728 replies to this topic

[seeteeyou]

There's yet another forum thread about that exFAT "trick" somewhere else but they weren't listening to music

 

https://usbtor.ru/vi...p?p=84826#84826

 

 

 

Not sure if that were possible to modify boot.sdi so that even FAT16 would still be bootable into RAM, though flat boot or non-RAM might actually work

 

https://learn.micros...boot-or-non-ram

 

Even the "regular" Windows 10 seemed to be OK with some changes applied

 

 

 

 

I guess that we're actually reaping the benefits of the fundamental differences between NTFS and exFAT

 

https://www.softperf...27060#msg-27060

In Windows, features like directory junctions, hard links and symbolic links (sometimes called soft links) only work in NTFS.

 

https://www.tech-rec...32_versus_ntfs/

However, exFAT should be a true competitor to NTFS on flash-based systems with limited processing power and memory. NTFS on flash memory has been known to be inefficient for quite some time.  exFAT’s smaller footprint/overhead makes it ideal for this purpose.

 

https://appuals.com/...-fat32-to-ntfs/

[mos777]

You should try running PE in exFAT. It sounds so much better than NTFS.  

You can explain how best to do it?

[Romaniac]

Everything is super easy if read seeteeyou’s posts carefully. For example here http://jplay.eu/foru...indpost&p=60598

 

"So what exactly do we need to then? Basically it all boils down to these files listed below

\Boot\boot.sdi

\Windows\System32\Drivers\exfatsys

\Windows\fbwf.cfg

\Windows\System32\Drivers\fbwf.sys"

 

 

- boot.sdi - https://github.com/s...z-ISO/boot.sdi;

 

- exfat.sys is already there in your system if it`s not older 2020 as I understand;

 

- fbwf.sys - https://github.com/s...ystem/fbwf.sys;

 

- fbwf.cfg - https://github.com/s...mment-596481522

 Безымянный.jpg   30.39KB   1 downloads

 

it depends to what cache size of PE you prefer. 1024mb suits for me.

 

So what`s next?

You got your VHD arranged and ready to make ISO to load it to RAM.

 

1. Go to Windows\System32\Drivers\ and replace fbwf.sys with one you dowloaded;

 

2.  Put fbwf.cfg (The one that suits you - 512, 1024, 2048 ...) into Windows folder;

 

3. Then your need to  make some registry changes. Go to [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Services\exfat] and change the default value of Start from 3 to 0. Use Remote Registry of Strelets ISO or just download reg file (https://disk.yandex..../L6OsXAbAT7ACtA) and use DISM++ to make changes to your VHD registry.

 

 Безымянный2.jpg   203.68KB   1 downloads

 

and save you WIM file

 

4. The next step is making your ISO. Open Ultra ISO and replace boot.sdi file whith the one you dowloaded.

 

 Безымянны3й.jpg   76.82KB   0 downloads

 

Save your ISO and load it to check everithing works.

I`m bad at making manuals. I hope it`s clear. if not I`m sorry.

[seeteeyou]

Thank you seeteeyou! A couple of links was so much useful to clear some mess about timers for me. And GoInterruptPolicy app changed so much in sound. 

 

Since https://github.com/amitxv went totally private at some point, a backup could still be downloaded here

 

https://github.com/S...839faedb957.zip

 

The same person also made this video

 

https://rutube.ru/vi...8e00517bf22ec3/

 

https://github.com/h...igher-precision

 

If that were looking for missing *.dll files, usually adding 3 of them should be fine afterwards

curl -N -r 4784244736-4784817743 -o "msvcp140.dll" https://software-static.download.prss.microsoft.com/dbazure/888969d5-f34g-4e03-ac9d-1f9786c66749/EWDK_ge_release_26100_240331-1435.iso
curl -N -r 4785559552-4785678927 -o "vcruntime140.dll" https://software-static.download.prss.microsoft.com/dbazure/888969d5-f34g-4e03-ac9d-1f9786c66749/EWDK_ge_release_26100_240331-1435.iso
curl -N -r 4785680384-4785730127 -o "vcruntime140_1.dll" https://software-static.download.prss.microsoft.com/dbazure/888969d5-f34g-4e03-ac9d-1f9786c66749/EWDK_ge_release_26100_240331-1435.iso

FYI - someone else also made a copy of the guide

 

https://github.com/h...igher-precision

 

Then I also found similar stuff

 

https://github.com/L...lution/releases

https://github.com/S...chmark/releases

 

 

 

Windows (11) timer resolution

https://forums.guru3...olution.451486/

 

Windows Timer Resolution: The Great Rule Change

https://randomascii....at-rule-change/

 

Looking for latency optimizations for my latency guide

https://www.reddit.c...for_my_latency/

 

Pretty interesting reads, have fun.

