Sennheiser PC37X randomly goes bad after disconnecting the cable ?
Greetings, Yesterday I was using my headset like normal with my macbook, just listening to music and on a call with people like usual, and the headset was perfectly fine. The stock wire that came with the headset is extremely long and yesterday it annoyed me very much that it kept getting tangled with itself, so I decided to see if the cable is replaceable. I pulled out the cable from the headset and saw the adapter, and looked online for a replacement. Upon plugging it back in, the audio sounded extremely muffled and washed out. Im not sure what I did wrong to make it mess up like that as I've always taken good care of it, ive had it for about 2 years and its always just been chilling on my desk, but anywho I thought the cable just went bad and ordered a replacement. The replacement came, and the issue is still persistant, so I am not sure what the issue is I've tried multiple different headsets and the issue is not with the port, and I also tried it with my windows laptop and...
Apr 23, 2024
I am using the schiit headphone amp with a JDS Labs ODAC on my PC/windows 10. I want to take the ODAC to work, and use grace design or the schiit multibit DAC at home. Are you saying the schiit multibit won't work with windows 10?
I was thinking I'd get the schiit dac so it stacks nicely, but if it doesn't work with windows 10 I might need this one instead?
The issues comes down to changes that Microsoft has made in Windows 10 Anniversary Edition in regards to device drivers. Basically any computer which has a fresh install of Windows 10 in which the install media was Anniversary Edition and above (so basicalkly any brand new PC, or any which the media is now downloaded from Microsoft's website) Microsoft will ONLY allow drivers that are signed through their driver signing process to be installed. There are steps that you can take in order to get around this, but it is cumbersome and troublesome for devices that have Bitlocker enabled (as you need to disable Secure Boot, so then will need to enter the bit locker key each time you boot up the computer) and overall not recommended by Microsoft at all. Another option is finding drivers older than July 29th, 2015 as all these drivers are uneffected. The reason for this change is so Microsoft can try and ensure that Windows is as stable and secure as possible. This is a way they help to eliminate dodgy drivers causing system crashes are exploiting vulnerabilities. If you want to read more about it here is a blog post from Microsoft about it: https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/windows_hardware_certification/2016/07/26/driver-signing-changes-in-windows-10-version-1607/
What is pretty frustrating about this is Microsoft has given plenty of time and warning to device manufacturers that this was going to occur. A lot seem to have ignored it, which results in bad times for their customers. It's pretty poor form really.
This causes issues with a range of devices. As an example I can't use my xDuoo XD-05 as a USB DAC on any of my computers (all are basically brand new) as the drivers available are not signed. It seems there are a lot of these DACs out there with unsigned drivers, so a lot won't work. There are a few which are able to use built in Windows drivers (which Massdrop seems to indicate is the case here) but for a lot it's not clear if a drivers will ever be signed for them. If Massdrop can fully confirm the Windows 10 Anniversary compatibility that would put some minds at easy (like mine, and would lead to me jumping on this).
Number 1, there are plenty of alternatives to what Microsoft offers. Apple has MacOS, Google has ChromeOS, there are dozens of Linux distro's out there. That's not even mentioning mobile OS's like iOS, Android or Tizen. Don't like Microsoft then go elsewhere. It's your choice to remain with them.
As for my comments above, I was laying none of the blame on Microsoft. I think this move by Microsoft is a good one. These random, untested and uncontrolled drivers where causing massive issues with system stability and causing potential security risks and holes. Going the route they have allows Windows to still support the wide range of devices and applications it always has, but due to it's testing and endorsing of drivers (and deployment through Windows Update) it gives a far better overall user experience, better system stability and security. Microsoft clearly outlined it's plans for this several years ago. The fact that there are current devices out there with unsigned Windows drivers is solely the fault of the companies that made the devices. They have either been too lazy, ignorant or flat out careless and haven't done what needs to be done to keep their products working as they should. Unfortunately the impact is on their customers. Sadly many of these same companies turn around and blame Microsoft for their own inability to follow the requirements. Windows 10 Anniversary is OVER a year old now so it is quite simply ridiculous that any company is still having issues with their current products. Again, this is a MANUFACTURER issue and NOT a Microsoft one.
Now, I'm not saying Massdrop is any of these things. If this device is made following Microsoft guidelines for support, then it is very likely it will work with fresh Windows 10 Anniversary install. If they have opted to use built in drivers or have made their own drivers signed by Microsoft then there will be no issue with this product and Windows 10. But I think we need Massdrop to confirm this.