'Analog Dinosaur' succumbs to the joys of FBA : enter Raspberry Pi 2/IQ-Audio DAC+!!

[mikmas]

I just saw this by a guy on a DIY forum: http://internetofmusic.nl/home/

It's a Pi with DAC (might be Hifibury+?) and a 2 channel, 30W Class-D Hypex amplifier in one box, ready to go with wifi and your choice of software, shown here with the case open. Looks to be priced at about £210 + VAT . Doing a quick parts add up with estimations on the case and bits, that works out to about £50 or so for someone to build and set it all up for you - not bad at all :

Very cool - apart from being the first 'all-in-one' I've come across it's also the first boxing where the card reader is easily accessible ... very well thought out and executed for that price!!

[struth]

My wooden box is great for the card too.. The one on the second system is terrible...

[Starterman]

I cut a hole in my perspex pi box so that I did not have to dismantle the darned thing every time I wanted to access the microSD.
I have no idea why they don't come like that!

[cyclopse]

I cut a hole in my perspex pi box so that I did not have to dismantle the darned thing every time I wanted to access the microSD.
I have no idea why they don't come like that!

You have to use tweezers to remove without drama. (putting back in is a little harder).

[struth]

I know I do

[lovejoy]

I've just performed the mod replacing the surface mount R5 and R7 resistors with Charcroft Z-Foils. I've done very little surface mount soldering, but this wasn't too tricky due to the fact that the pads have a decent amount of space around them and the board itself is of good quality so no danger of lifting tracks etc. I'd still recommend a magnifying glass but overall you don't need to be a soldering master.
Differences immediately apparent: More solidity and confidence in the lower registers and strings and piano have gained a bit more weight giving them that real presence that I love and find so rarely with digital systems. Soundstage seems to have widened too. Very nice indeed and well worth the outlay.

I'm guessing that C9 and C10 on the DAC board that sit after the resistors are OK as they are?

[struth]

Must get round to doing it myself sometime.

[webby]

83 pages? I've got some catching up to do!

[Marco]

I've just performed the mod replacing the surface mount R5 and R7 resistors with Charcroft Z-Foils. I've done very little surface mount soldering, but this wasn't too tricky due to the fact that the pads have a decent amount of space around them and the board itself is of good quality so no danger of lifting tracks etc. I'd still recommend a magnifying glass but overall you don't need to be a soldering master.
Differences immediately apparent: More solidity and confidence in the lower registers and strings and piano have gained a bit more weight giving them that real presence that I love and find so rarely with digital systems. Soundstage seems to have widened too. Very nice indeed and well worth the outlay.

I'm guessing that C9 and C10 on the DAC board that sit after the resistors are OK as they are?

Nice one, Richard. Those are pretty much the improvements I obtained with the mod, along with increased overall clarity and detail retrieval, including leading edge definition, giving appropriate music more purpose and 'attack'.

Essentially, the Z-Foils simply allow more of the music through, which is always a good thing! The RPi, thus modified and used in conjunction with the Paul Hynes linear PSU, is a stunningly faithful reproducer of digital music, at a bonkers low price. It really would embarrass many rather more expensive so-called 'audiophile streamers', and doubtless plenty of high-end CDPs, too!

Not sure about C9 and C10. I'll ask Dunc about that.

Marco.

[Marco]

Must get round to doing it myself sometime.

You *really* should, mate. The improvements gained will stun you....

Marco.