Recently I became intrigued with the idea of sub $100 streamer that can be controlled from an app on a phone (or iPad), and can output directly to a preexisting DAC. From reading a few online articles and watching a few YouTube videos, it seemed like the Raspberry Pi would fill the bill. But what exactly is a Raspberry Pi? A Raspberry Pi is a small single-board computers (SBCs) developed in the United Kingdom in association with Broadcom. It originally was aimed at teaching basic computer science in schools. Later it became popular in fields such as robotics and weather monitoring and with computer and electronic hobbyists. And then the Raspberry Pi found a home within the Audiophile community for use as a streamer. My interpretation is nothing original, I simply copied what many others have already accomplished. My goal here is to present a straightforward step-by-step guide on building and implementing a Raspberry Pi streamer. So let’s get started! Order the following from Raspberry Pi , or eBay, or Amazon, etc… * Raspberry Pi 4B. The 2GB version works fine (probably about $45 when in stock) * Power Supply for Raspberry Pi 4B, 5.1V 3.0A (about $8) * A case designed for the Raspberry Pi 4B (plastic cases start around $5, metal cases start around $20) * MicroSD Card. I went with a SanDisk Ultra 64GB (was $12 on Amazon) * If you don’t already own one, a USB cable to connect the Raspberry Pi to your DAC Assembly: 1. First you’ll need to download an operating software for the Raspberry Pi. I chose Volumio as it is popular and FREE. From a PC, go to Get Started | Volumio . Click on the links to download two software programs; Volumio and Balena Etcher. Volumio is the Raspberry Pi operating software (OS) and Belena Etcher is the software that writes Volumio to the MicroSD card. (Note - I use a Windows PC, the process may be different for Apple). 2. Insert the MicroSD card into the SD card slot on your PC (assuming you have a PC with an SD card slot). Open Belena Etcher and write the Volumio OS to the MicroSD card. It’s point and click, pretty straightforward. Takes just a couple minutes. You’re now done with Belena Etcher and you can delete it from your PC if you wish. 3. Remove the MicroSD card from your PC, and slip it into the MicroSD card slot on the Rapberry Pi board. Place the Raspberry Pi in the case, attach the power supply, and run a USB cable from the Raspberry Pi to your DAC. 4. Plug the power supply into a wall outlet. Wait for the Raspberry Pi to boot, first time takes a few minutes. 5. From a mobile device (iPad, iPhone, Android phone, etc), download the Volumio app. Launch the app and sign up for a free account. Allow the app to find the Raspberry Pi over your local WiFi (you’ll need your WiFi password). Volumio should also find the DAC that is attached to your Raspberry Pi. 6. If your media is located on a NAS (like a Synology Network Attached Storage), Volumio should find it and you can start streaming! If you’d rather burn your media to a USB drive and plug that into the Raspberry Pi, you can do that too. That's about it! The whole process took me less than an hour. Below is a pic of the completed Raspberry Pi Streamer. Scroll down to see the next installment of my Raspberry Pi Streamer saga!
Part #2 This is an optional upgrade to the Raspberry Pi streamer described above. This upgrade adds a 7” touchscreen display. A touchscreen isn’t needed to operate the streamer as all functions can be accessed through the Volumio app, however the touchscreen adds a physical interface that some may like. Parts Needed: * Official Raspberry Pi 7" Touch Screen Display ($65) * SmartiPi Touch Pro, Small - Black, $35 (Both items can be purchased from American Raspberry Pi Shop . The Touchscreen can usually be had for $55 when selecting “damaged box”. Since most of us will just throw out the box, why not save $10?) Smarti Pi Touch Pro case comes unassembled. You have to place the touchscreen in the case, insert a ribbon cable between the touchscreen and the Raspberry Pi board, screw the Raspberry Pi board to the back of touchscreen, and insert a few more screws and you’re done. After you power it up, you’ll need configure the touchscreen by going into the Volumio app: 1. From the main Volumio page, select Plugins 2. Search Plugins 3. System Hardware 4. Select the “Touch Display” plugin 5. Install That’s all that’s needed to add a touchscreen display to a Raspberry Pi streamer. The basic Raspberry Pi Streamer (without Touchscreen) came in just under $100. The upgraded Touchscreen version cost altogether less than $200. Both versions are sonically identical, one just relies on the app for navigation and the other adds a touchscreen. I suggest building the basic version first, see if it’s right for you, then add the touchscreen if you decide. Either way makes a great streamer solution for anyone with a preexisting quality DAC. Enjoy!
Nice write up! Can roon or jriver be installed on this or do you have to tap into an NAS that runs those programs?
Thanks for starting this thread. I'd been thinking of trying to build one (John Darko's video re: Rasberry Pi as a streamer) but haven't pulled the trigger as of yet. Question, can the apps for Qobuz, Tidal or Deezer be used from your phone/device? Question #2: does the music stream go through your phone and then on to the Pi or does the stream go directly to the Pi (the phone/device would only be acting as a controller in this example). Thanks again.
If you’re already using Roon, I’d suggest using Ropieee. It just creates a simple Roon endpoint for USB DACs.
Thanks for your guide @BIGGER Dave ! I’ve been curious about volumio. Do you or anyone else know how it handles SACD ISOs with XML metadata from Foobar2000? I did some Google searches and couldn’t find anything.
This thread is awesome. I'm definitely going to dig into a DIY Raspberry Pi streamer. Thanks @BIGGER Dave and you other contributors. It's looking like this might be the right time to get some Roon in my life too. Don't be surprised if I come back with questions.
