Dummies Guide to Pi2AES! Throw away your PC or laptop.

Discussion in 'Digital: DACs, USB converters, decrapifiers' started by purr1n, Jan 29, 2020.

  1. rhythmdevils

    rhythmdevils MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    Last edited: Oct 19, 2020
  2. mtavares

    mtavares Acquaintance

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    I used the Volumio App for Tidal (MyVolumio) some time ago. The interface is good and it works pretty well. It does not have the same features of the Tidal App, but I have no complaints.

    I am also does not have a server or a NAS. Just the Pi2AES connected to a Gungnir Multibit A2 via BNC connection. It works pretty well.

    Currently, I moved from MyVolumio to Moode/MConnect App. The sound quality in my opinion is better for Tidal.

    Regards.

    QJA

    Marcos
     
  3. dubharmonic

    dubharmonic Friend

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    With all of my zoom meetings for the day finished, I just switched from Unison to AES using Pi2AES in the middle of a song. My brain is a little fried, so I wasn't even thinking about listening for a difference, but I definitely heard one. Unison is definitely softer!

    A/B testing gear can be so tough, sometimes comparisons require quite a few listening sessions to get past expectation bias.
     
  4. earnmyturns

    earnmyturns Smartest friend

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    It is, slightly, in my experience (Unison Yggdrasil vs Pi2AES AES).
     
  5. rhythmdevils

    rhythmdevils MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    Are the optical and coaxial outputs equally good? If so I could send one to my RDAC and one to the Gungnir that is waiting for me in the future. No need to split cables.
     
  6. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    Optical is supposedly shit, never tried it. This is not specific to the Pi2AES but in general.

    For what you're describing, I would use the RCA coax for the RDAC and BNC for the Gungnir. I've done this exact setup and it works well. If you want both RDAC and your iFi, then you'll run into issues with needing a splitter or having to choose between them.
     
  7. rhythmdevils

    rhythmdevils MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    Nah the iFI is going back after you borrow it to pay for this!

    just took the plunge and made the order. 8 GB of ram for no particular reason :confused:

    thanks @Michael Kelly for the discount and for making the black case! I’m super allergic to LED’s.
     
  8. Michael Kelly

    Michael Kelly MOT: Pi 2 Design

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    BNC to RCA adapters work very well, giving you two RCA outputs.
     
  9. songmic

    songmic Gear cycler East Asia edition

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    Hi, I'm in the process of setting up my PI2AES for the first time. I have a few questions.

    1. In order to control my PI2AES from my iPhone (via Volumio), does the PI2AES need to be physically connected via an Ethernet cable at all times? Or, once I set up wireless on Volumio, the PI2AES doesn't have to be connected to an Ethernet cable?

    I thought the answer was the latter, but even after setting up wireless on Volumio (per Marv's instructions), my phone could no longer detect the Raspberry Pi via wi-fi once I removed the cable. Reconnecting the cable worked.

    2. Although the whole purpose of using PI2AES is to avoid using USB altogether, is it still possible to run a USB DAC? I noticed that the PI2AES board itself does not have a USB output, so I ended up plugging the USB cable to the Raspberry Pi board below. However, Volumio cannot seem to be able to send data to the DAC this way. So USB audio is out of the question when using PI2AES with Volumio?
     
  10. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Wired only required during set up.

    Did you set up your wireless network on Volumio before you disconnected the Ethernet cable?

    In theory, it should be possible if the distro supports USB audio devices. You may have to change DAC output device in settings. But then again, this defeats the purpose of the Pi2AES piggyback board.
     
  11. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    Assuming the WiFi is configured in Volumio, I’d check to confirm it’s visible on your network either using an app like Marv suggested in one of the very early posts or look at the wireless clients in your router’s admin panel. That could help narrow down the issue.
     
  12. songmic

    songmic Gear cycler East Asia edition

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    Thanks, I got the wireless connection working.

