Integer mode is worth a try

In my earlier post I described how I’d discovered that Integer mode mysteriously started to work for no reason I could fathom other than to attribute my success to a choice of iZotope upsampling in Audirvana.

However, on restart of my MacBook yesterday morning… the clicks returned. Very frustrating!

So I investigated further. I discovered that, by looking at the “System Information” button under “About this Macintosh” I could see what devices were connected to the USB bus.

There are two USB sockets on the MacBook and a number of devices – including the keyboard, mouse and iSight camera – internally connected to the USB bus(es) reported in “System Information”

One of the buses is called “High Speed USB bus” and has the iSight camera connected to it, the others are just “USB bus” and host the keyboard and mouse.

Strangely, regardless of which USB port I connect the Audiophilleo to, it appears on the general “USB bus” alongside the keyboard and mouse.

If I select “Integer mode” in Audirvana, the clicking begins.

However, with Audirvana and iTunes shut down, if I move the Wireworld USB cable across from one USB port to the other, the Audiophilleo re-registers onto the “High Speed USB bus” in “System Information”.

If I now restart Audirvana and select Integer mode, I get music without clicking.

Frustrating but worthwhile knowledge because, with music in the background (an eclectic mix of Portishead, Elizaveta and Pat Metheney) I found myself singing along or whistling randomly without realising it. It just seemed more natural yet again, and more enjoyable.

I will persevere with Integer more; the only remaining caveat being that MacBook has crashed, twice, and forced a hardware reset (i.e. holding the power button down) after a couple of hours or so of music playback. Clearly there is more risk that the hardware will let me down, but at least there is life left in this old MacBook before I’m forced to switch to something else!