Audio Degradation + DaiCfgReader Errors – Studio X50

[KatieClaff]

I'm raising a case regarding intermittent audio degradation on one of our Poly Studio X50. We originally upgraded to 4.6.0 and 4.6.1, but both versions resulted in crashes during meetings, so we have temporarily returned the device to 4.5.2, which has been more stable overall. Our other device is having no notable issues on 4.6.1 - but similar error messages.

With the device in question, while there was no system failure on 4.5.2 (usually in large meetings the system would crash) we are still experiencing audio-related issues during meetings, and our logs show a pattern that we believe requires investigation by Poly.

During larger Google Meet calls (15–25 participants), the remote side occasionally hears:

• hollow / phasey audio
• inconsistent noise suppression
• beamforming / mic direction shifts that sound abrupt
• momentary loss of clarity
• moments of complete audio loss

This does not happen in every meeting, but it is repeatable under load (multiple speakers, room noise, active SSL steering).

Across multiple log bundles - both when audio sounded degraded and when the audio seemed fine, we consistently see extremely frequent errors of this form:

ERROR DaiCfgReader: Unable to open /etc/dai.conf, errno=13

These appear:

• thousands of times per day
• during idle periods
• during calls
• and especially during audio reconfiguration events

In addition, during meetings the system frequently logs:

poly.uac.audio.ssl.pan changed to <value>

This reflects the SSL mic / beamforming engine shifting focus to different talkers.

Our analysis shows:

1. The DaiCfgReader permission-denied errors occur continuously, even when the room is quiet.
2. Audio degradation occurs specifically when SSL pan moves significantly (e.g., jumping to values like 66).
3. When SSL pan only moves slightly (e.g., -1, -2), the audio remains stable even though DaiCfgReader errors continue.
4. This suggests the audio subsystem is repeatedly attempting to reload DAI configuration but cannot access /etc/dai.conf due to errno=13, and that under load this partial reconfiguration leads to audible artifacts.

In short:

The underlying fault (DAI config access failure) appears constant, but symptoms only surface when the beamforming engine makes larger adjustments during active speech in the room.

Could you please advise:

1. Whether this DaiCfgReader (errno=13) behaviour is a known defect in 4.5.2 or 4.6.1 on the Studio X50.
2. Whether repeated DAI config access failures can impact SSL mic behaviour, noise cancellation, or overall audio quality.
3. The expected permissions / SELinux context for /etc/dai.conf.
4. Whether there is a recommended firmware build or patch to address this behaviour.
5. Whether Poly would like the full log bundles for engineering analysis.

This issue affects call quality in our meeting room and is making calls unbearable, so any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

[SteffenBaierUK]

Hello @KatieClaff ,

Welcome to the HP Poly community.

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• A place where you can find great tips and helpful solutions from other HP product users.

This is just a peer-to-peer community and not HP Poly support.

If no other volunteers reply, I suggest you contact our Support organization in your region. Details are in my Signature.

Best Regards

Steffen Baier