Snakeoil OS: The Blog

So my Accuphase DC-37’s USB input was damaged a while back. It was broken, but it’s fixed now.

Cannot remember what the exact message was, but neither Windows nor Linux can detect the Accuphase DC-37’s USB input. The Snakeoil OS logs returns an error message with the error code of -110. 

So what have I done to damage the USB port?

On the day, I had a problem with my PS Audio P5 - it refused to turn ON. To try and get the P5 working again I had to power on/off several equipment multiple times. By the time the P5 is working, the Accuphase DC-37’s USB port is dead. 

In the Linux world the code -110 means an I/O READ error; but what is the problem, and the cause?

A colleague of mine (Steve) has kindly helped me out on this matter. He has diagnosed the problem, fixed the USB and modified the board to prevent this from happening again. Here’s a review of his findings, note that as I’m not a tech, everything is likely lost in translation!

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Excited to turn your home into the Ultrahouse 3000?

Use Google Home and/or Google Home mini to control your Xiaomi Vacuum with your voice!

Here are the things you need:

• Software
• Home Assistant
• IFTTT
• Hardware
• Xiaomi Robot Vacuum
• Google Home Assistant (Original or mini)
• Android Phone
• Computer running Windows

This is a brief HOW-TO guide and some of the finer details may be omitted. If you hit any trouble just ask in the comments below. [2019-03-24: Updated walkthrough to use the new access methods for Home Assistant]

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The TV show Simpsons is ahead of it’s time in so many ways - fans of the Simpsons will remember the Ultrahouse 3000. Now we have the technology to do exactly that, with a few simple gadgets you can turn your house into a ’smart house’. This is the beginning of my journey.

The following 4 ingredients is all you need to turn your house into Ultrahouse 3000: 

1. Google Home Assistant
2. Xiaomi Robot Vacuum
3. Home Assistant software
4. IFTTT web account

In this short video, the voice command ‘Clean House’ is picked up by Google Home, and the XiaoMi robot will start doing it’s thing. Not too sure why there is a lag of 10 seconds, putting that down to my slow Internet at home.

This is just the beginning. Later I will write HOW-TO blogs on how to do all this, and more.

Introduction

Audiophiles tend to be opinionated people, there are two big arguments that will flare up periodically on the Internet - Accurate vs Musical, and Objective vs Subjective. In this article we’d mainly be talking about the first case.

Accurate and Musical, what do the two words mean to audiophiles? According to the Stereophile Glossary, they are defined as:

Accuracy - 

The degree to which the output signal from a component or system is perceived as replicating the sonic qualities of its input signal. An accurate device reproduces what is on the recording, which may or may not be an accurate representation of the original sound.

And Musical - 

A personal judgment as to the degree to which reproduced sound resembles live music. Real musical sound is both accurate and euphonic, consonant and dissonant.

Unfortunately people who align themselves to the camps above do not really stick to these definitions. The long version is different people will bend these words in an attempt to fit their arguments. The short version is we simply like an argument!

In this article we’d discuss my take on why these two words are the bane of audiophiles, and the reasons to avoid using them in critical music listening.

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