Hi folks,
I've searched but found nothing that seems similar, so I'm hoping for help from the community. I did find one thread that noted a similar problem after updating the firmware in 2012, but I have not done any updates, and resetting the remote has not helped. So:
Last night I tried to get my UQ1 to play iRadio. The display flickered between the station name, and 'connecting', but never connected. It did play FM radio, but that is a signal through the aerial, I think. Using N-stream on my iPhone I was able to select UPnP. I went back to iRadio, but I had no luck getting a connection. N-stream shows 'streamer not responding', and the UQ does not come to life when using the app.
After the problem first appeared, I was able to change input sources with the remote, and scroll through the controls. I tried re-establishing the network settings, and then I tried to reset things to the factory defaults. Shortly after that, the unit stopped responding and now shows 'Analogue' on the front panel. I can mute/ unmute and change the volume from the logo button, but nothing else works.
I turned the UQ off and on, restarted the router, restarted playback on the iMac, and replaced batteries in the remote (twice). I also removed and re-inserted the batteries backwards to see if that would reset things. I've tried aux-i-5 & aux-i-disp, with no change in behaviour or response from the UQ.
The unit is unmodified from the original factory settings, and I've never done an update on it. I don't have a windows machine, and it has always been finicky enough that I was hesitant to fuss with it, for fear or messing things up.
The UQ is connected to my router with ethernet, and I stream from an iMac with Playback.
In truth, I cant tell if the issue is with the remote or the UQ, but neither the remote nor n-Stream will activate the unit.
Hope I've given a complete account of the situation. Any help or suggestions from the collective experience very welcome.
Thanks
Posted on: 20 March 2014 by JSH
I realize that everything on the UQ2 is perfect - just like the USB input ha,ha - and that it could not possibly be an issue there, but could Garyi explain why it always another bit of the kit which is faulty when, as various correspondents have noted, the rest of the system works perfectly.
And perhaps give us all a recommendation on a router better than the ones supplied by BT, Sky et al who obviously are keen to supply us with the poorest routers they can so that their services look terrible. Hmmm
Meanwhile, I hope someone solves this issue soon as a number of us have it. If I come up with an answer I will do so
FWIW, my problems began with a change of router (yes Garyi but listen on) and move to fibre optic. Everything else on the network is fine except the UQ2; so what does that say? I am currently trying AndyPat's solution and a new network profile, in case there is conflict there
Posted on: 20 March 2014 by Damon
Originally Posted by Bart:
Damon as an aside, are you trying to connect with both the iPhone and iPad either simultaneously or shortly after one another?
Bart,
Thanks for the note. I'm aware of the 'one controller at at time' rule, and I think that connection to the iPad2 has been problematic even if tried 12 or 18 hours after the system was last used.
I haven't had any USB issues, but then I've only used the front panel USB input a few times.
Based on my experience with this issue, and Alan33's reports, the router doesn't seem indicated as the most likely cause, but I'm going to see if I can get another router to try. The router is a Zyxel model VSG1432, if that were interesting info for anybody. I don't doubt that it is indeed a cheap item. But if it can allow a free data flow, and it has a reliable wireless output signal, then the connection problem should be downstream of the router. Again, a deduction on my part.
The static IP vs dynamic IP is an interesting point, and I will call Telus about this factor. But again, why things were stable for 18 or 20 months with old router, and then stable with the new router for 2 or 3 months suggests that the IP address from the router is reasonable stable.
Ah well. My thanks to all who are participating in this thread.
Posted on: 20 March 2014 by JSH
Please keep trying! I will.
This is irritating and spoils the enjoyment of a router. Here I am using a BT HomeHub5 router and didn't have this problem with the HH4. I will try a few things and then go back if need be and see what happens. But like you I think this is downstream of the router as everything else is working well
The UQ2 seems to switch itself off when I put the computer to sleep, which I can't quite fathom as they should be separate
Posted on: 20 March 2014 by Damon
Originally Posted by garyi:
People happy to spend upwards of £1200 for a piece of hifi that requires network connection and then get sniffy when their freely supplied cheap as arse router does not play nicely. Invest 10% of the cost of the hifi piece in your network and get a decent router.
garyi,
I'm not getting 'sniffy'; I wrote above that I'm going to try another 'better' router, but I think the behaviour of my system and that of others in this thread does not indicate the router as the problem. I have several mac computers that use this network, and they run three different versions of OSX. As well, my father in law uses this system with his windows laptops, and none of the other devices loses the connection. BTW the system does not drop out as a result of overload; normally the UQ is the only thing that is placing any notable demand on the network when the problems occur.
