I2S DACs for the Raspberry Pi are getting really good

chip · « **Reply #20 on:** 28 Oct 2016, 03:57 pm »

Yeah I have two flirc cases though I did paint mine.

Odal3 · « **Reply #21 on:** 3 Nov 2016, 03:16 am »

I removed the cheap RCAs from the mamboberry a few days ago. I soldered two runs of zenwave audio's Neotech 24 gauge upocc wire between the dac outputs and the amp board. Total wire length is only about 2.5".

I'm not very good at describing the sound in audiophile terms but I really enjoyed what I heard. This is definitely another simple tweak to get a little bit better sound quality.

Odal3 · « **Reply #22 on:** 3 Nov 2016, 03:17 am »

Quote from: chip on 28 Oct 2016, 03:57 pm

Yeah I have two flirc cases though I did paint mine.

Nice

chip · « **Reply #23 on:** 17 Nov 2016, 07:07 pm »

Still undecided but would like to try one of the following HiFiBerry DAC+ Pro, Mamboberry LS DAC+/Kali combo, Kali + Piano Bundle and undecided on which route to go.

Though right now the Mamboberry is out of stock.

JohnR what are your thoughts on the Kali combo?

JohnR · « **Reply #24 on:** 20 Nov 2016, 08:57 am »

Hi, haven't had time to play with it this week but my impressions were quite positive. At the moment my main headphones are out of action so it's a bit hard to judge much.

chip · « **Reply #25 on:** 28 Nov 2016, 09:35 pm »

I gave in and ordered the HiFiBerry DAC+ Pro.

I can have this hooked up to the pi2 and use the usb dac on the Pi B+ as a comparison both running latest moodeaudio.

JohnR · « **Reply #26 on:** 29 Nov 2016, 03:53 pm »

Cool.

JRace · « **Reply #27 on:** 29 Nov 2016, 04:54 pm »

Quote from: chip on 28 Nov 2016, 09:35 pm

I gave in and ordered the HiFiBerry DAC+ Pro.

I can have this hooked up to the pi2 and use the usb dac on the Pi B+ as a comparison both running latest moodeaudio.

Good choice. I have the Pi3 + HiFi Berry + pro (with the touchscreen) running Rune.

Interested to hear your results compared to the USB dac.

chip · « **Reply #28 on:** 29 Nov 2016, 05:05 pm »

Might be a bit until I get to it.

What touch screen you using in your setup?

megabigeye · « **Reply #29 on:** 22 Dec 2016, 03:03 am »

I recently got the HiFiBerry DAC+ Pro for my birthday and so far I'd have a hard time recommending it... So far. Turns out there is a known bug with the DAC+ Pro and the Pi 3, where the clock crystals interfere with the Pi's built-in wifi (I think it can also effect the RPi2, even with a dongle). There are work-arounds, but I haven't tried/figured out any of them yet. I'm not computer savvy enough to feel completely confident.

Anyway, as a result I've only been able to listen to it for a few minutes while I had it plugged directly into my router. What little I heard I mostly liked, with the possible exception of the highs which seemed a little strident. Very, very detailed. But, like I said, this was only after a few minutes of listening.

I'll try to remember to let you guys know if I figure it out.

megabigeye · « **Reply #30 on:** 22 Dec 2016, 03:42 am »

Quote from: JLM on 26 Oct 2016, 09:52 am

$90 for streamer/player/DAC is highly intriguing, but have zero DIY skills for this kind of stuff. (For me, running a computer to the DAC equipped with a remote control is a stretch into high tech.) Is this gear really, really, really operationally stable? I dipped my toe into a modded Squeeze Box 2 years ago (fantastic design concept), that wasn't stable, and backed out for years.

Is anyone in the business of building them for sale? Say in a decent box?

As you can see from my post above, I wouldn't call it "really, really, really operationally stable." In general, I'm kinda like you and if I can't get something to work on the first try I want to smash it with a hammer. I'm trying to be patient with this, though!
I did get Volumio to work with one of my old USB DACs (Nuforce HDP), though, and it sounded as good as I'd expect... On the other hand, I couldn't get it to work with two of my newer DACs (Peachtree Nova65SE and Fiio X5 1st gen.), though I'm not 100% certain I wasn't doing something wrong. And I've not read about any problems with the I2S DACs other than mine.

With all that said, I wouldn't not recommend it either. Hooking up an I2S DAC is as simple as carefully plugging it in and screwing it in place. Installing and using Volumio is pretty much dead simple and you can stream your iTunes library via AirPlay. Kinda a kludge, but it works well enough. You can also set it up to play Spotify or Tidal directly through Volumio and control it with a browser on a PC, iOS, or Android. You can get a Raspberry Pi and all the necessary accoutrements for about $50 (minus DAC, of course) and figure out if it works for you for pretty minimal outlay. Then get the I2S DAC later if it seems like something you'd be able to use. If not? Use the Pi for something else or give it to a friend. They have a million and one uses.

For me, inexpensive + good sound + some "DIY" (not truly DIY) effort = most listening enjoyment.

Odal3 · « **Reply #31 on:** 22 Dec 2016, 01:22 pm »

Sorry to hear you're having some trouble. Take a look here for recommended solutions https://www.hifiberry.com/blog/wlan-driver-bug-in-raspberry-pi-kernel/

I don't have a hifiberry so I can't confirm if it works or not. It looks like you have to either use an external WiFi dongle or try to change the wifi channels on your router. A WiFi dongle can be bought for $10 or so and is what I use with my RPI2 that doesn't include internal wifi.

