[iFi audio]

Any Streaming service will have dropouts and Hiccups on occasion, in all honesty, Spotify is probably about the best for me as far as no issues, and I use that mostly in situations where I am not overly concerned about SQ (for obvious reasons)

It's part of the deal, and I don't think I have ever heard of any streamer that gives 24/7 constant performance, with no issue, they all have their quirks and hiccups.

As @FooFighter said it part of the appeal of something like Roon (yes they have issues at times) but I can assure you that even those that don't like the added cost of Roon still pay for it because of its stability and reliability.

So until we get a Qobuz Connect feature to compare to Roon I will be sticking with it.

Cheers!!

 

[hiplytragic]

Thanks for the suggestions. I’ve downloaded mconnect and giving it a try.

What sucks here is that there’s no real way for the end consumer to determine where the issue resides as the many posts the search link you gave demonstrates.

I don’t understand the suggestion then to have that consumer try to take it up with Tidal. I’ve done that in past to no avail.

Given this is part of the Zen Stream’s value proposition and negatively impacts the CX of ifi’s (and other manufacturers) customers, I would think ifi has a vested interest in resolving these directly with Tidal.

On my side I’ve not any real leverage with Tidal.

I’ll post my findings about mconnect later on.

mconnect just got my $7.99 for the paid version.

Just finished listening to a 40 track playlist with zero issues.

 

[iFi audio]

mconnect just got my $7.99 for the paid version.

Just finished listening to a 40 track playlist with zero issues.

I am not 100% sure on this but I thought the only difference between the paid and "lite" version was ads.

Hopefully, it works out better for you, as I said nothing is 100% foolproof.

Cheers!!

 

[hiplytragic]

I am not 100% sure on this but I thought the only difference between the paid and "lite" version was ads.

Hopefully, it works out better for you, as I said nothing is 100% foolproof.

Cheers!!

I tire of ads pretty quickly and $7 isn’t the end of the world.

I also logged a case with Tidal directly since it seems more likely the issue is in their app - given mconnect plays the same playlists without any problems.

Stay tuned!

PS: Nothings ever perfect but striving for that is a good way to deliver excellence!

 

[Currawong]

There may be two issues here:

First, all the Zen products I've had here seemed to have issues with power supply quality. If I use a regular 12V switching PSU, the Zen Stream freezes or crashes after a few hours. I'll have to re-confirm, but with one of the iFi power supplies or a linear PSU, it doesn't have this issue when I had it running all the time.
The second is, the software is running on an old, discontinued version of Volumio, which itself is based on a now years-discontinued version of Debian Linux. There is the possibility that newer versions of 3rd party software may either not be optimised, or may not work in a system that old.
iFi really needs to get off their rear-end and licence the current version of Volumio for all their streaming products.

 

[iFi audio]

There may be two issues here:

First, all the Zen products I've had here seemed to have issues with power supply quality. If I use a regular 12V switching PSU, the Zen Stream freezes or crashes after a few hours. I'll have to re-confirm, but with one of the iFi power supplies or a linear PSU, it doesn't have this issue when I had it running all the time.
The second is, the software is running on an old, discontinued version of Volumio, which itself is based on a now years-discontinued version of Debian Linux. There is the possibility that newer versions of 3rd party software may either not be optimised, or may not work in a system that old.
iFi really needs to get off their rear-end and licence the current version of Volumio for all their streaming products.

I will pass along your suggestion to those above me at HQ.

Interesting thoughts on the PSU, I have only used Linear or iFi products that came with the product, so there may be something to this.

Cheers!!

 

[iFi audio]

There may be two issues here:

First, all the Zen products I've had here seemed to have issues with power supply quality. If I use a regular 12V switching PSU, the Zen Stream freezes or crashes after a few hours. I'll have to re-confirm, but with one of the iFi power supplies or a linear PSU, it doesn't have this issue when I had it running all the time.
The second is, the software is running on an old, discontinued version of Volumio, which itself is based on a now years-discontinued version of Debian Linux. There is the possibility that newer versions of 3rd party software may either not be optimised, or may not work in a system that old.
iFi really needs to get off their rear-end and licence the current version of Volumio for all their streaming products.

Asking as I do not know, and am no longer a Volumio user, I was years ago with an RPI...

Can you give me an example of a Streamer that uses a licensed version of Volumio in their Hardware? I ask so I may pass it on as an example of one to show the R&D folks.

I know they have their own Streamer but am not aware of others doing this.

Thank you, sir!

Cheers!!