And, it is not just a drop-out problem; it is a failure to connect to the network, and a UQ that shows a 'network starting' or 'network stopping' message that stays on the display for an hour, or until I shut down the UQ.
So, I'll ask again: do you have a suggestion for a 'good' router, either by brand or by some performance specification? I'll note also that the Naim dealer has never mentioned that the routers supplied by the local telecom companies are inadequate for quality audio use.
JSH; if you are streaming music from your computer, then the UPnP software (which I assume you are using) will likely go off-line when the computer sleeps. Then the UQ would also sleep as it detects no input. That makes sense to me. If you're listening to iRadio, and the UQ sleeps when the computer sleeps, that would be odd.
Posted on: 20 March 2014 by JSH
Garyi
Damon asks the same question about routers as I did earlier but more elegantly. What do you recommend and why? And why do BT, Sky et al supply poor router (in your opinion) which will make their services look poor? It makes no business sense whatsoever; I think they're better businessmen than that
Damon's experience matches my own. yes both UQs could be down but if so, they can't be much cop if they fail after 6 months. I don't think that's the case at all
Damon
I stream from another computer in the laundry room which stays on all the time. The computer which I send to sleep is the one here in the sitting room and it's this one which seems to turn off the UQ. But I've made the UQ static on the router tonight as AndyPat suggested earlier and I've created a new network profile and so far it's stayed up. I'll report tomorrow on whether it stays that way
Posted on: 20 March 2014 by alan33
This is great dialogue and good sharing, thanks all!
I agree with garyi that the poor router - which results in dropped connections - is an issue for many network clients, not just the Qute. Sometimes a mac or windows box might not "remember" a network share, but it's because of a connection loss / failure to automatically reconnect issue rather (usually router induced) rather than a problem with the computer or its OS. Same goes for a smart thermostat...
That said, my reluctance to add a better router and to revert to using the ISP-supplied box has nothing to do with cost or normal setup issues. It's that our ISP has custom firmware that makes some router settings inaccessible and I am working out one thing at a time. Btw, cheap routers don't often haunt ISPs, since they are not that cheap and are now supported by call centres and that is the main reason "ordinary" telco services use them: support is costly, savings are achieved by limiting the installed hardware base. A few years ago, home wifi was for a laptop or two, and now the landscape has grown much faster than the users' sophistication haha.
In spite of this,I have a line on a nice D-link to borrow, and may buy the new Asus RT-N65U unit which has excellent reviews and happens to be on sale this weekend. My plan is to improve that aspect one way or another, and throwing a couple of hundred dollars at this problem is less effort than fishing a cable... although that is my preferred fix! Will see how energetic I get this weekend!!
Again, however, there is definitely something internal going on, since no device should fail so completely (to the point of freezing or displaying weird status messages) just because it (or a streamer it was talking to) got lost on the network... Two separate and possibly related issues, perhaps, but not solely due to the wifi connection.
Damon - in your router config page (usually available via the web interface) you will find a list of attached devices; you can usually pick "reserve" and that will effectively freeze the IP address of a specific device; this still uses dhcp (ie not manually assigned static addresses) and should be easy to spot. Btw, did you have any success with the power down / attach Ethernet cable / power up experiment?!? Good luck with that one.
Kind regards, alan
Posted on: 21 March 2014 by JSH
Well, this may be working!!
This morning the connection remains perfect and has not gone down overnight with the main computer asleep.
I followed AndyPat's suggestion - thanks AndyPat - and changed the settings for the UQ2 in the router. For my BT HH5 system, I went to the advanced settings, found the UQ and changed the IP address setting to "always use this address".
Now whether this is just co-incidence only time will tell. But if it's not, then it may be a solution for others and obviates any need to buy a "better" router
I'll report back again later
Posted on: 21 March 2014 by alan33
Nice news and best of luck JSH.
BTW: One other reason experienced folks get frustrated with ISP supplied routers is that there are sometimes hidden changes (eg firmware updates sent as a push, with no notification to you as a user). Again, this makes sense from their perspective, keeping things up to date and uniform... but it can manifest as new behaviours (problems,) for users who suddenly find something not working (like a thermostat or an audio device!) even though "nothing has changed and it used to work perfectly". I have no idea if that is a common element, but it is something to keep in mind - and one reason why expert help to walk back through all the setting information is often so productive. The more I read about other users with my ISP and modem/router, the more I see along this line...
