Pi2AES Impressions only thread

There are plenty of linear power supplies in the $50s. I suspect they should work 99% as good.

 

I just got my Pi2AES from the latest batch, and got it up and running. No sound impressions yet since I just got it going, but I have some thoughts on the getting-it-going part...

I ordered the Pi2AES hat, the black acrylic case, and the Meanwell power supply.

Pros:

• works with a Raspberry Pi2
• works with piCoreplayer v. 8.0.0: I replaced my old Hifiberry Digi+ hat with the Pi2AES, and told piCoreplayer I was using a Digi+ Pro hat, and it just worked!
• the black acrylic case matches up with the various ports on the Pi2

Cons:

• the silver screws are too long to hold the short standoffs tight to the bottom plate of the black acrylic case. I had some shorter screws around that I used instead, but this should be fixed
• a couple side plates of the case have various holes for what I assume is the DAC hat that Michael used to make, but are empty for the Pi2AES hat. I wish the extra side plates that came with the kit included a couple without the unused holes.
• (this is one is super minor, but it's a pet peeve) the main box came packed with foam peanuts. I wish it used something a little bit more easily recyclable. I'll contribute these to my work's shipping department.

All in all, it was an easy thing to put together, and it just works, so I'm very happy with it. Now I have to order BNC and AES XLR cables ... The dummies' guide thread was very helpful in putting the case together too, so thank you for that.

 

I'll post more about this in my write-up once I've used mine for a while (built a week ago or so), but a couple thoughts for now.

I'm not sure I follow. I couldn't tighten the silver screws to the short standoffs just using my fingers, but no issues using a crescent wrench to hold the standoff still and then slowly screwing the silver screws in. Bottom standoffs are nice and tight using that method.

The case kit comes with a set of plates (output end and RPi side) for the Raspberry Pi4 and another set for the Raspberry Pi3. You just use whichever set matches the RPi you're using.

 

Maybe I didn't try twisting hard enough, but it felt like the screw bottomed out on the short standoff's screw hole. On the longer standoffs, it was easy to screw it all the way down with just my fingers.

Yeah that's what I did since the Pi2 has a full sized HDMI port so I used the plate that fit that, but the side plates also have extra holes for more RCAs and other things. You can see it on the photos of black case on Pi2Design's website where the hat inside the case has those extra RCAs that the Pi2AES hat doesn't.

 

Isn't those foam peanuts made from starch and dissolve in water?

 

These aren't the cornstarch ones, unfortunately.

 

A friend of mine purchased a m2tech evo USB interface with an iFi usb power supply for a pretty insane price - $120. These usually go for $600 new. They sent it to me because they might have been out of town when it got here, so I've gotten the chance to A/B this with the Pi2aes.

Chain: Roon via Pi2aes/M2tech Interface --> SPDIF into Bifrost 2 --> Quicksilver Headphone Amp --> HD650

TLDR: it's competitive, and I think that many might prefer this to the Pi2aes, but I found myself having trouble picking one. If you forced me to choose, I would pick Pi2aes for short listening sessions, and M2tech for longer ones. The m2tech would probably go better with very intense sounding dacs, and the Pi2aes with more relaxed sounding ones. If you can find one of these for under $400 and think it's a good match with your dac/chain or are otherwise averse to Pi2aes, I don't think there's any shame in going for it. For $120, it's bonkers.

Here's some more detailed impressions. Earlier impressions were the things I immediately noticed, and the later ones are those that took me some time to notice.

-Pi2aes beats it slightly in transient speed and macrodynamics, but m2tech has a much more expansive, open sound and much improved clarity.

-Pi2aes occassionally sounds more "focused" or "up-front" in its sound. It is definitely more "intense" sounding.

-Pi2aes sounds grainier in comparison, with images which are less defined and sharp.

-Pi2aes retains some superiority in rendering those little textural details of notes....things like the timbre of voices. It has a less smooth sound which this might help with that.

-Pi2aes sounds somehow more "sweet" and saturated in its rendering of textures despite being less warm.

-M2tech sounds more hi-fi...more separated, more easy and effortless in its presentation. Pi2aes sounds strained but the notes somehow also sound less processed.

-Pi2aes has less of a "Blackground", but more "plankton".

-Pi2aes is definitely more fatiguing.

-I originally thought Pi2aes sounded more digital, but I think the better way to describe it as sounding more "Rough" and less refined around the edges. M2tech sounds more grown-up, more mature, but also less colorful and gritty.

-M2tech has better microdynamics but is not necessarily more engaging, as it has a more distant and smoothed over sound. I found myself "head-bopping" more with Pi2aes, but smiling more with the M2tech.

