Modius/Magnius/Lokius issue….did I blow up the Modius by adding the Lokius?

[dufferdan]

Copying from emails to Schiit for assistance….

Lokius arrived Wednesday, tried inserting into Modius/Magnius stack

And zero volume from the system.

The Modius/Magnius worked perfectly for the month I have had it. I inserted the Lokius and no sound whatsoever. No signal, no noise nothing. Selected the USB Codec OUT on the Mac for the sound output.

Setup:

USB out to USB in on the Modius (no USB power hooked up though)
Balanced out to Balanced in on the Lokius
Balanced out from Lokius to Balanced In on the Magnius.

The correct toggles for input on the Modius and the Magnius were selected

No sound.

I then went back to the original setup, Modius Balanced output to the Magnius amp. No sound at all here either. I used balanced headphones and Unbalanced. Neither had any noise whatsoever.

The reply was to check the output selector on the application playing music, I was using Apple Music, which I replied with.

Today, more testing: what I sent to Schiit…

A little more info and testing results:

1. Using a late 2015 iMac, 40GB RAM, Apple Music app streaming
2. USB out direct to Modius. I reconnected directly to the Magnius HP Amp which has been working since I received it as a very nice combo.
3.a. Balanced output to Modius, no sound whatsoever, (i triple checked inputs, etc) with balanced headphone out
3.b. Unbalanced HP out, no sound
4. A hooked Magnius up to Modius via RCA unbalanced output. Balanced HP connection, no sound
4 b. UNbalanced HP out, no sound either.

5. Optical digital out to Schiit Bifrost 1 DAC, RCA from Bifrost to Valhalla 2 HP amp : Good volume, works fully as expected.

6. Repeated all above using VLC as the audio player. Streaming ripped CDs from external hard drive in lossless ALAC. There is no alternative in VLC to control the audio output on my Mac, it is all done in the MAcs sound preferences. I specified Optical Digital out to the Bifrost, works as expected. No sound from either balanced connections/balanced HP out, OR thru unbalanced connections with the Magnius/Modius combo. .

the last tests I need to run is the Lokius fed from the Bifrost (unbalanced as it is a Bifrost 1) to the Valhalla, but note , the Modius DAC stopped working then the Lokius was introduced into the chain. I may or may not get to this tonight as it requires re-jiggging a lot of wires and plugs, but it seems to me like the Magnius DAC is Dead.

Or, something is missing.

In the MACs Audio out in Sound Preferences, with the Modius connected, would it show up as USB Audio CODEC or as Modius? I am choosing USB Audio CODEC, noting in my Audio Out shows a Modius selection. In this case, it may be the USB connection. Mine is direct from the computer to the Modius.

Thanks for any direction you may have. Also, I note that the DAC I was sent is the Modius E version, which I assume means the ESS chips, not the AKK 44xx ones?

So I am awaiting reply, however in the meantime, any input from ASR readers or testers would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[sam_adams]

USB out to USB in on the Modius (no USB power hooked up though)

Of course you have the USB output from the Mac connected to the correct USB input on the back of the DAC?:

 

[watchnerd]

The Lokius shoudn't have anything to do with the interface between Mac and Modius.

In fact, the Mac won't even see the Lokius or know it's there.

 

[dufferdan]

Yep. Got the correct USB.

And yes, the Mac cares not a whit about the Lokius. It was the introduction of the Lokius that resulted in no audio from the Magnius/Modius combo.

Or I failed to notice a change in the audio output description. But testing should have found that pretty quickly.

 

[watchnerd]

Yep. Got the correct USB.

And yes, the Mac cares not a whit about the Lokius. It was the introduction of the Lokius that resulted in no audio from the Magnius/Modius combo.

Or I failed to notice a change in the audio output description. But testing should have found that pretty quickly.

And if you take the Lokius out, sound comes back?

 

[dufferdan]

And if you take the Lokius out, sound comes back?

No, no sound at all. Which is why I tested the Modius/Magnius original setup. Sound is dead there too, post Lokius insertion.

 

[sam_adams]

Yep. Got the correct USB.

And yes, the Mac cares not a whit about the Lokius. It was the introduction of the Lokius that resulted in no audio from the Magnius/Modius combo.

Or I failed to notice a change in the audio output description. But testing should have found that pretty quickly.

If you check the connection in AudioMIDI Setup.app the Modius is selected as the sound output device with a correct sample rate and bit depth?

 

[dufferdan]

If you check the connection in AudioMIDI Setup.app the Modius is selected as the sound output device with a correct sample rate and bit depth?

