lotusmark Posted November 22, 2020 Share Posted November 22, 2020 I am a computer numpty..... I have a NOS Valves based system and spin a lot of vinyl. But there are many times where I don’t plan on ‘activly’ listening. I was getting to my digital library via an early apple airport that had analog outputs. These are no longer available. What is the simple solution? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ole Dollar Posted November 22, 2020 Share Posted November 22, 2020 I use an iFi DAC connected to my computer via USB, it has RCA output as well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lotusmark Posted November 22, 2020 Author Share Posted November 22, 2020 My computer is not near my stereo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeloManiac Posted November 22, 2020 Share Posted November 22, 2020 Advance Acoustic WTX Microstreamer Check my review here. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lotusmark Posted November 22, 2020 Author Share Posted November 22, 2020 Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whatever55 Posted November 26, 2020 Share Posted November 26, 2020 How about this https://transcendentsound.com/pi-music-server.html Home Products Books Order-Terms Contact Forum DIY Speakers Newsletter Transcendent Sound Vacuum Tube OTL Audio Amp Kits Build a Raspberry Pi 4 Music Server High End Performance for under $150. Not a Kit. DIY Project to Share How would you like to build a music server that rivals those that cost over 10 times as much for less than $150. This project (not a kit) will get you there. The performance is outstanding. It's so good, it allows digital sources to finally reach the sound quality it always was meant to have. The sound is much closer to vinyl, and that is with standard 44.1 kHz, 16 bit sources. Hi res digital should sound even better. Here are the ingredients: Raspberry Pi 4 computer, 4 gig $55 HiFiBerry DAC + Pro $40 Raspberry Pi 4 3A power supply $15 32 gig high speed (100MB/sec) micro SD $12 Pi fan $5 Misc Pi hardware $5 total $132 (plus shipping and taxes) (also needed is a USB hard drive which most people already have) Here is how to build it. For the base, any type of material can be used. Shown is a scrap piece of 3/8 hardwood. A fan must be used. The assembly will get rather hot. The heat goes into the circuit board so the best place to mount the fan is underneath and have it blow upwards. This knocks the board temperature down about 35 degrees F. The board should be about 20 mm or 3/4 inch above the base so air can freely flow around it. Pi hardware is 2.5 mm with .45 mm screw pitch. Now for the operating system (OS) installation. First make sure the SD card is properly formatted, FAT32. (32 gig is the maximum size for the Pi) Best to use a dedicated formatter freeware program like SD Card Formatter Now download the operating system to your desktop computer. This project is using Volumio. It is also freeware but they have upgrades with subscription options. It is zipped so it must be unpacked first. For more detail about the OS, please refer to their website. Volumio Next, flash the Volumio to the mico SD card. This is not the same as copying a file. It requires another freeware program called balenaEtcher balenaEtcher Now flash the Volumio to the micro SD card. Connect the hard drive and an ethernet cable to the Pi. Plug in the power supply. Give the OS about five minutes to cook. This OS is headless. No keyboards or monitors are necessary. It uses any smart phone or tablet to control it. An internet browser is used for operation. This allows for complete remote control. The control device and the Pi must be on the same WiFi network. The OS generates a WiFi hotspot which is used to connect to your network. Once connected, the ethernet cable can be removed. There are many configuration options. There are plug-ins for various streaming services and features. The OS can use a network hard drive if desired. The Pi USB ports cannot supply much current. They can power only one hard drive. There isn't enough current for a CD reader. A USB hub would then be necessary (untested for this build, nor has CD ripping been tested). New CD's can be ripped by plugging the hard drive into your desktop if desired. That's the whole thing! It costs next to nothing and provides true high end performance. Please join us on the forum for relating your experiences with this project. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jones Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 Not to hijack this thread, but I've heard different things about DAC's. Some think they are absolutely essential for any decent system, and others think only very few people can actually hear a very slight difference. I'm thinking about upgrading my amp and I'm wondering if DAC is something I should consider essential. What do you guys think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billybob Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 1 hour ago, Jones said: Not to hijack this thread, but I've heard different things about DAC's. Some think they are absolutely essential for any decent system, and others think only very few people can actually hear a very slight difference. I'm thinking about upgrading my amp and I'm wondering if DAC is something I should consider essential. What do you guys think? You could do it because of inboard dac or external add on, depending on how the economics work for you. Main thing is streaming direct from YouTube for an example, since it contains video, which I look prefer, my external middle price dac, sure made a noticeable difference for me. Lately, I am pleased with my old vintage SS integrated with my cellphone. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panelhead Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 What are you using for a computer? I have a 8 year old Mac Mini. Using the Thunderbolt port to connect to a Focusrite Clarett. There are Corning optical TB cables that are not length limited. I use a 10 meter cable. But have a 30 meter that works just as well. Dug an old dac out that has DRC to try with the LS II. It is FireWire connected. So 5 meters max like USB. Actually DAC works better with 2 meters or less. Running 10 meter analog cables to reach the amps. Have used single ended and balanced. Both work fine. So you can run a long pair of cables from a dac to your tube preamp. Have not tried streaming, but am sure it works very well. Just seems complicated. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jones Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 9 hours ago, Panelhead said: What are you using for a computer? I have a 8 year old Mac Mini. Using the Thunderbolt port to connect to a Focusrite Clarett. There are Corning optical TB cables that are not length limited. I use a 10 meter cable. But have a 30 meter that works just as well. Dug an old dac out that has DRC to try with the LS II. It is FireWire connected. So 5 meters max like USB. Actually DAC works better with 2 meters or less. Running 10 meter analog cables to reach the amps. Have used single ended and balanced. Both work fine. So you can run a long pair of cables from a dac to your tube preamp. Have not tried streaming, but am sure it works very well. Just seems complicated. My setups right now are pretty basic. Office runs a windows PC with USB connection to R51 PM's and an R120 SW subwoofer. The living room is a Roku TV connected to an old Pioneer VSX D307, with old PSB alpha 5's and the same subwoofer. I don't have a preamp. I don't really listen to records anymore, mostly Youtube and Youtube music. I'm not gonna touch my office setup for a while, but eventually I'm looking to spend about 500 on an amp that would power some larger floor standing speakers in the living room. Do you know of any amps at that price with internal DAC? Or is it just as economical buying another amp and running external DAC? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pondoro Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 (edited) 1 hour ago, Jones said: My setups right now are pretty basic. Office runs a windows PC with USB connection to R51 PM's and an R120 SW subwoofer. The living room is a Roku TV connected to an old Pioneer VSX D307, with old PSB alpha 5's and the same subwoofer. I don't have a preamp. I don't really listen to records anymore, mostly Youtube and Youtube music. I'm not gonna touch my office setup for a while, but eventually I'm looking to spend about 500 on an amp that would power some larger floor standing speakers in the living room. Do you know of any amps at that price with internal DAC? Or is it just as economical buying another amp and running external DAC? I have been looking hard at $300-$500 amps. Some have DACs, others do not. Many have optical and coax inputs but no USB input. I am also a "store all the music on a PC" guy and also listen to a lot of YouTube and online concerts. I would love to go PC=>Amplifier=>Speakers using only a USB. Price of the amp does not seem to drive DAC, some cheaper amps have DAC, some expensive amps do not. Edited November 28, 2020 by Pondoro Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hanksjim1 Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 you might want to check out the Schiit DACs as a side purchase...some quite inexpensive, has the USB as well as optical and coax digital connections, likely better than what's built into the amps at this price point... https://www.schiit.com/products/modi-1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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