[Romaniac]

F@cking USB 3.0 !!! If you can,  turn off all USB ports in BIOS , USB 3.0 is evil !!! If you use one PC setup you can plug your pereferials in second usb port of your usb card and turn off all motherboard usb ports. You`ll be very very pleased with the sound! I  got just one 3.0 enableb on my motherboard and switching it off brought f@cking miracle in sound.

[seeteeyou]

On-board devices / ports could be quite detrimental, while it might be a good idea to replace an integrated GPU with something else.

 

If we're controlling everything with stuff like a USB mouse, then adding an isolator would also be beneficial. An optical extender would work even better for USB peripherals because of further isolation.

 

Some of these optical extension cables might cost a bit too much, while others turned out to be not too bad

 

https://www.aliexpre...0040156487.html

https://www.aliexpre...4066166892.html

https://www.aliexpre...4105594973.html

https://www.aliexpre...4834808892.html

https://www.aliexpre...6349256803.html

https://www.aliexpre...6354337712.html

https://www.aliexpre...6833505100.html

 

 

 

For an external display adapter, this one looked quite interesting since Fresco Logic FL2000DX only came with 8 MB of RAM and therefore it couldn't be all that noisy at all

 

https://www.aliexpre...2786268349.html

 

 

Latest driver version 2.1.36287.0 (official site)

 

https://fichiers.tou...2.1.36287.0.exe

https://sourceforge....2.1.36287.0.exe

https://cdn.shopifyc....01_Windows.zip

 

Slightly older one could be downloaded via Microsoft Update Catalog

 

https://catalog.s.do...cb1d3036f74.cab

 

 

 

Mini LCD monitors with VGA inputs

 

https://www.aliexpre...2804216882.html

https://www.aliexpre...5886866438.html

https://www.aliexpre...6904927456.html

[Romaniac]

For an external display adapter, this one looked quite interesting since Fresco Logic FL2000DX only came with 8 MB of RAM and therefore it couldn't be all that noisy at all

 

 

What renders video in this case? CPU`s video core?

[seeteeyou]

What renders video in this case? CPU`s video core?

 

International shipping from AliExpress took such a long time since it's actually less than 10 bucks, though adding optical isolation seemed to be great for VGA so far.

 

 

 

https://www.siliconm...splay-SoCs.html

GPU: 128-bit 2D Graphics engine supports HW cursor, video overlay, and alpha blending

 

When it comes to video rendering, basically 2D-only GPUs (e.g. SiliconMotion SM750/SM768) should work best in terms of minimizing the noise.

 

(Whenever GPUs are getting the job done, we wouldn't really need those USB 3.0 → VGA adapters anymore.)

 

However, they wouldn't be considered inexpensive by any means

 

https://www.asrockra...asp?Model=TOMMY

https://www.newegg.c...N82E16816775074

 

https://www.asrockra...sp?Model=M2_VGA

https://www.newegg.c...N82E16816775029

https://wisp.net.au/asrock-m2vga.html

 

https://www.asrockra....asp?Model=PAUL

https://www.newegg.c...N82E16816775027

https://wisp.net.au/...-ipmi-card.html

 

 

 

Fortunately we still have other alternatives at the moment

 

https://www.vgamuseu...millennium-g550

Matrox G550 LP PCIe is clocked to 104/310MHz, 32MB DDR 64bit, LFH60 connector. No drivers with 3D support found, works only as 2D card.