 

But you comparing an USB to SPDIF converter which does nothing if not connected to your computer, with a Linux streaming device, which is a computer with SPIDIF out. Considering only the SPDIF out it makes sense but you cannot replace Pi2AES with just m2tch.

 

Unless he connected it to his RPI?

 

Good point. That would be as close as it can get to be apples to apples but still not exactly.

 

We have enabled ordering for the next batch of 200 PI2AES. Current ship date is Feb. 15th. We will adjust that as the units are ordered to provide 30 units every two week. This should be a better match to the actual delivery capability of our assembly house.

 

Wow, can't believe I accidentally stumbled on the reopened ordering on the website while I was checking out the power requirements of the Pi2AES. Have been trying to get one for some time.

 

In the hell of home renovations I had very few precious moments to spend with my new setup: Pi2AES->AUS/EBU Mogami -> Soekris 2541->THX AAA 887 - Audeze LCD-X 2021.
The short version: I can never master the will to sell my RME ADI-2 Pro and BHA-1 setup but I really should.

Before I got PI2AES from the latest batch I was using Digi+ Pro. The differences in sound quality between Digi+ and Pi2AES going to 2541 is much more pronounced than I remember when using RME ADI-2 Pro DAC.
Pi2AES still had blacker background and better resolution, but the difference was tiny comparing to what I am hearing with Soekris. If you use this DAC, Digi+ is not an option comparing to PI2AES.
Now, my short experimenting with a TeraDAC LPS for Pi2AES ended rather different than I expected.
I connected LPS to the hat, and, by mistake really, attached Meanwell PSU to THX AAA 887. There was a difference, the volume increased slightly, and the setup was more quiet, I heard clearly the details that I did not hear very well before. Intrigued, I swapped the power supplies, connecting the amp to LPS.
Holly smoke, this is not a place to get into details about THX AAA 887, but TeraDAC LPS turned it into different, much better amp: microdetails, sound stage raised to the next level.
So by all means buy LPS for Pi2AES , but only if you have an amp that uses 24V DC power. Leave Pi2AES as it is, and apply LPS to amplification. You will be delighted.

 

I realized after reading other threads recently that I never posted my Pi2AES impressions here after building my unit last fall.

Select system details:

• Raspberry Pi 3b+ Rev. 1.3
• Pi2AES rev P3
• Mogami 3173 AES cable with Neutrik connectors, 1.5m length
• Yggdrasil Analog 2 AES input
• RopieeeXL + mConnect; Qobuz
• Default Meanwell SMPS
• Shunyata Venom V14 Digital (now Venom V14 NR) power cable
• Ethernet connection via Blue Jeans Cable Cat6A to D-link gigabit switch, hardwired via BJC Cat6A to Asus Wifi6 router in the same room.
• Rest of the chain is in my profile

For 5+ years before this I was just using the built-in Tidal app on my modded Oppo BDP-103D into the Yggdrasil via S/PDIF input (Belden 1694A with Canare RCAP connectors, 1.5m cable). After Oppo's player division went out of business, things slowly started breaking on the Oppo / Tidal integration, until last year it just became unusable. The app would crash, songs would freeze constantly if they started at all, and I was having to reboot the player multiple times.

At first I tried just using the mConnect app and Tidal, which worked more reliably, but I was still not satisfied. The Oppo does not support gapless playback at all when streaming, regardless of app settings, so that was also annoying.

Enter the Pi2AES.

I built the streamer on 10/30/21, and my initial impressions when comparing the same songs streamed via mConnect to it vs. the Oppo were as follows:

• The Pi2AES sounded a bit bass light compared to the Oppo.
• The Pi2AES was more resolving and had better stage depth. Was easier to hear venue / recording room echoes via the Pi2AES.
• Gapless playback works via mConnect! I had forgotten how nice that was after living without it for so many years.
• The Pi2AES puts the listener a bit further from the stage than the Oppo did. This was welcome as the Yggdrasil is already a bit upfront. Images seemed a bit larger on the Oppo.
• It was easier to "see" the singers while listening. This is hard to describe, especially as I can't claim to have met many of the singers I listen to in-person. This happened with multiple singers during that first night's demo. Upon reflection these many months later, I think this is because the Pi2AES was better able to resolve the nuances in their vocal presentation and revealed more imperfections and gradations than the Oppo did, in addition to having slightly more precise imaging.
• The Oppo's high frequencies were not as delineated as the Pi2AES's when listening to and trying to place cymbals in the mix.

tl;dr: The Pi2AES put me closer to the music and helped me more easily feel emotion while listening.

