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

[Qwin]

r100 - Thanks for the info.

[Yomanze]

Interesting, chaps... I'll let the streaming system settle in a little (as I've noticed that the Pi-DAC has improved over the last few days, perhaps due to 'burn-in'), and get the linear PSU sorted before messing around with Ethernet cables.

What's the difference then between Cat5, 6 or 7? Speed of data transmission, or what? And are there 'audiophile' versions of Ethernet cables available?

Marco.

There is no difference between Cat 5e, 6, 7 etc. they can all handle massively more than music signals. It's like saying a drop of water will fall faster through the middle of a more hollow wide pipe than through a less hollow wide pipe. :P

[Marco]

I get ya, Neil. Can't dispute what you're saying. However, I've got this other Ethernet cable coming tomorrow (the one that Gary recommended), so we'll see whether or not despite what you're saying if it *sounds* different to what I'm using now.

For me, it's all about plugging it in and using yer lugs. If it sounds better, then it is better, and if doesn't, then it isn't - simples! For £12 it ain't gonna break the bank to find out

Btw, Rupert, I thought that I could only control the volume of Spotify via the speaker icon image on the Mac, but I can use the level control on Volumio too, so all is good, and it sounds fab!

The only thing lacking is having access to all the info I need from Spotify (artist, song title, etc), and the ability to make sound adjustments, on the one interface, as would be the case if Spotify was successfully installed on Volumio. At the moment, I have to switch back and forth between Volumio and the Spotify website to select tracks and use the volume control, but I can live with that for the time being.

Thanks again for the tip!

Marco.

[walpurgis]

All 'smoke & mirrors' to me.

No doubt I'll get around to something like it eventually. Technology doesn't scare me, but I'm lazy about changing my ways!

[Ali Tait]

Marco - having got interested in FBA, but not yet done anything about it, I came accross this thread.

I have read large chunks of it but find very little detail about what is involved in the way data is handled that makes this system in anyway better than any other.

The number of acronyms means I have to keep going and finding out what is being talked about.
As I see it the Rassperry Pi is a small computer to which you have attached external drives by cat5 cable (your music library) how is this streaming?

I can not see any hard drive on the Pi (got me at it now) does it store its operating system on a flash drive and what is the operating system?

The on board DAC looks tiny, are you just taking the analogue output from this to your amp?
What type of data is the DAC working with and what is the interface (transfer method) USB bus?

The more I look at FBA the less I want to dip my toe in, seems there is so much happening I don't know which way to jump, eg DSD/1bit, kernel streaming etc.

I have an old desk top computer sat with iTunes and about 500 gig of lossles music on it. Its not wired into my system at the moment and rather than bother with it I was looking to build a state of the art FBA system. Like all things audio, it would seem there are many roads to choose from and no consensus on which is best.
The argument over which interface software or library software to use seems to me to be a sideline and has little to do with sound quality and is more about convenience and personal preference. The whole subject is complex and hard to keep pace with in my opinion and detracts from enjoying the music.

Still on the fence.

Don't know much about the Pi, but yes it stores it's operating system on an SD card. It uses Linux.

I guess you could say it's streaming as the data is delivered in packets from the storage device to the Pi via the ethernet cable. This could also be done with a wireless dongle via your router, handy if you wanted to use it in different rooms.

[Ali Tait]

Forgot to say, one possible reason it may sound better than cd is that you have removed the error correction present in cd replay. No doubt there are many variables, hence the wide range of opinions.

One good thing with the Pi, it's cheap, and if you find it's not for you then it will be easily sold with little loss.

[BTH K10A]

Whilst I appreciate the convenience of FBA it's not something I'd use on a day to day basis as for me it hifi as a hobby is a much broader experience and FBA takes away far more than it gives. I get as much satisfaction and enjoyment from the hunting and collecting of records as I do from the very tactile process of playing them.

[The Black Adder]

HAT EEPROM Write Enable

Ah.. righto, that's good. So it can be flashed... they think of everything

[Marco]

Whilst I appreciate the convenience of FBA it's not something I'd use on a day to day basis as for me it hifi as a hobby is a much broader experience and FBA takes away far more than it gives. I get as much satisfaction and enjoyment from the hunting and collecting of records as I do from the very tactile process of playing them.

Hi Andy,

Believe me, I know where you're coming from, and the last bit applies to me every bit as much as it does you.

However, at the end of the day, an FBA device is just another source of music, the same as a turntable or CD player. Therefore, in my system, it just sits there in the room, the same as the rest of the kit, as a tiny little box on top of my DAC, so what's the problem? It's not taking away anything.... I still use my T/T and CDP just as much as before.

It certainly adds plenty, in terms of benefits, and for less than I've paid in the past for half a case of wine!

I now have 2TB worth of music (thousands of albums) I never had before, and the ability to access it from anywhere in the house, or outside in the garden, all at the touch of a button. The convenience it provides, however, is outweighed by the benefits it brings to your enjoyment of music - and how it encourages you to listen to even MORE music...

I can sit downstairs in the lounge, where the Celestion 66s are, and whilst sipping a nice glass of wine in front of the coal fire, explore a huge library of music (superb sounding hi-res 24-bit stuff; resolution that is beyond the capability of Red Book CD), and add to that library at any time by ripping it from my existing CD, or even vinyl, collection.

None of that detracts in any way whatsoever from my enjoyment of vinyl, or collecting records - so what's not to like?

Marco.

[r100]

Btw, Rupert, I thought that I could only control the volume of Spotify via the speaker icon image on the Mac, but I can use the level control on Volumio too, so all is good, and it sounds fab!

The only thing lacking is having access to all the info I need from Spotify (artist, song title, etc), and the ability to make sound adjustments, on the one interface, as would be the case if Spotify was successfully installed on Volumio. At the moment, I have to switch back and forth between Volumio and the Spotify website to select tracks and use the volume control, but I can live with that for the time being.

Marco.

Great ! I'm not sure I understand that you have to switch between Volumio and Spotify ?

Normally, to use Spotify from your Mac you only should have to use the Spotify application. For serious listening, leave the volume on the Mac and Spotify app at 100% and use the your amplifier's volume knob. The Volumio interface is for handling your NAS music, web radios, etc. and of course Spotify when you get it working on the Volumio web interface. But IMHO it is not as convenient as the real Spotify app. The Volumio team are working to integrate Spotify Connect... but thats another story

One important thing you should do in the Spotify app is set the "Music Quality" to "Extreme" to get the full 320kbs/sec.

Cheers
ru

PS note when you stream your music from the Mac over Airplay, it will be down sampled to 41kHz (16 bit I think). When you play the same directly from the Volumio interface it goes straight to the DAC without ans d/s. On my system, I have to struggle to hear any difference but your system is probably much more resolving and you could hear some difference. Oh no, now I have said it