Gustard X16 Balanced MQA DAC Review

[Roland68]

Good morning.
a topic unearthed on gustard x16.
I had the opportunity to buy an x16.
and obviously when listening to DSD, there are crackles when changing tracks. I sent a message to Gustard, the response "there is no firmware to correct the problem". the firmware on my x16 20210908 ML.P8A.
Would an AES/EBU connection solve the problem?
It is connected with an SMS DP3 via USB.
thank you to you
View attachment 498784

You could test the Toslink connection to see if the galvanic connection solves the problem.

 

[Rewind]

Good morning.
a topic unearthed on gustard x16.
I had the opportunity to buy an x16.
and obviously when listening to DSD, there are crackles when changing tracks. I sent a message to Gustard, the response "there is no firmware to correct the problem". the firmware on my x16 20210908 ML.P8A.
Would an AES/EBU connection solve the problem?
It is connected with an SMS DP3 via USB.
thank you to you
View attachment 498784

Just use Roon. It solved my crackle and pops between songs with the X16.

 

[fred21]

You could test the Toslink connection to see if the galvanic connection solves the problem.

I just tested, the songs are recognized in PCM and not in DSD.

 

[fred21]

Just use Roon. It solved my crackle and pops between songs with the X16.

I'm on Linux Mint

 

[Rewind]

I'm on Linux Mint

Take it up with Mr Torvalds.

 

[k525]

Good morning.
a topic unearthed on gustard x16.
I had the opportunity to buy an x16.
and obviously when listening to DSD, there are crackles when changing tracks. I sent a message to Gustard, the response "there is no firmware to correct the problem". the firmware on my x16 20210908 ML.P8A.
Would an AES/EBU connection solve the problem?
It is connected with an SMS DP3 via USB.
thank you to you

Hi

If you manage to buy the DAC at a good price, you’ll be getting a great deal.
I personally performed the firmware update; the procedure is not that complex and in the end it gives great satisfaction!

Once the update is completed, the Gustard remains a truly excellent DAC. If you read the review you can find on this forum, you’ll see that its performance is still at the top level — it’s a DAC that ranks in the top ten.

Here is a post where I explain how to perform the update on a Mac:
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...x16-balanced-mqa-dac-review.17419/post-842936

Keep in mind that, if I remember correctly, the issue was constant during DSD playback, not when switching from one track to another, so make sure to carefully check whether your software version really requires an update.

Best regards

 

[fred21]

Salut

Si vous parvenez à acheter le DAC à un bon prix, vous ferez une excellente affaire.
J'ai personnellement effectué la mise à jour du firmware ; la procédure n'est pas si complexe et, au final, elle est très satisfaisante !

Une fois la mise à jour effectuée, le Gustard demeure un DAC d'une qualité exceptionnelle. Si vous consultez le test disponible sur ce forum, vous constaterez que ses performances restent optimales : il figure parmi les dix meilleurs DAC.

Voici un article où j'explique comment effectuer la mise à jour sur un Mac :
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...x16-balanced-mqa-dac-review.17419/post-842936

N'oubliez pas que, si je me souviens bien, le problème était constant lors de la lecture DSD, et non lors du passage d'une piste à l'autre. Vérifiez donc attentivement si votre version logicielle nécessite réellement une mise à jour.

Cordialement

Thank you all for your help.

I bought it used for €250.
The firmware version is 20210908 ML.P8A
So I think it's one of the latter.
The sound is fantastic, before the x16 I had an SMSL SU-1 and still have a Khadas tone card.
I don't use DSD much, but I appreciate it when a product works without bugs.
I ordered an AES/EBU cable.
This could be from DP3. Bought used for €35 (power problem resolved).
I continue my tests

Take it up with Mr Torvalds.

thank

 

[fred21]

I found, on the DP3 SMSL, I had set DSD output to native, replaced by DoP. everything works.thanks

 

[kevin1969]

I just tested, the songs are recognized in PCM and not in DSD.

I had a similar problem with the X-16. When Tidal was going through its migration from MQA to FLAC the X16 would frequently become hung up and I would have to cycle through all the inputs in order to get it to recover. It only happened with Tidal so I got rid of it for an SU-10.

 

[ThorSonic]

My XMOS USB chip is sending the default 44.1 message to the display and not playing. I've tried all the reset processes and none have worked. The other inputs work fine, so I'm convinced that somehow the firmware got corrupted or the XMOS chip is dead. Before I get the tools to check if the XMOS is dead, I'd like to use the tools I have to update the firmware and see if that triggers the XMOS to come back online.

Long story short, does anyone have the firmware for the X-16? I've searched high and low, and I can't find it. I'm hoping one of you might have downloaded it and could share it with me.

Thanks!