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Post by peterthebutcher on Jun 24, 2024 9:29:17 GMT
As most of the regular forum members know, I have ordered a new PC and it should be here in a weeks time. To save all the troublle of what its for, am going to miss out that bit, as covered it already. What I am asking, as its running windows 11, what is the best way of configuring it to try and give the best playback thru my gear? I read, but forget where, that there is a programme ( that costs), that when run, does all the tweaking itself. As it will be my digital front end for a while, I just need to know what and what not to turn off/disable.
Thanks people
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Post by macca on Jun 24, 2024 10:24:58 GMT
Not something I know anything about as I've always avoided mixing computers with hi-fi as I find their issues can be frustrating. Suspect as with all things audio there's a lot of bollocks talked. You could have a look here - www.thewelltemperedcomputer.com/Intro/SoundQuality.htm - seems to cover a lot of the ground without any nonsense. |
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Post by antonio on Jun 24, 2024 14:32:56 GMT
Is this what you were thinking of Pete, they have a free option (I used this when using a pc for audio only) and an upgrade version. fidelizer-audio.com/ |
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Post by peterthebutcher on Jun 24, 2024 16:15:44 GMT
Is this what you were thinking of Pete, they have a free option (I used this when using a pc for audio only) and an upgrade version. fidelizer-audio.com/I think it is, if not something very similar. Will give it a try once my PC is free, its doing a 5 hour backup of my music library... again, do it every so often, its my portable drive thats backing up, not the NAS which is automatic |
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Post by brucew268 on Jun 24, 2024 16:18:12 GMT
If running Windows, I consider Fidelizer a requirement.
Regardless of OS, setting CPU Frequency is also rather important. For most, that's done in BIOS/EUFI and requires experimentation.
Foobar and JRiver are the two most common candidates for good SQ and least messing with the sound, but they also have best configurations that enthusiasts will point you to. Some recommended software players are actually poor for high fidelity. Some others are good but don't have as much capability. If not streaming, I find JRiver to be the best combination of SQ and usability.
In addition, one may try various sets of windows tweaks that disable unneeded Windows Services but one has to experiment with what works best. Sometimes a tweak actually shuts off a needed service and has to be turned back on. Lot's of experimentation and room for problems when trying to get the best sound out of a PC. |
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Post by brucew268 on Jun 24, 2024 16:28:48 GMT
The rabbit hole goes deep and in many directions. After a few years I got tired of all the faffing and instability to get the SQ I wanted... or settle for SQ I wasn't really happy with. Some prefer Linux-base systems for HiFi but I didn't want to learn Linux and so went with Euphony Stylus which is a player and OS in one. The configuration options are more finite and localised. You can find my recommendations on that here: audioaddictsforum.com/threads/recent/3277
And yet for me the jury is still out on that as a long term solution vs. a made-for-HiFi component.
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Post by antonio on Jun 24, 2024 17:51:32 GMT
Not being a computer whizz kid I went with Musicbee which I thought was better than Foobar. Foobar's later iterations were too complicated for me and eventually I gave up. My reference was with an earlier form of Foobar against Musicbee. PC's were not made with audiophiles in mind, dedicated music players were. Good luck Pete whichever route you take.
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Post by antonio on Jun 24, 2024 18:03:55 GMT
@petethebutcher You will have to Google to find out which things to turn off/disable, I did this, and hoped it was best I could do when using a dedicated pc. I recently sold a Oehlbach XXL Master Clock (USB) that went between pc and dac that was quite successful
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Post by peterthebutcher on Jun 24, 2024 21:22:39 GMT
I use my pc for most of the time(99%) for just basic web browsing FB etc and have music playing at the same time. If I have to disable anything that prevents me doing what am doing now, will have to think about it
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Post by brucew268 on Jun 25, 2024 11:36:55 GMT
Not being a computer whizz kid I went with Musicbee which I thought was better than Foobar. Foobar's later iterations were too complicated for me and eventually I gave up. My reference was with an earlier form of Foobar against Musicbee. PC's were not made with audiophiles in mind, dedicated music players were. Good luck Pete whichever route you take. Yes, Foobar is not known for a user-friendly interface. Fortunately you can try different player software on a trial basis to determine which ones you like in terms of SQ, User Interface, and library management. |
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Post by brucew268 on Jun 25, 2024 11:37:25 GMT
I use my pc for most of the time(99%) for just basic web browsing FB etc and have music playing at the same time. If I have to disable anything that prevents me doing what am doing now, will have to think about it Ah, if it's a multi-use PC not dedicated to audio, stick with Fidelizer and not other configs/tweaks. Maybe CPU frequency limiting if you don't need much computing power for your other tasks? You'll be limited in SQ but necessary for multi-use PC. Do consider a Mutec and external clock if needing further improvement. |
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Post by peterthebutcher on Jun 26, 2024 7:41:35 GMT
I use my pc for most of the time(99%) for just basic web browsing FB etc and have music playing at the same time. If I have to disable anything that prevents me doing what am doing now, will have to think about it Ah, if it's a multi-use PC not dedicated to audio, stick with Fidelizer and not other configs/tweaks. Maybe CPU frequency limiting if you don't need much computing power for your other tasks? You'll be limited in SQ but necessary for multi-use PC. Do consider a Mutec and external clock if needing further improvement. I will have a tad more in depth look at that. A brief chat with a forum member via PM did suggest that, so will look into it. Failing all that, will look at what other bit of gear I can get in the future, so watch this space for more questions |
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Post by firebottle on Jun 30, 2024 7:16:40 GMT
Hi Pete I have an Oelbach XXL Master Clock doing nothing in a cupboard, you are welcome to try it with your setup.
If it provides a benefit you can keep it.
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