I did one of these about a year and a half ago. It was a fun project, and if I had a second system to be used for background music, or something like that, I would still use one. But, they are not a high fidelity solution, by any stretch. On my main system, it fell far short, sonically speaking. It didn't take me long to notice, and a quick A/B to CD's of the same recording, into the same DAC, to confirm the sonic shortcomings. There was a 'sonic haze' that permeated everything from the music itself, to the soundstage (like it was floating within the space the musicians were playing). And that soundstage was substantially truncated in width and depth, and the musicians within the soundstage were like cardboard cutouts. When I listened to the CD, the soundstage spread beyond the outer edges of my speakers, this never happened with the RPI. I upgraded the power supply to a linear ps, and there was a slight improvement, but still not very good. My cousin brought over his MicoRendu, which is a dedicated, inexpensive streamer, and the difference was stark. I didn't initially tell him what I was comparing his MicroRendu to, but he noticed most of the same negative attributes that I did. I believe the sonic problems stem from the non-audio related functions of the RPI being on the same board, with the audio functions, thus contaminating the audio and USB. At least the 4 has a separate USB and network bus now, which is a bit of improvement. There does happen to be a RPI implementation, that sounds substantially better, and surpasses streamers costing quite a bit more $$. And that is, the ALLO Audio USB Signature. This has what they call the "clean section" and a "dirty section", and uses 2 power supplies. The dirty section has all the computer functions, and he clean section the audio and USB out. A standard $5 switching wall wart is used for the dirty section, and a better PS for the clean section. The USB Bridge Sig is $239, and the Nirvana PS is $59. Or the better Shanti PS is $159. But, the end results are a streamer that can compete with streamers close to $1000. https://allo.com/sparky/usbridge-signature-pcb.html
I am sure that it sounded better to you. In regards to different versions of RPi and connections, would you clarify something? Which RPi did you use, version 3 or 4? Version 3 was reportedly not as good with USB output Did you compare USB output from the RPi(x) to your Gustard A22 with the USB output of the MicroRendu? Which operating system did you employ on the RPi? Volumio? Ropiee? I imagine that these variations might've made a difference which you resolved by getting a higher quality USB Streaming unit.
I’ve been using a RPi4 with a JustBoom Digi Hat running Volumio for about 6 months. It’s a great solution imo, and the Digi Hat isolates the audio signal eliminating any nastiness you might get through the usb that’s a part of the Rpi board. I find the imaging in my system to extend far beyond my speakers boundaries, and though I still prefer my analog chain I would say they are fairly equally matched despite having spent a far less on the digital chain. Nice thread by the op and I can say that the build is about as simple as they come.
I did something similar to this about 5 years ago. I was using the PI to power my Plex server. Then I could use the Plex app on my phone to stream the music to my Audio Chromecast. For the setup shown above, a PI should work great. But I'm here to tell y'all that if you are thinking about going the Plex route, don't use a PI. It works, but it's slow. Not great for streaming videos either. I ended up getting a free Intel Core 3 micro desktop (A little bigger than a fatboy CD case) that works much better.
I have considered using a Pi with Logitech's Media Server Have seen plans to do that. I presently use a Squeezebox Touch. It has no issues, but I've considered a Pi should it crap out.
Great write up! my 2 cents: The pi4 run's a bit on the hot side. There are metal cases out there that act as a giant heatsink, keeping the temperatures moderate. A possible alternative to Volumio might be the also free available Moode Audio.
@BIGGER Dave Tremendous write up. Great job and salut! This is a perfect example of how great this community is.
I have a Sonare UltraRendu and an Uptone LPS-2 power supply running as a Roon endpoint. I can’t hear any difference between this rig and a $100 pi solution. Nor can I measure one. This is running both into a Benchmark DAC 3B to Benchmark HPA4. Of course YMMV.
Very easy using piCorePlayer: piCorePlayer Detailed instructions: HOW TO: Squeezebox player on Raspberry Pi with (or without) HiFiBerry board Tough to find Raspberry Pi boards right now, though. If you have a local Micro Center store, check their inventory. For a player, 2GB of RAM is fine; a server is better served having 4GB.
Good thread. I have both the MicroRendu and the RPi4 but have never compared them on the same system. Maybe one day when I feel like listening to gear more than music One bit of advice I would pass on for anyone considering using an RPi4 to stream over WiFi is to get a WiFi extender like the TP-Link N300, run an Ethernet cable from the extender to the RPi4, and turn off the internal WiFi. In my experience this will give you a much more stable connection. Not sure why the RPi4’s WiFi gave me problems, but it did in two different locations on both Volumio and Ropieee.
Funny you mentioned this. I too disconnected the wifi due to several occasions, my web browser could not read the pi. Only recourse was a hard reset. (Unplugged) Hard wired LAN connection, and it has been rock solid for over a year!
When looking at the available plugins, I see: * Roon Bridge * Logitech Media Server * Spotify * Spotify Connect 2 (for Premium/Family account) * YouTube Cast Receiver * 80s80s Radio * Bandcamp Discover * HotelRadio.FM * Jellyfin * Mini DLNA * Mixcloud * Music Services Shield * Personal Radio * Podcast * Radio Paradise * SoundCloud * Volusonic
Found this: “No, you can’t stream from tidal app, you have to use BubbleUpnp on your android device which connects to your tidal account.” More info here -> TIDAL playback