Over the coming days, I listened more and realized that the bass may not be "light" so to speak as compared to the Oppo, but it is tauter and more defined and the Pi2AES also has better treble extension and delineation so maybe the Oppo feels subjectively a little bass heavier. I often listen to music with my five-year-old in the morning while working out in the living room, and she commented that she heard the singers taking breaths when listening one day that week. We never do critical listening together or anything, so I found that interesting and made a note of it.

Now that it's been another five months, I'm still pleased with the unit. It's been stable, and the only "issue" I've had I chalk up to mConnect in that every so often I'll have to press the play button twice for an album to start playing. I have my Roon ROCK NUC system built and will be setting up Roon shortly, so hopefully that fixes that one niggle.

Spoiler: Some other thoughts re: system matching and Oyaide silver cables

For those interested, I thought I'd share some other thoughts re: system matching. My notes re: the Oppo above were not new realizations for me. I had felt like it was a bit rolled off or hazy in the treble when streaming to it before, especially after upgrading from my Ragnarok 1.5 to a Coda 07X and Coda stereo amplifier last year. I loved everything about the sound post-upgrade, except that the Coda gear is not voiced neutral-to-bright like the Ragnarok 1.5 is, so the Coda plus the slightly warmer/rolled nature of the Oppo left me wanting more treble extension, especially on the rock and punk records I often listen to.

To remedy that, I tried an Oyaide DB-510 silver cable from my Oppo (via Canare BNC to S/PDIF adapter) into the BNC input of the Yggdrasil. Over the next few days after having changed just the cable, I noticed some more treble extension and a general sense of better resolution and clarity. HOWEVER, like has happened every single time I've tried a silver cable before, whether speaker cable or interconnect, the sound also became more grating and fatiguing. I didn't want to listen as much, and so despite gaining some treble extension I swapped the Oyaide out for the Belden copper cable and it's stayed there since.

The Pi2AES can be slightly more fatiguing compared to the Oppo, but I didn't like to listen to music for long periods with either device when using the Ragnarok 1.5 and my Maggies. I did have long listening sessions with the Coda gear however. It's a long story that I'll share elsewhere, but I've been without the Coda amp for 15 months now, way longer than I've used the PI2AES. My replacement amp is almost finished, so I hope once I receive it and swap the Ragnarok back out that I'll experience the great sound I had with the Coda gear before, with the added benefits of more resolution and better treble extension with the Pi2AES.

 

When using the Pi2AES with my modded Bifrost Multibit, I found there was a certain edginess to the sound that forced me to pull back on the volume pot even though the rest of the presentation had me wanting to turn the volume up. @Azimuth was kind enough to send me an iFi PSU he wasn't using and I hooked it up to the 5v rail using jumpers and a barrel connector. Not only was the edginess gone, but the overall presentation feels more fluid and even less "digital" than before. I really wasn't expecting a major change, but I do think the clarity has improved and this is an overall even more effortless sounding presentation than with the stock PSU. YMMV as I know others in this thread preferred the stock PSU over some linear power supplies. For me, I now have no need to turn down the volume from where I want it, which is all the proof I need to know this was a worthwhile upgrade.

 

Can you please clarify, are you now using a 5v IFI PSU to power the Raspberry Pi then what are you using for the HAT itself?

 

The Pi2AES powers the Pi as well. The stock PSU routes to a switcher that converts the voltage to 5v. Using the 5v rails directly bypasses the switcher. The hat and the Pi itself always run off 5v, it's just a question of whether that's being switched from a higher voltage or 5v directly from the power source.

 

I had the jumper removed and power the pi2aes with a 24v lps and a ifi ipower x to the pi to avoid the switching of high voltage to the pi

 

So....apparently, even with the W2 jumper in, you cannot power both the Pi and the Hat. It wil only power the Pi only.



So from here, you can see, the power needs to come from the 40-pin header. You can see how GoldenSound did it and @Merrick's is the same way:



Source: https://goldensound.audio/2021/07/22/pi2aes-streamer-measurements-and-5v-psu-mod-instructions/

Otherwise yes, you have to undo W2 jumper, and supply both the Pi and the Hat different power supply.

 

thanks for your sharing.
but i am now totally confused.
because in your link where goldenone stressed more than 2 times that if the jumper is taken away,
both the pi2aes and the pi can be driver with 2 seperate 5V (better a linear power supplier) but to pi2aes
better is 5V 2A and to the pi, is 5V. 2.5A up.

bu to your picture, it shows that by removing the jumper, the Pi2aes should still us 24-58V linear power supplier whicl another 5V 2.5A to the PI.

so here is the question: what actural output from the LPS should i buy to driver the pi2aes and the pi if i want to remove the jumper.
thanks.