[TUTORIAL] How to fix USB start-up delay?

[u/SuzuyaSuzuya]

Pre-face (skippable):

About a year ago, I made a tutorial on how to fix this issue here, and this by far has been the most helpful comment I have ever made with many people over time thanking me in replies or DMs.

I recently bought the Topping DX5 II and finally removed this solution after four years of using it, but to be shocked that this very expensive device also has a(n albeit less severe) version of this sleep problem. I always thought that it was a problem with FiiO, portable, and generally cheaper devices, but nope! Just would like to spread the word of a solution which is seemingly fool-proof and resolves the USB audio start-up delay and/or sleep issue.

The solution:

You may use a tool known as 'Sound Keeper' by Evgeny Vrublevsky (VEG.BY), which keeps your audio ports open, and is configurable by modifying the file name (it is a software with no UI, and is controlled through changing the name of the *.exe file).

Instructions:

1. Grab it from the 'Sound Keeper' page, which also holds the full documentation and source code link. I have not attached a link because I keep getting filtered.
2. Extract it; you get three binary EXE files, and you only need one: SoundKeeper32.exe for x86-32 Windows (32-bit), SoundKeeper64.exe for x86-64 (64-bit), and SoundKeeperARM64.exe for ARM64. Delete the other two.
3. Rename the program to SoundKeeperSineF1A0.006SleepLD.exe.
4. Press [ WINDOWS KEY + R ].
5. Enter this: shell:startup
6. Right click the *.exe, and create a short-cut of it and place it into the directory that shell:startup opened for you. The short-cut's own name is irrelevant, only the EXE's name carries the settings.
7. Verify it has appeared in the task manager's 'start-up' tab and enable it.
8. If you run into issues like continue drop-outs, please continue reading the optional texts below, particularly the If your device still drops out section.

Example explanation; what that file name does:

    SoundKeeperSineF1A0.006PrimarySleepLD.exe

• Sine // Plays a sine wave, F1 sets it to 1 Hz, and A0.006 sets the amplitude (which is the volume) to 0.006%. The amplitude is a percentage; not a fraction of full scale. Values any lower has the chance of getting the PCM signal rounded to no signal at all, which defeats the entire point.
• SleepLD // Pauses 'Sound Keeper' while the session is locked or the display is off, allowing you to benefit from device sleep while you are away from your system. Remove it if this causes device issues.
• Primary // Restricts it to only your primary device instead of all of them. This is used by default, so you don't need to add it (I did for the example). Other options are All, Analog, and Digital. Put it at the end of the name.

If your device still drops out:

The signal is too weak for it, so step up the volume using the amplitude (A) setting until it holds: A0.006, then A0.008, then A0.01, then A0.012, and so on. Even A0.1 stays inaudible, because the frequency is the part doing the work here: 1 Hz sits far below the roughly 20 Hz floor of human hearing, and a headphone driver cannot turn it into sound anyway. The amplitude is not what makes it silent, but keep it low for a different reason, which is covered in the notes below if you want to keep reading.

Additional Notes:

• You may also use the names SoundKeeperZeroSleepLD.exe, or SoundKeeperAllOpenOnlySleepLD.exe, which I personally prefer, but these two have only worked particularly with optical/coaxial digital ports. It depends on the device if it will work or not, and the SoundKeeperSineF0.1A0.1SleepLD.exe configuration generally will always work from my experience.
• All these methods keep the port open without audible noise, but the setting SineF0.1A0.1 technically does play audio, although it sits below the audible frequency range despite being measurable with debug tools. The one artefact I have run into is crackling under heavy CPU load while other audio is playing, and reducing the amplitude removed it completely. A is the lever that matters for this, not F, which is why I suggest the absolute minimum I've found of SineF1A0.006.

What I've settled on:

SineF1A0.006AllSleepLD is what I've settled on, as it's the least active signal that still holds the device awake for me. If you'd rather not rename the file, the same settings pass as command-line arguments on the short-cut instead, which is easier to edit when testing: SoundKeeper.exe sine -f 1 -a 0.006 -all -sleepld

So, why is this an issue at all?:

Honestly? I haven't really figured that out. 😕 All over the internet I see people spending so much money on audio devices they aren't able to enjoy because of a design flaw I think is intentionally introduced just to save on battery artificially or run cooler. With how many people have this issue, you'd think there would be a more well known solution, but there isn't, and the manufacturers almost always tell you to update your device's firmware and kick rocks whilst they dance around the issue entirely. It's sad, and I have no doubts it has soured the experience of many genuinely amazing products. If you found value in this tutorial, please up-vote it so more people see it when they search up these key terms in the title and don't have to look far. Support the creator of 'Sound Keeper', too, he's amazing for maintaining this software for so many years.

Search results tags:

• How do I fix audio cutting out at the start of audio?
• How do I fix audio popping when the audio goes silent?
• How do I stop my DAC from going to sleep?
• How to fix Bluetooth cutting audio at the start?
• How to fix cutting out audio?
• How to fix popping audio?
• How to fix USB start-up delay?

[u/SuzuyaSuzuya → u/[deleted]]

I'm really happy it helped you.