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Let me explain what we are dealing with and provide some clarity into our strategy:
1) DACport Classic, that original cigar -shaped product maxed out at 24-bit/96kHz. In tech speak, that allows it to use the older USB standard, USB 1.1. The good news about USB 1.1 is that Mac, Windows and Linux all have USB 1.1 audio drivers built-in. We only released ASIO drivers for Windows (not audio drivers) and those worked fine.
2) DACport Slim goes way beyond 24-bit/96kHz and supports 192kHz. This requires more bandwidth than what's available in the older USB 1.1 standard and automatically switches the product into the USB 2.0 device category. Sadly, Windows does not bundle audio drivers for USB 2.0 devices, so manufacturers are on their own, forced to provide audio functionality themselves. Normally, this won't be an issue, since we have offered robust Windows audio and ASIO drivers for years. However, read #3 below.
3) With Windows 10 (actually, starting as far back as Windows 8.1) Microsoft decided to "improve" the audio system in Windows and basically broke everything. Our great existing drivers, that used to work before, are no longer functional, because Windows has entirely redone the way audio is handled. Even though they've changed things, they still don't provide USB 2.0 audio drivers, so we (and most other manufacturers) have to scramble to understand what they did and update our drivers. Thanks, MS.
4) In the Pro Audio world, where we do a lot of our business, people are more conservative. They know that new OS versions contain bugs that take months to clean up. They don't immediately rush to upgrade their work systems as soon as new OS versions come out. They know that if their system breaks, they won't be able to work and make money. They only upgrade once the new OS is very stable. We thought this would be the case here as well, but you guys are all eager to check out the latest and greatest! That's where we miscalculated. We thought that Windows 10 installations would be few and far between, but looks like many people have already upgraded. No worries, help is on the way.
5) A word on USB hubs. As the user guide states, we don't recommend using hubs. A lot of hubs don't manage power correctly. DACport Slim requires power because it offers Class-A amp and drives a lot of juice into your awesome headphones. Another problem with hubs is that sometimes they limit the available bandwidth, which with USB 2.0 and 192 kHz may become a problem. So, we recommend to stay away from hubs and plug the unit directly into the computer.
6) A word on USB cables. If using your own USB cable, please be careful to use a "real" USB data cable, not a charging cable. The charging cable typically comes with batteries and only has two wires (power wires), but it lacks the two data wires, which carry the USB audio. The charging cables won't work.
Now that you know about the issues themselves, let's talk about our plan for resolution.
Our programmers are working night and day to release the new driver version, which will fully support Windows 10. Once it's available, we will make an announcement. We hope to have it ready very soon. Meantime, to test things out, we have reached out to a few of you with some beta-test instructions. We will make sure things work well and everything is stable before making a general announcement.
Thank you for your patience and in the meantime, you should be able to use the product with Macs and Windows 7 machines.
Once again, our goal is to have a smooth experience for you, our customers, and I apologize for the inconvenience you have seen. We will not abandon you. We remain committed to you and will deliver upgraded driver experience soon.
Michael Goodman CEO CEntrance, Inc.
I have had many frustrating experiences with USB 2 hubs not providing enough power for various devices. Most frustrating is the lack of a useful error message from Windows when, presumably, it knows there's a problem during the connection process. I now use semi-industrial quality USB 2 and 3 hubs, which largely solve this problem. If you can, consider detecting potential power supply problems, and find a way to notify users during installation.
Which begs the questions: How much power would be sufficient? Does the DACport Slim draw more than the USB 2.0 standard of 500 mA? (Maybe it has a power draw spike when it's initially plugged in, then stabilizes at a lower level?) Or do a bunch of us users just have PCs that don't actually supply 500 mA from their USB 2.0 ports?
The USB 2.0 ports on my Dell Lattitude laptop have never had a problem powering any other USB device I've tried over the past two years, including a couple of older Western Digital Elements portable USB-powered hard drives that probably push the power demands of USB 2.0.
There is also a protocol issue we've discovered that has some hubs reacting incorrectly. Stand by. The solution is on the way.
It's fun trying to make your product compatible with literally thousands of computer configurations. This requires time and perseverance. We are mostly there though. We've grouped the incompliant systems into two categories and are testing solutions for both. Once they are solid, will roll out to every one.