERS\S-1-5-21-329068152-583907252-682003330-1003\Software\J. River\Media Center 17\Plugins\Output\MJ Output

[Up to my knowledge, “Global” refers to caching memory. The driver is otherwise listed in JR Media Center: since XXHE isn't "installed", I understand it couldn't be attached to your SW.]

About the several written forms of the word "périphérique", I didn't find in the Registry any of them without accents. So...

Last, on my laptop, the problem seems to be slightly different. I still hear no sound and get the message: “Fail! #4Engine didn’t start within the departed time”.

Best,
Gérard

[PeterSt]

Ok, thanks for your help.

The device must be somewhere, because I find it. 
What about searching for "rique" ?

What does the Windows device list show ?

Peter


PS: I sure hope you can hold on, because I'm eager to solve this !

PPS: This isn't much related to "installed software"; this knows nothing about devices. The "plugin" thing is a little different, but we are not using that here.

[Spardeck]

Ok, thanks for your help.

You're kidding. I'm much more indebted to you than the opposite! Thanks for spending so much time to try and solve this boring issue . I'm as eager as you to sort it out.

The device must be somewhere, because I find it. What about searching for "rique" ?

I tried almost anything a human being can do . I didn't find any peripherique (without accents) in the Registry nor in the Device Manager but a lot of périphériques (with accents) which proves the Registry knows how to deal with the french keyboard.

Maybe should we reverse the viewpoint. Is XXHE -that is written in english and can't therefore cope with accents- able to recognize a device listed in french? As I suppose you don't plan to translate it right now  and we have no means to rename the devices in english since this is an OS dependant operation, what can we do?

Gérard

[PeterSt]

Must think Gérard. But to me it seems odd that both Global and Périphérique is in there. This can't be my fault. So, if that Global *also* would have been Périphérique the match would have been there. So, I find one Registry entry, and try to find that other ...

[PeterSt]

Hi Gérard,

I was thinking "how can I be in that circle of not being able to find what to do". But then I recalled this one :

Apologies. I didn't notice it first. It shows: KS : P•riph•rique audio USB >> #global (with debased characters). But when I select it, I get the message: "Allocate streaming audio device: Selected device not suitable for kernel streaming".

It seemed a sort of "teach you a lesson" remark when I asked for it, but I now realize that I will never be able to find something (in the log file) when you attempt that *other* device like I suggested earlier (the MoBo device). But, being more fresh today, I now realize that the device *is* found (XXKSDevices.dat) and that you now just need to select that device, play (get the error) and grab that X3PB log file !

So, in there it will then show what it is looking for. With é, without, with ? or whatever, but it should show it. And *then* I will be able to see how to proceed.

But yes, it must be something about those diacritical marks (like I suggested in one of the earlier posts). So, nothing about how "Global" translates to Périphérique (which latter would merely be "devices" I think) but just those accents. A bit similar to what XXHighEnd shows and where it can't show the accents.
So, we will get there, although it may need some testing at your side when I come up with a solution (because I can't test it here). If you want, this could be right today ...

Well, curiously waiting for the log file ...
Peter

[PeterSt]

Just for others with similar interest or problems :

We got this all working. Part of the problem were diacritical marks in the Registry (like é) which were not dealt with properly by XXHighEnd. This is solved for (due) 0.9z-7, but for anyone with the problem at this moment it can be solved with a small Registry change as well.

Again I want to say thanks to Gérard who really held on and put all the effort in it which was necessary, which a normal human being does not because he rather gives up on a stupid player showing errors - and which is why such things never get solved (if I get to know them in the first place).


Peter