Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Controlling System Volume when connected to a DAC?

M

mcomp112

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jan 1, 2017
111
28
Hi all. Any advice on how to control system volume when connected to a DAC via USB?

I recently upgraded my audio setup and, while everything sounds great, MacOS seems to be disabling system volume control when I'm connected to the DAC. I have to use the volume control on the DAC to alter volume instead of the usual keyboard shortcuts.

I didn't have this issue with my previous speakers that also ran via USB (B&W MM-1) so I'm assuming there's got to be some settings fix or perhaps another app that could control system volume.

Anyone with any experience with this issue? All help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
 
mcomp112 said:
Hi all. Any advice on how to control system volume when connected to a DAC via USB?

I recently upgraded my audio setup and, while everything sounds great, MacOS seems to be disabling system volume control when I'm connected to the DAC. I have to use the volume control on the DAC to alter volume instead of the usual keyboard shortcuts.

I didn't have this issue with my previous speakers that also ran via USB (B&W MM-1) so I'm assuming there's got to be some settings fix or perhaps another app that could control system volume.

Anyone with any experience with this issue? All help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Click to expand...

So I've been using high end professional DAC's with Mac's for over 15 years...volume control for me has always been on the external device itself. That's how it's supposed to work...and how I want it to work, frankly.

I've only known OS X to control volume from internal speakers or the computer audio out ports. Not sure how the old MM-1 of yours worked. They must have leveraged drivers or something.
 
  • Like
Reactions: vddobrev
At least some USB DAC's allow an OS to control volume in the DAC. Regarding the article you linked, if the OS you had volume control with the MM-1 is the same one (and at the same update level) you're using now which doesn't have volume control with the DAC, then the problem is not the OS.

It may be that your DAC doesn't support volume control over USB or that something in the implementation is not right - either on the DAC end or the Apple end. I have an older (probably 8 years old), cheaper (maybe $100 at the time) where the volume control does appear in the latest version of El Capitan - but it doesn't affect the volume. (This behavior is the same in a Snow Leopard Mac I have so I don't think it's an El Capitan issue.)

The thing about volume control is that you really want it to be done in analog, not digitally. The MM-1 almost certainly did the volume control in the analog, not the digital. Cheaper DAC's may not do analog volume control because it will require additional electronics to do so. Check with the DAC manufacturer and see if they have analog volume control and if they support controlling it via USB, and if they do, if there are known issues with using it with whatever Mac OS version you're using. It maybe that the DAC volume control is digital and because of that, they chose not to support volume control via USB.
 
  • Like
Reactions: rawweb
treekram said:
The thing about volume control is that you really want it to be done in analog, not digitally.
Click to expand...

This is also what I've always understood or been told to be the case. The main reason audiophiles go external is for maximum quality and control over audio.

I think this thread may be misplaced as it's less of a "MacBook Pro" concern, more hardware or OS related.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back