    The reason I wanted to go USB was because I own Bifrost 2 and thought Unison USB is superior to S/PDIF (at least that's what Mike said). But I suppose the S/PDIF is the way to go when using PI2AES.
     
  13. Metro

    Metro Friend

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    The Pi will have a different address between WiFi and Ethernet. You need to use the WiFi address. You can also try http://Name.lan or http://Name.local, where "Name" is the name you assigned during setup (can be found in the Volumio Settings / System / Player Name).

    To get the WiFi IP address, you can use the Fing app that Marv suggested, or use your router's admin app or web interface, and it should list the connected devices.
     
  14. songmic

    songmic Gear cycler East Asia edition

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    Oh and another silly question: is plugging/unplugging the power cable the only way to turn the PI2AES on and off?

    And if so, is it okay to leave the PI2AES turned on 24/7 (as people do with Yggdrasil or other DACs)?

    Also, if for some reason I reboot the PI2AES, do I need to reset IP address, wireless connection, etc?

    Lastly, do I only have to plug the power cable into the PI2AES board and not the RPi board underneath? Or is there a reason I should power the RPi with a separate cable?
     
  15. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Most folks here seem to prefer the Pi2AES AES or SPDIF output to Unison USB, unless a high-end USB source like Sotm with advanced 5V USB power supply and all that jazz is used. In general, the Unison USB from most computer sources is tubier (softer, warmer, wetter) than the AES. @Hands hated Unison I believe.

    I leave the Pi2AES on all the time. Perhaps @Michael Kelly can attest if this is OK or not.

    If you reboot Pi2AES, everything is remembered. In general, if running Volumio, do a proper shutdown via the menu to be safe. I live dangerously, so I pull the power plug. Never had an issue still. You only need to plug the power into the Pi2AES board. That board in turn supplies power to the RPi.
     
  16. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    Yeah, unplugging is the only way to power off. For the Pi side, generally leaving a computer on all the time is fine. I assume this is OK for the Pi2AES side as well and is what I do. Michael Kelly is the source of truth in this situation. :)

    Generally, no. It's possible your router (or whatever is managing DHCP on your network) will assign your Pi a different IP address but using the name as Metro suggested means you don't need to worry about the IP address.

    You can do both, there is a jumper you need to set. My understanding is it's recommended to only power the Pi2AES. The jumper setting for this is here:
    http://www.pi2design.com/pi2aes.html

    Q: Does the PI2AES power the PI?
    A: Yes, the PI2AES delivers 5V @ 3A to the PI. A jumper plug (marked PI5V) on the PI2AES allows the power to the PI to be enabled or disabled as desired.

    Q: Can I power the PI separate from the PI2AES.
    A: Yes, simply remove the PI5V jumper plug and provide power to the PI via it's usb power input as normal.
     
  17. Michael Kelly

    Michael Kelly MOT: Pi 2 Design

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    There is no harm in leaving the PI2AES and the PI always powered.
     
  18. farbinator

    farbinator Facebook Friend

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    I'm eagerly awaiting my Pi2AES, but on the subject of power, it'd be interesting to have POE as an option in a future revision to negate the need for an external PSU. Wall warts multiply faster than tribbles it seems..

    I know the RPi 3 & 4 has pins for a POE hat, and I'd imagine it's already fairly cramped in there to begin with.
     
  19. songmic

    songmic Gear cycler East Asia edition

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    1. Does PI2AES and Volumio have upsampling features? Or, do I need to use an external upsampling device (such as Chord M Scaler)?

    2. What is the maximum sampling rate of PI2AES/Volumio?

    3. Does PI2AES/Volumio support native DSD playback?
     
  20. Ksaurav402

    Ksaurav402 Friend

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    DSD over PCM should work fine but SPDIF and AES supports till 192Khz so DSD64 should be ok. With I2S you should be able to go above. For upsampling you can use some software like HQPlayer or use inbuilt upsampling of Audirvana or Roon.
     

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