 

https://video.matrox...download?id=620

Compatible with newer systems that use UEFI system BIOS

 

IBM POWER GXT145 PCI Express Graphics could be a good candidate in this case, since it's essentially an OEM product of G55-MDDE32OE3F

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/143549213134

https://www.ebay.com/itm/165461118283

https://www.ebay.com/itm/375393221683

https://www.aliexpre...5239890431.html

https://www.aliexpre...6501371088.html

 

After that, all we need should be one of those DVI → VGA adapters for the following VGA extenders linked below

 

https://detail.1688....9670573051.html

https://www.globalso...1207820193f.htm

https://www.globalso...1209573635f.htm

 

http://www.mb-video....oducts/153.html

https://www.aliexpre...6023432988.html

https://www.aliexpre...6084738594.html

 

http://www.mb-video....oducts/154.html

https://www.aliexpre...6084833931.html

1. VGA transmitter x1 pcs

2. VGA receiver x1 pcs

3. USB Cable x1 pcs

4. Power adapter x2 pcs

5. User manual x1 pcs

 

Promaxion M-VF100U(SC) would require SC fiber-topic cables, while M-VF100U(FC) would require FC fiber-topic cables respectively.

 

We really do have to purchase our own fiber-optic cables separately since they're certainly NOT included as shown above.

 

(Another audiophile already tried his own 15-meter SC fiber-optic cable and that's working even better than shorter ones in the SQ department.)

 

 

 

It would work even better if that VGA monitor were powered by batteries, usually they're incredibly cheap but not sure if they're meant to last THAT long by any means?

 

https://www.aliexpre...4670710687.html

Ability to run on 5V or 12V is a plus -- many small monitors require a 12V supply so you can't easily run them off a battery along with a 5V Raspberry Pi.

[seeteeyou]

Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26257 (Canary Channel)

https://blogs.window...canary-channel/

 

26257.5000.240719-1747.GE_PRERELEASE_CLIENTMULTI_X64FRE_EN-US.ISO

https://www.comss.ru...ge.php?id=14139

 

26257.5000.Germanium-X64-EN-US-XXL-SUPER-MULTI.ISO

https://t1p.de/t96wo

 

26257.5000.240719-1747.GE_PRERELEASE_SERVER_X64FRE_DE-DE.ISO

https://t1p.de/zb61x

 

 

 

BTW, that ASRock Rack PAUL IPMI Card mentioned above could be somewhat interesting since we'll actually getting one step further with Win11PE and most likely it's similar to stuff like this

 

https://whatsbestfor...206#post-655430

From my previous experiments with DIY servers I know that network traffic impacts performance. Euphony / Stylus was loading everything in RAM and trying to do as little I/O (input/output) activity as possible. Roon developers prioritize convenience over sound quality, and Roon generates a lot of network traffic that can potentially impact the sound quality. That's why Roy discovered that unplugging the network completely sounds so good. And BTW, no server is immune to the negative effect of I/O. So this is not a negative for the Extreme. The Extreme, with its dual CPUs, is going above and beyond any other server I have seen to minimize this impact, but as we have discovered, network tweaks are beneficial even to Extreme owners.

 

What if I disable all network cards in Windows, so the OS cannot perform any network activity? And what if I use HQplayer with no oversampling and connect via KVM to control the software. Well, this my friends was one of the biggest improvements on my DIY server. If Extreme owners get even half of the improvement I got, it would still be a huge improvement. I need to do a few more experiments, but they would have to wait until next weekend.

 

My conclusion so far is two folded.

1. Roon sounds incredible with this hardware, and I am sure it sounds even better on the Extreme. It's the best quality Roon I have ever heard. But there are still other players out there that sound better than Roon. Maybe one day Emile will write his own "Extreme" player.

2. No matter what you do, network activity has impact on the server performance. No network is the best network.

 

https://whatsbestfor...-19#post-884417

1) The network is far more harmful than anyone realized to any audio or video component connected to it and once properly addressed, even entry level streamers can sound exceptional. By now, with all the aftermarket audiophile network gear available on the market, this statement shouldn't be surprising to anyone but what QSA has exposed is just how harmful conductors in the network path can be. More on this later.

 

Other alternatives

 

https://geekworm.com/products/pikvm-a3

https://geekworm.com...ucts/pikvm-x650

 

Pi Zero 2W

 

https://geekworm.com/products/pikvm-a4

https://www.aliexpre...4504527098.html

https://www.aliexpre...4505437348.html