 

[iFi audio]

I tire of ads pretty quickly and $7 isn’t the end of the world.

I also logged a case with Tidal directly since it seems more likely the issue is in their app - given mconnect plays the same playlists without any problems.

Stay tuned!

PS: Nothings ever perfect but striving for that is a good way to deliver excellence!

I am only posting these as "backup" to what I was saying about other streamers and "Tidal Connect".

While browsing through my phones I found these screenshots from last year that pertain to Wiim Mini updates and bug fixes. As you can see even as far back as last year there were issues with TC, hope you see this as proof of what I was trying to convey.

I think we all wish this wasn't the case, and I wish we had Zero issues as well. The first was a March update. I see Wiim as completely on top of their game when it comes to their app and how it works, I just don't care for the SQ, and that's just me, lol

Cheers!

 

[jameshsu88]

I am only posting these as "backup" to what I was saying about other streamers and "Tidal Connect".

While browsing through my phones I found these screenshots from last year that pertain to Wiim Mini updates and bug fixes. As you can see even as far back as last year there were issues with TC, hope you see this as proof of what I was trying to convey.

I think we all wish this wasn't the case, and I wish we had Zero issues as well. The first was a March update. I see Wiim as completely on top of their game when it comes to their app and how it works, I just don't care for the SQ, and that's just me, lol



Cheers!

On the point! Streamer is about ease of use and added value features. With just the hardware ifi can't become the leader in this market. Whether the software improvement involves 3rd party such as working with volumio or ifi redo the software themselves, at this moment zen streamer can definitely bring more stress then happiness

 

[iFi audio]

On the point! Streamer is about ease of use and added value features. With just the hardware ifi can't become the leader in this market. Whether the software improvement involves 3rd party such as working with volumio or ifi redo the software themselves, at this moment zen streamer can definitely bring more stress then happiness

Agreed!

In my case, I have had my original Zen since about a month after it came out, and in all honesty, I have never had most of the issues that other folks have posted here, and in the thread, I started (at the time I was not with iFi) here...

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/ifi-zen-stream-setup-tips-tricks.961425/

This is not to dismiss issues but to point out more that in my experience with the Zen most folks are quick to point the finger at the Zen, and in many, many cases it was something else entirely. I can't tell you how many folks had issues and never realized they had accidentally put it in "hotspot mode" and in fact I myself have recommend against using this method of setup and also disabling this in the settings menu.

It is also important in a forum environment to realize that Zen owners who have no issues probably aren't here or anywhere for that matter reporting how great their unit works.

I try to address all issues as best I can and have for almost 3 years now, so I try to explore all realities of where why, and how an issue is being seen.

Cheers!!

 

[jameshsu88]

Thanks. Hopefully it will be better. I unfortunately is a person who suffered most of the issues in the thread. I eventually switch to qobuz as tidal connect not works well with zen. Had a few times that the unit powers on itself. This morning when I powered up the unit wifi is on again. It was behaving right for past few days where it would only show wired connection. For past few days with mconnect app the music will suddenly stop....

 

[iFi audio]

Thanks. Hopefully it will be better. I unfortunately is a person who suffered most of the issues in the thread. I eventually switch to qobuz as tidal connect not works well with zen. Had a few times that the unit powers on itself. This morning when I powered up the unit wifi is on again. It was behaving right for past few days where it would only show wired connection. For past few days with mconnect app the music will suddenly stop....

I have mentioned this about folks seeing the wifi "back on" in the Stream-iFi app, and they are looking at it but it seems to be difficult to duplicate.

Have you ever done a refresh using the Android Tool and Software from support?

Cheers!!

 

[jameshsu88]

Yes I did a while ago. Around Feb 2023 I think. For the wifi issue maybe it is due to a loose LAN connector? If the software detects a lost wired connection will it turn on wifi automatically?

 

[iFi audio]

Yes I did a while ago. Around Feb 2023 I think

If you still have the tools, then it may not hurt to do it again, I have been told (by those smarter than I) that it never hurts to do this as firmware versions can sometimes srack up for lack of a better term.

If you don't PM me I may be able to get it to you being you have done it before.

I don't have this issue, and it still would be a good thing to report to support.

Cheers!!

 

[Currawong]

Asking as I do not know, and am no longer a Volumio user, I was years ago with an RPI...

Can you give me an example of a Streamer that uses a licensed version of Volumio in their Hardware? I ask so I may pass it on as an example of one to show the R&D folks.

I know they have their own Streamer but am not aware of others doing this.

Thank you, sir!

Cheers!!

https://volumio.com/oem-custom-solutions/