Volume Control USB DAC + AirPlay

Help and Support Help
#1

Hi folks,

did not find any solution to the following.

I’m running Volumio v2 on a RPi 3 + DragonFly v1.2 USB Dac.
The DragonFly uses an analog volume (so full bit-perfect), and this volume control is natively “seen” through USB Audio.
When using Volumio v2 / output to the DragonFly / HW Volume Control, it just works bit-perfectly and volume can be adjusted through the Volume GUI. I know this is bit-perfect volume control since having tested bit-killing volume control with other set-ups (this will create audible effects at low volumes on my system).

However, AirPlay is NOT working as planned.
Let’s say I would send audio from my iPhone using AirPlay.
There is a volume slider on AirPlay. When correctly implemented, this should control the volume of the target system.
What happens under Volumio, is that it will not change the volume of Volumio.
Instead, it will change the volume of the signal sent to Volumio, or the volume of the AirPlay input on Volumio. Can’t tell which case, but it’s not working as it should.

So let’s say I would put the volume at 50% on the Volumio GUI, launch AirPlay, and put 20% on AirPlay.
The overall output volume will not be 20%, but 20% … of 50%.
And what I can tell for sure, is that it’s NOT bit-perfect: if putting 100% volume on Volumio GUI and launching AirPlay with a volume set on the iDevice below 20%, the digital noise of bit destructive volume is clearly audible.

So what I got here, is the impossibility to control volume with AirPlay and maintain bit perfection. Which is just a pain.

Did I made some stupid mistake in my set-up?
Could Volumio implement volume control by AirPlay?

Three additional notes:

  • bit-perfect volume control by AirPlay through Shairport is feasible (it just works under Kodi and other solutions)
  • I know AirPlay is not fully bit-perfect, but bit-destructive volume control is far more destructive
  • I know I could put AirPlay volume to the top and then adjust the volume through the Volumio GUI … but then it’s not AirPlay comfort anymore
#2

I have the same problem. Hoping a knowledgable individual can shed some light.

MC

#3

I also have the same problem (and the exact same set up).

#4

I have the same problem too.
In my case the setup is RPi 3 with a Pi-DigiAMP+ as a DAC, running an (always) updated Volumio v2.

An annoying fact is that if i’m running Moode Audio instead, the volume control over AirPlay works as expected… :unamused:
(But let me say that I prefer Volumio more than Moode, otherwise I wouldn’t bother about this issue at all)

Hope it fill be fixed soon!

#5

Yes we can implement this, however to me it does not really make lot of sense, since airplay is natively not bit-perfect… But if that’s an important issue, no problem in doing that

#6

Thanks for the quick answer!
Actually in my opinion, for my daily usage of the system, it’s more a matter of usability then a bit-perfect issue…

Let me tell you this true story: if my girlfriend wants to play some music, she just wants to stream the music from her smartphone, not taking care of bit-perfect volume control / lossless music compression and so on. But then I had to explain her how to connect to the airplay device (which is nice and easy, as with commercial airplay speakers), but then to control the volume she has also to connect to the volume web-page or using the iOS app (which are both nice and smooth, but it’s still a step more to handle).
Instead of just controlling the volume using the smartphone, which is what a normal user would expect from and airplay device.
Same story with friends or guests at home: I had to explain how to control properly the volume (or doing by myself instead of them), since the actual workflow it’s quite a pain, at least for “not-IT” people…

I can understand that this system are made mainly for geeks (which in fact I am too), but in my opinion this feature would be more then welcome from normal users, which just want to enjoy the system and listen to music! Not taking care too much about bit-perfections (sorry audiophiles, don’t kill me)!

1 Like
#7

Wait, in the current configuration the volume works exactly as it would with any airplay device… So no improvement in usability when using the hardware mixer of the audio device…

#8

On the commercial speaker I used once, I could control the final volume just from the airplay sender device… not messing up with double volume controls. :blush:
Maybe it was not the default airplay behaviour! I don’t know, but that’s not the real point of this topic.

Imho being able to control Volumio’s volume through the airplay slider on the “sender” device would improve the usability of the system and I’d love to see this feature (maybe not as default, but still as a configuration option), as I enjoyed using it on the devices/OSs which had it. :slight_smile:
And for what I can read also the other guys who wrote before me into this thread had the same thought…

#9

What I mean is that you can already control the volume from the sender, it just works.

What the other request is about is to do it on the hardware volume control of the DAC, if any

#10

I tested it again yesterday evening: Volumio version 2.185, with an iPhone 6S with iOS 10.3.2, but I couldn’t control the receiver volume through AirPlay. I can control volume from the iOS device, but then I also have to manage the volume in Volumio too…
In other words, I want to control Volumio’s output volume ONLY from the iOS device: you are saying it’s already possible, so which setting/config file should I edit?
Because with standard settings it does not work, I have to control the volume twice (in iOS and in Volumio).

Keeping in mind what was also said in the first post

Thanks in advance for any insight

#11

I have the exact same issue.

My reply may not help a lot (except to show interest in the topic), but it would be really useful to switch the local volume to 100% as soon as Airplay device is connected, and bring it back to the last airplay volume level once it is disconnected.
Therefore we would be able to keep a global volume level, regardless the source.

By the way, I’d like to thank you a lot, michelangelo for this awesome software you provide us !

1 Like
#12

Same issue, if I leave volume by 10%, and then start any airplay app and will play music, the volume will stay by max 10%… i have tried several options, but it doesn’t work. MANY thanks to developers, Volumio is awesome!

Here my config:

#13

Any progress with this issue?

Gesendet von meinem E5823 mit Tapatalk

#14

Same issue here running volumio 2.348

#15

Is there any progress on this issue? This behaviour limits the usability of Volumio quite much. If I use Spotify Connect, a volume change in the app changes directly the main volume in Volumio. With Airplay only the sender volume is changed. So whenever we use Airplay we have to fiddle around with two volume level adjustments which I and most people here seem to dislike. I use both Spotify Connect and Airplay. If we would only use Airplay I could fix the Volumio volume to 100% and it would be fine from a usability point of view. However in our case this solution is not practical since Spotify connect would then always be at 100%.

#16

@volumio startup volume is bad it starts on 100% while the settings are set on 60%
and this is with all dragonfly’s black, red and cobalt…with all versions of volumio on rpi and sbc board
so it seems a code problem…