Release Notes D&D 8-Series Firmware 2.2

This document describes the contents and new features of firmware release 2.2 for the Dutch & Dutch 8-series products.

Overview

Release 2.2 was officially released on Dec 22st 2022. This version introduces Spotify Connect along with several other new features and improvements.

! IMPORTANT !
This firmware should be controlled with version 1.2 (or higher) of its companion app Ascend. Older versions of Ascend are not fully compatible. Using an older app version is not harmful for the speakers in any way, but it can result in missing functionality. If you use the native app, please update to the latest version before installing this firmware.
! IMPORTANT !

New Features

Spotify Connect

8-series products can now accept direct streaming via Spotify Connect. Simply click the devices icon in your Spotify app and select the name of your room.

Ascend App Improvement

• Improved connectivity
  Reconnecting after the app has been in background mode is faster and more reliable.
• Improved streaming integration
  When streaming from Roon Ready or Spotify Connect the app shows track metadata including the album cover. In the room settings you can choose whether the streaming source should be deselected automatically on pause or, alternatively, when you manually disconnect in the third-party app.
• Unified gain control
  Ascend no longer has a separate gain setting for every input source. Instead, it has one "unified" gain setting in combination with a 'gain correction' setting for each input. This allows you to balance the different input levels relatively to each other.
  More information on how to set up your gain structure can be found here.
• Voicing profiles
  Just like multiple RoomCorrection Profiles can be stored and switched between, you can now store and instantly switch between multiple Voicing Profiles.
• Easier room management
  When the app finds a new room on the network, you are presented with the option to add it to your overview. There is a matching option in the settings menu to "forget" a room and hide it from the overview.
• Dark theme
  In the app settings you can choose a dark theme, which can be more comforting for your eyes in low light situations.
• Compatibility mode
  When the speakers in a room are running old firmware, the app is able to go to compatibility mode so you can control the room without problems.

How to update?

In the Ascend app a gray notification icon should become visible in the header of the main room view. Click this icon to go to the firmware view and then click 'Install' in the bottom of the screen. As mentioned on the top of this document, please update your app to the latest version before installing this firmware.

FAQ

• Why do I have voicing settings I did not create after the update?
  This happens for two reasons. Firstly, in the previous version, only one voicing (previously called Tone Controls) was available. During the update to r2.2 those settings were imported into a separate "switchable" voicing called "Migrated Voicing". Secondly, if you created presets under the previous firmware, then any voicing settings from those presets were also imported into a separate, switchable voicing with the name of the preset.
  
• Why am I still seeing the old web app?
  This is likely caused by your browser cache. Browsers store local copies of websites to prevent having to download the same content multiple times. To bypass the browser's cache, you can try a hard refresh by holding down the shift key while clicking the refresh button or using your browser's hard refresh shortcut. More information can be found in this howtogeek.com article.
  
• I'm getting a message about Compatibility Mode, what does that mean?
  New versions of the app automatically check whether it is compatible with the firmware version on your speakers. Should the app detect that the firmware is too old, it will offer you the option to load a compatible app version, or to update the firmware on your speakers.
  
• I'm trying to change the gain (or other setting), why don't my speakers respond?
  This is most likely happening because you are using an old app version to control new firmware. Please make sure that both the app and firmware are updated to the latest version.
  
• Why do I have to set the gain value higher than before to get the same output?
  Under previous firmware versions every input source had its own gain setting. In this release, those separate gain settings were replaced by a single "unified" gain, in combination with a static correction for every input source. During the update to r2.2, those corrections are calculated automatically from the old input source gains. It is possible that, because of this correction, the output for a certain gain value is less than you are accustomed to. To change this, open the room menu, go to the settings for the relevant input source and set the correction to 0 dB. This should reset the relationship between output and gain setting and restore the previous behavior.
  More information on how to set up your gain structure can be found here.

Troubleshooting

There are currently no known issues with this release.