Diretta Thread

Thanks so much! I’ll start with GentooPlayer, then install Diretta when I get the chance to acquire a Windows computer (i.e., head over to my kid’s apartment and steal his old gaming machine, which he stopped using when I bought him a souped-up model as a birthday/graduation present.)

 

Well, I installed GentooPlayer on my Mercury V3 and then Diretta on my son's gaming PC. I thought GentooPlayer was a step up (although not a huge one) from RoPieee and Volumio, but I actually didn't care for Diretta. It sounded a bit strident to me on my admittedly forward/hot audio chain. Glad I tested it out before paying. For those who have experience with GentooPlayer, is it worth paying for different kernels or the EXTRM version? Depending on the combination, that would be an annual fee of $44 to $77. Don't know if I'm up for another annual subscription. I'm looking in particular for a more mellow/smooth flavor.

 

That is wild because I have the direct opposite experience with Diretta. Red on UPnP sounds more forward and Diretta sounds almost relaxed or hazy until I realize I am actually hearing more inner details and doesn't seem so "digital".

One thing you can also try is changing the kernel. 08. System Base Config > Selectkernel. There are 15 to choose from and all the ones included with Gentoo that are free. The subscription gives you even more choices. Some of the RT's can sound forward/aggressive, so maybe try some of the others. I didn't mess with Diretta with the V3 loaner, but I am sure there is one that fits it well.

 

@Azimuth, thanks so much for the info about changing kernels on GentooPlayer. I mistakenly thought that I had to pay for any kernel other than the one that came with the standard set up. Lots more to play with now.

Regarding Diretta, maybe I didn’t have it set up correctly. I enabled the Diretta target on my GentooPlayer. Then I installed/enabled the Diretta ASIO driver on my Windows machine and chose my Mercury with GentooPlayer as the target. Then in Roon I enabled and selected the ASIO driver. That should do it, yes?

 

You got it! The Diretta app on your computer mostly controls what target (because you could have multiple targets on your local network), and what to do with DSD and PCM bit rates (in Confiq).







And here is the way it will show in Roon:

 

The least aggressive/hifi-sounding kernel I've found is ULTRA-RCU. I'm not sure what version you have available to you but I pay for CLTO and the latest one I'm on is 6.14.0-GentooPlayer-ULTRA-RCU-CLTO-TEST+

 

Thanks—I’ll try that one first tonight.

 

I've been using Gentoo for a couple of years now, and I've always wondered if CLTO is actually worth the price. Honestly, with most of the free kernels I've tried, I can't hear much of a difference between them.

 

If you can't hear the difference between the free kernels, than i wouldn't pay for clto. Its just a other flavor. Its very system depending if it is to your liking. A couple of years back, the difference was very small in my set. With a few changes in my set i do like clto a lot more. Its for me more energetic.

 

My GentooPlayer and Diretta tutorial is now finally up on YT:

 

Thanks for working on that, genuinely helpful.

My transport/audio PC ecosystem is too locked in for me to switch to a new solution yet, but when I eventually get there I’ll probably implement Diretta to give it a try, and I’ll need something to help direct me. These will be perfect.