[rlw6534]

The link I sent you shows you how to enable smart connect, have you done that. Also if I were you I would be connecting to the 2.4 not the 5Ghz just a personal opinion, sometimes 5ghz is not all it's cracked up to be in reliable streaming, but again none of this should matter if you are indeed wired to the ZS.

I don't think his router supports smart connect (based on what I could find). Maybe there has been an upgrade.

 

[Mr BubbaHyde]

I don't think his router supports smart connect (based on what I could find). Maybe there has been an upgrade.

Damn, I only did that because the channels in his building have got to be saturated, at least I would think so. Again as you and I said none of that should matter as long as he's wired. That's kind of why I am curious about him having no modem in the apartment, anything could be happening, lol

 

[rlw6534]

Damn, I only did that because the channels in his building have got to be saturated, at least I would think so. Again as you and I said none of that should matter as long as he's wired. That's kind of why I am curious about him having no modem in the apartment, anything could be happening, lol

The only thing I saw on his screens that I would try is changing his 2.4 GHz bandwidth to "Auto" instead of 20 MHz. Of course, that may hurt things if all of the channels are congested. The 5GHz band might be better with the shorter range (and more channels) in his case.

I don't know how to disable wifi on the Zen. That sounds like a good idea.

The only reason wifi would affect him is that his MacBook is the Roon Core and it's connected via wifi. Tidal -> DSL -> router -> wifi -> Roon Core -> wifi -> router -> wired -> Zen. Because he is using wifi into his MacBook and wifi out of the MacBook he is actually using twice the actual streaming bandwidth on his network.

And the missing antenna isn't helping things.

I also noticed that the Archer C20 router only supports 10/100 Mbps wired ethernet as well.

 

[ainzz]

Streaming of Amazon Music would be thru Airplay (mac), I don't believe Chromecast is functional yet, so hopefully you have Apple products. I have previously mentioned that even Amazon sounds very good thru the ZS. But at this juncture if you are running Android, I am not sure of your options, but I am a little braindead right now!

Cheers!!

Hmmm....bummer, I'm running Android. Looks like I might have to go for Tidal.
I did have Tidal previously but when Amazon HD became £7.99 it was a no brainer as I couldn't determine any noticeable dip in SQ. My RME Dac isn't MQA compatible so feel I'm wasting money on Masters without getting the benefit.

Or maybe best wait for Chromecast or Spotify HD.

 

[tjw321]

i am using a router provided by my ISP and its plugged into the wall next to the phone line via a Ethernet cable. as you can see. on the back of the router there are 4 ports. i am only using one that goes directly to the ZS. i am running the ZS wired. i am controlling the stream from my MacBook pro wirelessly using the Roon app. i live in an apartment complex but have a dedicated line running from the main server with an independent IP address i believe. not sure about #3, since i am using wired is this academic? here are some photos including a screen shot of my network from the IFI.local browser, thanks

In general, it is not a good idea to connect both wired and wireless to the same network from a single device. Most routers will figure it out and route everything correctly, some will route everything to the other connection than the one you want, and some may get confused and you end up with an unstable connection. It's probably worth turning the wifi connection in the ZS off if you prefer to use wired.

 

[Mr BubbaHyde]

Hmmm....bummer, I'm running Android. Looks like I might have to go for Tidal.
I did have Tidal previously but when Amazon HD became £7.99 it was a no brainer as I couldn't determine any noticeable dip in SQ. My RME Dac isn't MQA compatible so feel I'm wasting money on Masters without getting the benefit.

Or maybe best wait for Chromecast or Spotify HD.

If I'm wrong then my bad, there's a on going on upstairs,

I somehow thought theres was a workaround for now, let me look into it...

I completely agree Amazon is an great value, and sounds very good. As someone who has the big 5 right now, I cannot tell you too dump it in favor of anything but Spotify. Being the Zen has Spotify connect built-in and it works well. My problem (only) with Amazon right now is the weirdness of how it presents "HD" or "Ultra HD" tracks to the dac. I cannot tell you how many times I have been direct connected (sans ZS) and have it tell me that the file is 24/96 and yet I cannot get it to play at that no matter what dac I use, even in it's supposed Exclusive mode. Probably user error!

Hopefully by the time you get the ZS or shortly after Spotify Announces a launch date for Spotify-HiFi, it will be right about then that's lots of people might be hitting the "cancel" Subscription button on lots of stuff, lmao!!