Hope you can get it fixed

chip · « **Reply #32 on:** 22 Dec 2016, 03:52 pm »

Megabigeye

Have you tried moodraudio yet ?

JRace · « **Reply #33 on:** 22 Dec 2016, 04:57 pm »

Quote from: chip on 29 Nov 2016, 05:05 pm

Might be a bit until I get to it.

What touch screen you using in your setup?

Missed this.

Using the "official" raspberry pi touch screen
https://www.raspberrypi.org/products/raspberry-pi-touch-display/

Interesting bug mentioned about the dac+pro and wlan.
I have only tried wired, will test out the wlan with Rune and see if there is any issues.

megabigeye · « **Reply #34 on:** 23 Dec 2016, 12:28 am »

So, I've got it working for now. I set my router to use specific channels, instead of letting it pick automatically. I'm (prepared to be) not entirely thrilled by that fix because I live in a place with lots of wifi traffic and, from what I understand, using only one channel can lead to interference. I guess I'll cross that bridge when I get there. I don't know if there are other drawbacks; I'll have to look into that. If anybody has any input on which channels for both 2.4 and 5GHz work best, I'd appreciate it.
Eventually I'm going to get a wifi dongle* and I might just switch the whole system over to a Pi 2 that I have. From what I understand, in order to not use built-in wifi on the 3 requires turning it off completely... which is fine, except that the only instructions I found for using the dongle seems like it would turn the built-in wifi back on.

Chip, from what I understand it's a hardware problem, so switching to moode or one of the others isn't going to fix anything. Although I'd still be interested to see if others have the problem. As far as I can figure out it doesn't effect everybody.

*Am I the only one that giggles a little bit every time I hear/read/type/say that word??

gychang · « **Reply #35 on:** 24 Dec 2016, 09:47 pm »

I am not sure if C&C forum, this can be beat RPi0 + PhatDAC...., I have 2 at home and sounds glorious... Software I use to control is moodeaudio. Some information here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oI-WPFqthbM

https://shop.pimoroni.com/products/phat-dac

dr_skoobie · « **Reply #36 on:** 5 Jan 2017, 08:14 pm »

I got on this train over the holidays.

I bought the Cana-kit pi3 from Amazon. Not a bad price for the pi, 5v wall wart, and a case at $50 shipped Prime.

I have been using it with my Schiit Modi and Moode Audio. It was easy to set up, though I find that the Moode set up guide left out some basic things (e.g., how to connect with the pi initially-- it actually broadcasts its own wireless network connection; only after you set it up to join your home wireless can you reach it via its IP address!).

I can put together a quick how-to if folks are interested.

I think it sounds quite good overall. I have read that some folks are using the pi plus a Hifi digi hat out to Schiit's multibit Modi 2 (the SPDIF in has slightly better performance than the USB) and are quite happy.

I went the route of the Mamboberry LS, it just arrived. I may try the Kali reclocker with it later. Looking forward to comparing it the Modi!

It has been very stable, and my fairly large FLAC collection on NAS loads quickly. So far I'm pretty stoked

.

JRace · « **Reply #37 on:** 5 Jan 2017, 09:19 pm »

Quote from: megabigeye on 23 Dec 2016, 12:28 am

If anybody has any input on which channels for both 2.4 and 5GHz work best, I'd appreciate it.

Which ch depends on your environment and which other Wireless Access points are interfering.
Unless you know what ch's are noisy you should not change this yourself.

If you want to find out you can download an app for your phone:
I use:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.farproc.wifi.analyzer&hl=en

WC · « **Reply #38 on:** 6 Jan 2017, 03:34 am »

Quote from: dr_skoobie on 5 Jan 2017, 08:14 pm

I got on this train over the holidays.

I bought the Cana-kit pi3 from Amazon. Not a bad price for the pi, 5v wall wart, and a case at $50 shipped Prime.

I have been using it with my Schiit Modi and Moode Audio. It was easy to set up, though I find that the Moode set up guide left out some basic things (e.g., how to connect with the pi initially-- it actually broadcasts its own wireless network connection; only after you set it up to join your home wireless can you reach it via its IP address!).

I can put together a quick how-to if folks are interested.

I think it sounds quite good overall. I have read that some folks are using the pi plus a Hifi digi hat out to Schiit's multibit Modi 2 (the SPDIF in has slightly better performance than the USB) and are quite happy.

I went the route of the Mamboberry LS, it just arrived. I may try the Kali reclocker with it later. Looking forward to comparing it the Modi!

It has been very stable, and my fairly large FLAC collection on NAS loads quickly. So far I'm pretty stoked .

I would be interested in how the mamboberry compares to the Modi. I have a Modi that I was going to use with my Pi. Are you using Ethernet or Wi-Fi for connection?

Odal3 · « **Reply #39 on:** 27 Jan 2017, 08:03 pm »

Quote from: JohnR on 27 Oct 2016, 01:51 pm

@Odal3, I ordered a Kali with the Piano DAC. Thanks for the reminder

Curious to hear how you and others like the Kali board.

On a different topic, I need to get a separate signal out to a sub from the Hat board. Is the easiest/best option to just hook up parallell wires to one of the output channels?

What's the required network if I want to sum the L and R channels? I have only done that in software with multichannel dacs in the past