HQPlayer Guide

This guide explains how to connect ECHO to HQPlayer without mixing up the playback layers.

The short version: ECHO connects to HQPlayer. HQPlayer connects to the DAC or NAA. After ECHO hands a track to HQPlayer, filtering, upsampling, modulation, output device selection, buffering, NAA routing, and final audio output are controlled by HQPlayer.

Quick Setup

For the first successful local setup:

Item	Recommended value
HQPlayer	Start HQPlayer Desktop and verify standalone playback first
ECHO mode	Local Desktop
Host	127.0.0.1
Control port	4321
Default handoff	Ask every time at first
Media service	Off for local files; on for remote HQPlayer or sources that need proxying

Recommended order:

1. Make HQPlayer Desktop play a normal FLAC or MP3 on its own.
2. Open ECHO’s Connect page.
3. Enable the HQPlayer panel.
4. Keep 127.0.0.1:4321 for local Desktop mode.
5. Click Test.
6. When the endpoint is available, connect to the HQPlayer Desktop device.

What Each Layer Does

HQPlayer Desktop

HQPlayer Desktop is the player and DSP engine. Signalyst describes HQPlayer Desktop as an upsampling multichannel audio player for Linux, macOS, and Windows. It supports common source formats such as FLAC, WAV, AIFF, MP3, DSF, DFF, and WavPack, plus selectable filters, modulators, convolution, parametric EQ, digital volume, NAA endpoints, and control applications.

Signalyst’s quickstart describes HQPlayer Desktop as a server plus HQPlayer Client:

• Server: the actual HQPlayer Desktop playback engine.
• HQPlayer Client: a browser and control application for the server.

ECHO acts as another control and handoff surface. You can keep selecting music in ECHO, while HQPlayer handles the output chain.

ECHO HQPlayer Connect

ECHO exposes HQPlayer as a synthetic Connect output device named HQPlayer Desktop. It is not DLNA or AirPlay; it is a first-class hqplayer Connect path.

ECHO can:

• Save the HQPlayer host, control port, connection mode, and media service settings.
• Probe HQPlayer using GetInfo and Status.
• Send PlayNextURI and then Play when handing off playback.
• Send Seek when playback starts from a non-zero position.
• Send Stop when disconnecting or stopping.
• Start an ECHO media service when remote HQPlayer needs an HTTP URL instead of a local file path.

ECHO does not:

• Choose HQPlayer filters.
• Configure HQPlayer’s DAC.
• Configure NAA devices.
• Guarantee that every high-rate DSD, CUDA, ASIO, or NAA setup will be stable.
• Apply ECHO’s local DSP chain after HQPlayer takeover.

Control Port

ECHO defaults to:

127.0.0.1:4321

4321 is the HQPlayer control port. It is not the ECHO media-service port and not an NAA port.

For remote HQPlayer, use the LAN IP address of the HQPlayer machine:

192.168.1.50:4321

Do not use 127.0.0.1 for a remote machine. From ECHO’s point of view, 127.0.0.1 always means the ECHO computer itself.

Prepare HQPlayer First

Before connecting ECHO:

1. Start HQPlayer Desktop.
2. Select a stable backend and output device.
3. Play a known-good local FLAC or MP3 directly in HQPlayer.
4. Keep the first test conservative: PCM, no extreme DSD rate, no heavy convolution, no NAA if you are still troubleshooting.
5. If a USB DAC crackles with default settings, Signalyst notes that increasing buffer time to 100 ms can help.

If HQPlayer cannot play by itself, fix the HQPlayer-to-DAC chain before involving ECHO.

Local ECHO To Local HQPlayer

Use this when ECHO and HQPlayer Desktop run on the same computer.

In HQPlayer:

1. Start HQPlayer Desktop.
2. Confirm standalone playback works.
3. Select the DAC or audio device you want HQPlayer to use.
4. If ECHO cannot connect, enable HQPlayer’s Allow control from network button and test again.

In ECHO:

1. Open Connect.
2. Find the HQPlayer panel.
3. Enable HQPlayer.
4. Choose Local Desktop.
5. Keep Host as 127.0.0.1.
6. Keep control port as 4321.
7. Keep default handoff as Ask every time until the setup is proven.
8. Keep media service off for ordinary local files.
9. Click Test.

When the test succeeds, the Connect device list should show HQPlayer Desktop. Select a track in ECHO and click Connect, or use the HQPlayer takeover control from the audio settings drawer.

While HQPlayer takeover is active:

• Audio comes from HQPlayer’s selected output device.
• HQPlayer decides filter, shaper, rate, bit depth, channels, and output.
• ECHO’s local output mode and local DSP are not the final output path.
• ECHO playback controls route to the active HQPlayer session.

Remote ECHO To Remote HQPlayer

Use this when ECHO and HQPlayer Desktop run on different machines.

Example:

ECHO computer:      192.168.1.20
HQPlayer computer:  192.168.1.50
DAC:                connected to the HQPlayer computer

ECHO should connect to:

192.168.1.50:4321

Requirements:

1. Both machines can reach each other on the network.
2. HQPlayer Desktop is running on the HQPlayer machine.
3. HQPlayer can play to the DAC by itself.
4. HQPlayer has network control enabled.
5. The HQPlayer machine firewall allows the control port 4321.
6. If HQPlayer must read files from the ECHO machine, the ECHO media-service port must also be reachable.

