Having been an Adobe Lightroom user for many years and becoming frustrated with the lethargy of Win 7, 32bit and also not being able to upgrade to the latest version of Lightroom which only runs on 64bit OS, I bit the bullet and took advantage of the free upgrade path to Win 10, 32bit and then did a clean install of Win10 64bit.
I followed the readily available guidelines carefully and decided to install the new 64bit image on a clean SSD drive so I could keep my old SSD should there be any serious dramas. All seemed to go to plan until I had to restart the PC when re-installing Lightroom, after which I encountered the black screen of death!
I will cut the long story short by saying that after many re-starts and attempts to repair the installation I noticed, following one of these re-starts that the mouse pointer was present on the black screen. A quick Google on my tablet alerted me to the possibility of a graphics driver issue. Indeed the mouse pointer seemed to be able to go well beyond the edges of the monitor.
The solution involved pushing the set-up button on the monitor following which I discovered that the "real" windows desktop existed as a pip in a corner of a large black area. By enlarging the pip I could work with is as normal and was able to update the graphics driver and then set the monitor to its normal mode of operation.
Since then Win 10 64bit has been fine and with 16gig of RAM on board I am very happy! But what a lot of messing around and tearing hair out! Be warned!
Best of luck
Paul
ps, I had never used a pip on this PC previously.
Showing posts with label upgrade. Show all posts
Showing posts with label upgrade. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 10, 2015
Monday, May 13, 2013
Schiit Bifrost Uber Upgrade - First Impressions
Well I bit the bullet based on some favourable remarks about the new sound and encouraging descriptions of the installation process on Head-Fi and I went ahead and ordered the so-called Uber upgrade for my Schiit Bifrost DAC.
The Schiit web site describes the upgrade thus "This DAC/Analog upgrade card improves the sonic and measured performance of Bifrost, using a discrete, direct-coupled gain stage from Gungnir. This discrete stage is more sophisticated than the base Bifrost, with a more complex topology, and DC servo to eliminate capacitors in the signal path. The Bifrost Uber Analog card can be ordered with any new Bifrost at a cost of $70, or purchased as an upgrade for $100."
I was not altogether unhappy with the existing sound of the Bifrost and I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Further, I had to consider the added cost of postage to Australia, which reduces somewhat the bargain nature of this upgrade. So it was with some uncertainty about the worth of it all, I followed the instructions here http://www.head-fi.org/t/661444/schiit-bifrost-uber-analog-upgrade/15 and regarding the screws, here http://www.head-fi.org/t/661444/schiit-bifrost-uber-analog-upgrade/60 to insert the new board which arrived promptly and in good order today.
Thanks to "toschek" and "sceleratus" descriptions, I managed to install the board easily within 20 minutes (including time to find the right screwdriver!). Yes, the little LED lights were tricky but they actually slid into the holes with a minimum of fuss once I held the boards at the right angle.
I know I should give the new board some time to "mature" but I could not help myself. The music came on. I can't do an A/B comparison but I think some differences were immediately noticeable. The sound was smoother and fuller. That was even without sitting down to contemplate. Once I did, I came to appreciate that an initial perception of fullness was more about a better defined sound stage with instruments sounding balanced and "more in their places". There is also a greater sense of richness which may reflect a more detailed presentation but certainly a little less harshness in the upper registers..... Some have mentioned better bass extension but of that I am uncertain. I would rather say, "a little thicker", if that makes any sense. Overall the sound seems more coherent, detailed and smoother but still with the characteristic energy that I liked about the Bifrost before. A few more hours of run-in will be interesting.
I did a short comparison with the aging NAD CD541 player and the comparative lack of harshness in the Bifrost was very noticeable.
In short, I think it has been a worthwhile upgrade. Cost wise, I suppose you will have to weigh it up for yourself once you factor in oversease postage (if that applies), but if you were buying a new unit, the Uber would definitely be the way to go.
Equipment used - NAD c541 CD transport, coaxial connection to the NAD 355BEE Amplifier , Ascension floor standers by Adelaide Speakers.
Friday update: The update has had some days to settle in now and sounds very nice... was there a little harshness in some recordings before??? Can't find it now, or was it my imagination? The words coherent, stable soundstage, detailed, smooth still apply and also apply to the wi-fi streamed mp3/4 files coming through my Sonos network.... Still plan to review the Chameleon vs Bifrost comparison when I have time (See previous post for updates).... Sit back, enjoy the music!
The Schiit web site describes the upgrade thus "This DAC/Analog upgrade card improves the sonic and measured performance of Bifrost, using a discrete, direct-coupled gain stage from Gungnir. This discrete stage is more sophisticated than the base Bifrost, with a more complex topology, and DC servo to eliminate capacitors in the signal path. The Bifrost Uber Analog card can be ordered with any new Bifrost at a cost of $70, or purchased as an upgrade for $100."
I was not altogether unhappy with the existing sound of the Bifrost and I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Further, I had to consider the added cost of postage to Australia, which reduces somewhat the bargain nature of this upgrade. So it was with some uncertainty about the worth of it all, I followed the instructions here http://www.head-fi.org/t/661444/schiit-bifrost-uber-analog-upgrade/15 and regarding the screws, here http://www.head-fi.org/t/661444/schiit-bifrost-uber-analog-upgrade/60 to insert the new board which arrived promptly and in good order today.
Thanks to "toschek" and "sceleratus" descriptions, I managed to install the board easily within 20 minutes (including time to find the right screwdriver!). Yes, the little LED lights were tricky but they actually slid into the holes with a minimum of fuss once I held the boards at the right angle.
I know I should give the new board some time to "mature" but I could not help myself. The music came on. I can't do an A/B comparison but I think some differences were immediately noticeable. The sound was smoother and fuller. That was even without sitting down to contemplate. Once I did, I came to appreciate that an initial perception of fullness was more about a better defined sound stage with instruments sounding balanced and "more in their places". There is also a greater sense of richness which may reflect a more detailed presentation but certainly a little less harshness in the upper registers..... Some have mentioned better bass extension but of that I am uncertain. I would rather say, "a little thicker", if that makes any sense. Overall the sound seems more coherent, detailed and smoother but still with the characteristic energy that I liked about the Bifrost before. A few more hours of run-in will be interesting.
I did a short comparison with the aging NAD CD541 player and the comparative lack of harshness in the Bifrost was very noticeable.
In short, I think it has been a worthwhile upgrade. Cost wise, I suppose you will have to weigh it up for yourself once you factor in oversease postage (if that applies), but if you were buying a new unit, the Uber would definitely be the way to go.
Equipment used - NAD c541 CD transport, coaxial connection to the NAD 355BEE Amplifier , Ascension floor standers by Adelaide Speakers.
Friday update: The update has had some days to settle in now and sounds very nice... was there a little harshness in some recordings before??? Can't find it now, or was it my imagination? The words coherent, stable soundstage, detailed, smooth still apply and also apply to the wi-fi streamed mp3/4 files coming through my Sonos network.... Still plan to review the Chameleon vs Bifrost comparison when I have time (See previous post for updates).... Sit back, enjoy the music!
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