Where do I look for that?

 

[watchnerd]

No, no sound at all. Which is why I tested the Modius/Magnius original setup. Sound is dead there too, post Lokius insertion.

No pop sounds or smoke?

Mysterious

 

[sam_adams]

Where do I look for that?

/Applications/Utilities/Audio MIDI Setup.app. When you start it up with the Modius connected and it is verified power on, the Modius should show the little speaker icon next to it indicating that it is the audio output device. Take a screenshot and post it.

 

[dufferdan]

Nada

 

[watchnerd]

Nada

Well if it doesn't show up, that means the Mac doesn't see the DAC as connected.

 

[JSmith]

USB out to USB in on the Modius (no USB power hooked up though)

Have you tried USB power also connected as well as data/power only?

Were you using balanced out before from Modius?

If you weren't and now are, maybe the Modius needs it's own power.


JSmith

 

[dufferdan]

I only have ever had balanced out from Modius. I have not connected USB power in addition to the data/power USB. I want some guidance from Schiit before doing this as the instruction book language is confusing…USB for data AND NOT using optical, etc…BUT if using optical in AND not using USB, then connect power USB….

WHAT IF using digital USB in AND optical digital in, do I add the additional USB, or does the data USB in supply enough power…Not clear there….except all power comes from USB, which is in alignment, but omits if you want to switch from USB digital to Optical…

 

[sam_adams]

I only have ever had balanced out from Modius. I have not connected USB power in addition to the data/power USB. I want some guidance from Schiit before doing this as the instruction book language is confusing…USB for data AND NOT using optical, etc…BUT if using optical in AND not using USB, then connect power USB….

WHAT IF using digital USB in AND optical digital in, do I add the additional USB, or does the data USB in supply enough power…Not clear there….except all power comes from USB, which is in alignment, but omits if you want to switch from USB digital to Optical…

Have you tried to power the Modius from the supplied adapter while using only the optical out from the Mac to the optical in on the Modius?

 

[JSmith]

I have not connected USB power in addition to the data/power USB. I want some guidance from Schiit before doing this as the instruction book language is confusing…

Well I know it says this;

OPERATION If you’re using Modius E as a USB only DAC, you don’t need to connect the Power Input. Just connect it to your computer with the supplied USB-C cable and you’re set. If you’re using the other digital inputs, and you’re NOT using USB, you need Power Input. Connect the supplied USB wall-wart with the supplied USB-C cable to provide power for the other inputs. Modius E won’t work without power, and power comes from USB.

... but it also says this;

TROUBLESHOOTING “Draws too much power” error. You’ll need to use additional power. Disconnect Modius E from your source, then connect the wall-wart to the Power Input using the USB-C cable. The Modius E will then report as a 0mA USB device. You’ll need another cable to connect to your source. No sound? Make sure Modius E is selected in Control Panel (Windows) or System Prefs (Mac) AND in your player software. Note: Modius E does not have drivers for non-UAC2 compliant systems (Windows versions prior to 10).

Is the Modius displaying such a message, or not powering up at all?


JSmith

 

[Deleted]

This may sound dumb, but have you restarted the Mac? I’ve had Mac’s kill a USB port when I’ve bumped a wire and not turn it back on until the computer was rebooted. Could be something simple.

I have this stack currently with a non-e modius and it shows its name in says pref. USB Codec out seems odd. Did it always say this?

 

[dufferdan]

@SamAdams: that was a next test to be done. Connect via optical out. Not done yet. ( somewhat defeats why I got the Modius as I wanted the USB connection. )

No messages of drawing too much power. The Modius power light always shows on

The Max has been rebooted a bazillion times during the testing process.

Thanks guys. Will be looking again tonight.

 

[dufferdan]

Well if it doesn't show up, that means the Mac doesn't see the DAC as connected.

Sorry. The nada was referring to the pops and smoke comment!

Will check the midi setup tonight. Appreciate the guidance there!

 

[mhardy6647]

For troubleshooting, start as simple as possible.
Were it me... I'd try an analog source (e.g., the analog output of a CD player or any line-level audio component, for that matter).
Heck, if I could control gain (I have NO IDEA about all these components), I'd connect an "unbalanced" (RCA) cable to an analog input on... whatever... leave the other end open-circuited, and touch the center conductor on the free end of the cable. That should result in a nice, audible buzzzzzzzzzz from the loudspeaker connected to that channel if signal's being passed through the chain.

This isn't a great idea to do via the unattenuated analog input of a power amp, though.