• Registered: 2023-07-17
  • Posts: 7

Topic: Firmware Advice for Noob

Hi,

Quick Intro -
I have just bought an ADI-2 DAC fs and I'm loving it! It has replaced and completely outperformed my Topping L50/E50 stack.

I use it to stream flac files from my Synology NAS using a Wiim Mini to feed my HiFiMan Edition XS and HE400SE's, Avantone Planars, and Verum One MKII's. I use Bubble UPnP running on an old Samsung phone to control everything.

I am absolutely loving the jump in SQ and I'm slowly but surely working my through the manual.
So I've got to the section on Firmware Updates and I'm wondering - since I don't use a PC anywhere in my listening chain, do I need to regularly update the firmware? Or update at all? It seems counterintuitive to download stuff onto my PC and sideload it to my RME when I don't use the PC in the listening chain. Is this only necessary when a PC is involved for listening?

ATM, I'm running v48 which is what it shipped with and I'm thoroughly enjoying it, but am I missing out on something?

Any advice greatly appreciated

2 Reply by KaiS (edited by KaiS 2023-07-23 01:43:48)

  • KaiS
  • DAW Mastermind
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  • From: Germany
  • Registered: 2020-02-05
  • Posts: 3,131

Re: Firmware Advice for Noob

EKBluesboy wrote:

...do I need to regularly update the firmware?

Absolutely no.
The latest firmware that likely already is installed on your new device is stable and has no known bugs.

So, only if new features are introduced that you like to use it might be worth the effort to update FW.

E.g. maybe in future, when the dust has settled, you might want to use the just released remote software for iDevice, Mac or PC.
If doesn’t add features, everything it does can be done directly at the ADI-2 DAC or it’s dedicated remote too, so no hurry.

KaiS's Website

3 Reply by ramses (edited by ramses 2023-07-23 10:07:30)

  • ramses
  • DAW Mastermind
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  • From: UTC+1
  • Registered: 2012-10-14
  • Posts: 12,097

Re: Firmware Advice for Noob

EDIT: in my 1st answer, I overlooked PC-less operation, so some correction here. But I still think, that firmware upgrades are useful and should be performed. You can at any time look into the readme file of the fut_tool's ZIP archive, what has been fixed to decide, whether an upgrade would be worth.

Even if EKBluesboy states, that he has no PC in his listening chain, some updates, and fixes by firmware might also be important for him for the general operation of the device. See below the list of changes between v48 and v55.

An interesting new use case might be to connect the device temporarily to a PC to make some useful PEQ adjustments for his listening chain, by using the new ADI-2 Remote software. It offers a much easier way to configure / operate the device and to make PEQ adjustments, but it requires at least firmware version 54. Here are the links to the prerelease for Windows and Mac:
Mac: https://forum.rme-audio.de/viewtopic.php?id=37669
Windows: https://forum.rme-audio.de/viewtopic.php?id=37784

For some types of devices I would be careful, right, also e.g. in terms of BIOS upgrades for a PC. In the case of RME devices, it is a different story. RME Firmware updates are well tested and bring important bugfixes and often interesting useful features like in this case.

These are the differences between Firmware version 48 and version 55, I extracted them for you:

  • 07/17/2023: ADI-2 DAC 80/55: PEQ On/Off no longer causes a change to Preset Temp.

  • 07/11/2023: ADI-2 DAC 80/54: adds MIDI port and support for the ADI-2 Remote.  <----- !!!!!!

  • ADI-2 DAC 78/51, ADI-2 Pro 263/116. Pro/DAC Fix: Corrected display of B/T setting >9.5 dB in Dark Volume Screen. Bugfix Pro: 1 sample channel offset when SRC is active with an ADAT input signal.

  • 05/19/2022: ADI-2 DAC 78/50, ADI-2 Pro 262/115. Bugfix: A preset name consisting only of spaces caused the device to freeze. AutoRef DSD did not work correctly on devices with AK4490.

  • 04/11/2022: ADI-2 DAC 78/49, ADI-2 Pro 262/113. The option Do not load Volume did not always work as expected. Loading the Factory setup now also follows that option. B/T can now be used in both PEQ and as B/T at up to +/-12 dB. Remote Locked now allows to use the volume keys on the remote. Pro only: In Dual EQ mode a graphics refresh was missing in the Bode plot. In Dual Phones mode with AutoRef active, inserting a TRS jack into Phones 1/2 could cause a wrong dBr setting.

The update process is explained in the manual, here are the gory details in short. A firmware update is not difficult, but it requires an installed driver under Windows and Apple and you need to connect the device to your computer via USB. If you start the fut_tool, it will display to you the installed firmware version and whether an update is needed.

BR Ramses - UFX III, 12Mic, XTC, ADI-2 Pro FS R BE, RayDAT, X10SRi-F, E5-1680v4, Win10Pro22H2, Cub13
  • Registered: 2023-07-17
  • Posts: 7

Re: Firmware Advice for Noob

It would seem that in my listening situation a firmware upgrade isn't really 100% necessary, but might be useful for small bugfixes and general operation, as you say ramses.
I suppose in the end, upgrading it can't hurt and might just help, so that's what I'll do.

Thank you very much KaiS and especially ramses for your very informative replies.

  • Registered: 2023-07-17
  • Posts: 7

Re: Firmware Advice for Noob

Thanks guys, now fully updated to V55!