FAQ: Getting a "Playback failed" error

My DAC is showing “Playback has failed due to playback parameter negotiation with the audio device”. What’s wrong?

The Roon Test Lab is located deep inside a mountain, hidden behind a giant skull, and filled with some of the finest audio equipment in the world. All the gear in our lab is thoroughly tested with Roon, but we don't have every DAC in the world... yet.

From time to time we see DACs that haven't yet been tested with Roon, and we can occasionally have problems communicating with the hardware.

Fear not! Many of the finest audio companies in the world have already provided gear for our test lab, and new gear shows up every day. We're generally able to address these issues as soon as we have gear in hand, and sometimes just by talking with users, so let us know what's going on!

If you're getting an error trying to play to your DAC, please create a post in our Support forum with the following information:

1. What platform you're running Roon on (macOS or Windows, and the version)
   
2. The details of the content you're playing: file format, sample rate, bits per sample, number of channels, DSD, etc.
   
3. What brand and model of DAC you're using, along with firmware version if you know it
   
4. Whether you're using ASIO or any 3rd party software for communicating with your DAC
   
5. A screenshot of your DACs settings in Roon. You can find these settings under the little gear next to your DAC on the Audio tab of Settings. It should look like this:

Let us know this information, and we'll do our best to get you up and running in no time. Feel free to also let your DAC manufacturer know that using Roon is important to you! Thanks!

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