In ECHO:

1. Open Connect.
2. Enable the HQPlayer panel.
3. Open Advanced settings.
4. Choose Remote HQPlayer.
5. Set Host to the HQPlayer computer IP.
6. Set control port to 4321.
7. Enable media service.
8. Leave media port blank for automatic selection, or set a fixed port such as 17890 if firewall rules are easier with a fixed port.
9. Click Test.

The control test only proves that ECHO can reach HQPlayer. Remote playback also requires HQPlayer to access the media URL generated by ECHO.

Why Remote Mode Often Needs Media Service

For local mode, ECHO can hand HQPlayer a local path:

D:\Music\Album\Track.flac

For remote mode, that path may not exist on the HQPlayer computer. ECHO can instead expose the track as an HTTP URL:

http://192.168.1.20:17890/hqplayer-media/...

If remote control works but playback does not, check ECHO media service and firewall access.

NAA Boundary

NAA means Network Audio Adapter. It is the endpoint between HQPlayer and the DAC, not the endpoint ECHO connects to.

Correct chain:

ECHO -> HQPlayer Desktop -> NAA -> DAC

Incorrect chain:

ECHO -> NAA -> DAC

Configure NAA inside HQPlayer:

1. Put the NAA device and HQPlayer machine on the same network.
2. Start the NAA device or Network Audio Daemon.
3. In HQPlayer, choose the Network Audio Adapter backend.
4. Select the discovered NAA device.
5. Test playback directly in HQPlayer.
6. After HQPlayer-to-NAA playback works, connect ECHO to HQPlayer.

If HQPlayer cannot discover the NAA device, troubleshoot the HQPlayer/NAA/network side first. ECHO normally does not see or select the NAA device directly.

Beginner Settings

For the first test:

• Output: PCM.
• Rate: conservative, not the DAC’s maximum on day one.
• DSD: off.
• Convolution: off.
• CUDA: off.
• NAA: off until local output is proven.
• Buffer: increase if the DAC crackles.
• Test file: ordinary FLAC or MP3.

After that:

1. Try moderate PCM upsampling.
2. Change one filter or rate at a time.
3. Watch CPU load, glitches, and track-change stability.
4. Add DSD, NAA, convolution, and CUDA one layer at a time.

Handoff Policy

Option	Meaning	Best for
Prefer ECHO	Keep ECHO native output unless confirmed	Occasional HQPlayer use
Ask every time	Confirm before handing off	First setup and troubleshooting
Prefer HQPlayer	Prefer HQPlayer for playback	Proven stable HQPlayer setups

Start with Ask every time. Switch to Prefer HQPlayer only after the whole chain is reliable.

Troubleshooting

Connection refused

Check:

• HQPlayer Desktop is running.
• Host is correct.
• Port is 4321.
• Network control is enabled when remote.
• Firewall allows the control port.

Timeout

Check:

• The remote IP is reachable.
• The two machines are not isolated by guest Wi-Fi, VPN, proxy, campus network, or company firewall.
• You are not using 127.0.0.1 for a remote machine.

Protocol error

Check:

• The port is HQPlayer’s control port, not the media-service port.
• Another service is not occupying that port.
• Restart HQPlayer and test again.

Test succeeds but no sound

This usually means ECHO reached HQPlayer, but HQPlayer-to-output is not working.

Check:

• HQPlayer is actually playing.
• Backend and Device are correct.
• DAC input and volume are correct.
• Output rate is supported by the DAC.
• ASIO/WASAPI/CoreAudio/ALSA works directly.
• NAA is online if used.

Local works, remote fails

Check:

• Media service is enabled.
• ECHO media port is reachable from the HQPlayer machine.
• Firewall allows the media port.
• HQPlayer can access the generated media URL.
• The Host field points to the HQPlayer machine, not the ECHO machine.

Spotify or protected streaming cannot hand off

Some sources cannot be handed to HQPlayer as a plain playable URI. If ECHO indicates that the Spotify SDK or an official player is required, use the native/official playback path instead of forcing HQPlayer.

Minimal Successful Configuration

1. Run ECHO and HQPlayer on the same computer.
2. Connect the DAC to that computer.
3. Make HQPlayer play a normal FLAC directly.
4. In ECHO, open Connect.
5. Enable HQPlayer.
6. Use Local Desktop.
7. Host: 127.0.0.1.
8. Control port: 4321.
9. Handoff: Ask every time.
10. Media service: off.
11. Click Test.
12. Select or play a track in ECHO.
13. Click Connect on HQPlayer Desktop.

After this works, add remote mode, NAA, DSD, convolution, and higher sample rates one at a time.

References

• Signalyst HQPlayer Desktop: https://signalyst.com/hqplayer-desktop/
• Signalyst Quickstart guide: https://signalyst.com/quickstart-guide/
• Signalyst Documentation: https://www.signalyst.com/quickstart.html
• Signalyst Downloads: https://signalyst.com/downloads/
• Signalyst Network Audio Adapter: https://signalyst.com/network-audio-adapter/