I will keep thinking on it, and do some tests with my android and Windows PC and Amazon to see if I have made a mistake...

Cheers!!

 

[ainzz]

If I'm wrong then my bad, there's a on going on upstairs,

I somehow thought theres was a workaround for now, let me look into it...

I completely agree Amazon is an great value, and sounds very good. As someone who has the big 5 right now, I cannot tell you too dump it in favor of anything but Spotify. Being the Zen has Spotify connect built-in and it works well. My problem (only) with Amazon right now is the weirdness of how it presents "HD" or "Ultra HD" tracks to the dac. I cannot tell you how many times I have been direct connected (sans ZS) and have it tell me that the file is 24/96 and yet I cannot get it to play at that no matter what dac I use, even in it's supposed Exclusive mode. Probably user error!

Hopefully by the time you get the ZS or shortly after Spotify Announces a launch date for Spotify-HiFi, it will be right about then that's lots of people might be hitting the "cancel" Subscription button on lots of stuff, lmao!!

I will keep thinking on it, and do some tests with my android and Windows PC and Amazon to see if I have made a mistake...

Cheers!!

I think everything you say is right. I have a feeling Amazon and Tidal (if I take the plunge) is just a stop gap until Spotify launch Hi-Fi. Even if it's just CD quality and not Hi-res that will be sufficient for me. Personally I think Tidal and Qobuz are going to struggle to be long-term viable with the Amazon, Apple and Spotify offerings.

Anyway back on topic. It would be great if you could come up with a ZS/Amazon solution but to be honest I'm not holding out much hope. But I do appreciate you trying.

 

[SenyorC]

I don't know how to disable wifi on the Zen. That sounds like a good idea.

I am not sure if the ZS has a way to disable WiFi or not, but just forget the network, or change the password to one that is incorrect.

You can always rejoin later.

 

[SenyorC]

I would certainly try just cable without WiFi if you haven't so far @rudy49

I don't know how the ZS deals with wired Vs wireless but I have had other devices that always wanted to use Wifi when available and it can cause issues if the WiFi network is not great.

 

[myshark]

I am not sure if the ZS has a way to disable WiFi or not, but just forget the network, or change the password to one that is incorrect.

You can always rejoin later.

To disable wifi, go to settings, network, off wifi. In the ifi.local app.

 

[rlw6534]

only 2, i will talk to the iso tomorrow morning. but this could be the end of my problem. thank you

After some research it appears that early versions of the Archer C20 only had two antennas. At some point it was changed to three as we see in internet photos. That's really weird. Maybe because the wifi wasn't very good...

I also noticed that it only supports 10/100 Mbps wired ethernet rather than 1 Gbps which is what most newer routers support. You definitely didn't need Cat 8 cable...

There's no guarantee that a new router will fix your problems, but the one you have is pretty bad as far as routers go and definitely low budget. Only you can decide if it's worth the $$$ to buy a better one.

If your ISP is just plain unreliable, a router can't fix that.

 

[rudy49]

After some research it appears that early versions of the Archer C20 only had two antennas. At some point it was changed to three as we see in internet photos. That's really weird. Maybe because the wifi wasn't very good...

I also noticed that it only supports 10/100 Mbps wired ethernet rather than 1 Gbps which is what most newer routers support. You definitely didn't need Cat 8 cable...

There's no guarantee that a new router will fix your problems, but the one you have is pretty bad as far as routers go and definitely low budget. Only you can decide if it's worth the $$$ to buy a better one.

If your ISP is just plain unreliable, a router can't fix that.

sounds like in order for the Zen Stream to achieve optimal performance it should be used with a state of the art fiber network, but not a older DSL connection like i am stuck with

 

[sabloke]

Please, stop feeding the troll. Sorting out network issues is way out of topic.

 

[myshark]

Please, stop feeding the troll. Sorting out network issues is way out of topic.

Should do pm rather than in this forum.

 

[rudy49]

To disable wifi, go to settings, network, off wifi. In the ifi.local app.

i just tried this and it improved the SQ dramatically. sound more transparent like a veil has been lifted. .also 3hrs and counting this afternoon over here and no hiccups. i guess having WIFI enabled when using wired connection can also compromise the SQ. this is mentioned in the IFI.local. page. thanks.