[HolyHell]

I had previously installed a Schiit Modi 2 / Vali 2 combo on my Windows 7 PC which worked easily enough. Sometimes there would be difficulty getting the device recognised but with some plugging / unplugging it would get there.

It got to the point though when I would boot my computer it would freeze even before reaching the BIOS screen when the Modi was plugged in. The only way the computer would boot was if I removed the Modi which is bizarre to say the least.

When the computer booted I would plug in the device and windows would say that the USB driver was unrecognised and failed to install.

I bought a new SSD and installed Win10 (as I needed to upgrade anyway) to see if that would work. No avail, same as before, computer refuses to boot nor will it recognise the device.

I disabled the onboard internal sound drivers in the BIOS (effectively disabling REALTEK audio) which had no effect.

I've tried installing the Modi 2 drivers from the website however the install requires the device to be plugged in. Win10 cannot recognise the device so again, no joy.

I've used a non-powered usb hub between the PC and the Modi. No effect.

I'm at my wits end with what to do as I have a Vali 2 / HD650 here that is gathering dust because of this Modi 2.

Any suggestions on how to fix this problem or has anyone encountered anything similar?

PC Specs below :

CPU : i5-6600K Mobo : MSI Z170A RAM : Corsair 16GB 2133 SSD : Samsung Evo 500GB GPU : ATI R390 PSU : EVGA Supernova 750W

 

[Music Alchemist]

Schiit's drivers are notorious for how screwy they are.

I had luck (whether it was the Modi Multibit or Modi 2) with older drivers.

As you have discovered, you should turn your computer on without the DAC plugged in, then plug in the DAC and install the drivers.

Uninstall all Schiit drivers and try these alternate ones: http://www.schiit.com/public/upload/drivers/Schiit_USB_1_03.zip

If that doesn't work, uninstall the drivers again, download the normal drivers (click here for Windows 7 & 8 or click here for Windows 10), go to Device Manager, and try manually installing them there. Also experiment with the options in Device Manager.