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Post by MartinT on Oct 22, 2017 16:43:13 GMT
HiFiBerry Digi+ ProI've just installed the Digi+ Pro in place of my original Digi+. This generates a low jitter S/PDIF digital audio feed to the DAC of your choice. The benefits of the Pro are dual clocks so that any sampling rate can be accurately derived, and very low jitter. It took a little while to transfer the power feed as I supply +5V directly into the Digi+ Pro card and also solder a 5V supercap in place to minimise power supply noise. The Pi is then fed from the Digi+ Pro card, not via its own micro-USB. The only other change required was to alter the Playback setting in Volumio to HiFiBerry Digi+ Pro. Playing my now usual test track from Spotify, What You Want to Know by Rare Bird, the soundstage is immediately more palpable, the very quiet intro spell-binding and the delicate cymbal work has better shape. When the second vocal comes in, the dynamics are stunning. So, to mirror what ChrisB said, if you are running a Raspberry Pi into a non-USB DAC, you absolutely must have one of these! The cost is peanuts. Don't dismiss the power arrangements, though, as feeding 5V to the HiFiBerry board makes a difference, too.
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Post by ChrisB on Oct 22, 2017 16:48:07 GMT
For a fiver more than the Digi+ with a transformer, it's mad not to go for it. Glad you like it Martin.
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Post by Tim on Oct 22, 2017 17:45:51 GMT
Are you aware if there is a song number limit in the Volumio database like Sonos, which I believe is about 65,000?
That's a deal breaker for me with over 4,500 albums in my library
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Post by Stratmangler on Oct 22, 2017 17:56:19 GMT
Are you aware if there is a song number limit in the Volumio database like Sonos, which I believe is about 65,000? That's a deal breaker for me with over 4,500 albums in my library LMS does not have any library limits. LMS does gapless playback. A RasPi with piCorePlayer installed can run both server (LMS) and player (Squeezelight) simultaneously. Your digital library does not have to be physically connected to the RasPi for LMS to work with it. LMS can be controlled locally via a web browser, and also by Smartphone app (iPeng for Apple, and Squeeze Commander for Andoid). LMS can play the majority of file formats natively.
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Post by MartinT on Oct 22, 2017 17:57:43 GMT
That question might be best asked of Michelangelo (the creator) directly in the Volumio forum, Tim.
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Post by canetoad on Oct 23, 2017 4:20:56 GMT
HiFiBerry Digi+ ProI've just installed the Digi+ Pro in place of my original Digi+. This generates a low jitter S/PDIF digital audio feed to the DAC of your choice. The benefits of the Pro are dual clocks so that any sampling rate can be accurately derived, and very low jitter. It took a little while to transfer the power feed as I supply +5V directly into the Digi+ Pro card and also solder a 5V supercap in place to minimise power supply noise. The Pi is then fed from the Digi+ Pro card, not via its own micro-USB. The only other change required was to alter the Playback setting in Volumio to HiFiBerry Digi+ Pro. Playing my now usual test track from Spotify, What You Want to Know by Rare Bird, the soundstage is immediately more palpable, the very quiet intro spell-binding and the delicate cymbal work has better shape. When the second vocal comes in, the dynamics are stunning. So, to mirror what ChrisB said, if you are running a Raspberry Pi into a non-USB DAC, you absolutely must have one of these! The cost is peanuts. Don't dismiss the power arrangements, though, as feeding 5V to the HiFiBerry board makes a difference, too. Nice Martin. What did you do with the 3.3 volt feed?
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Post by MartinT on Oct 23, 2017 4:59:21 GMT
I left it alone as the 5V feed is ultra-stable, I think the derived 3.3V should be ok. One thing that occurs is I know the 5V feed from the Digi+ Pro to the Pi is splittable so I could power the Pi from another 5V feed to keep them separate. I'm not sure what the jumper on the board is but I shall investigate if that is it.
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Post by Tim on Oct 23, 2017 21:49:35 GMT
That question might be best asked of Michelangelo (the creator) directly in the Volumio forum, Tim. OK M and thanks Chris, I might give LMS a go as a previous Squeezebox Touch user I was happy with a lot of it, apart from its inability to cope with large music libraries. Maybe it's time to revisit?
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Post by Stratmangler on Oct 23, 2017 22:13:23 GMT
That question might be best asked of Michelangelo (the creator) directly in the Volumio forum, Tim. OK M and thanks Chris, I might give LMS a go as a previous Squeezebox Touch user I was happy with a lot of it, apart from its inability to cope with large music libraries. Maybe it's time to revisit? If you were using the embedded server in the Touch then you will have encountered issues. It's fine with small libraries, but there is a tipping point, and the thing just struggles to cope when you pass that point. Stick library management on a RasPi and it's very, very slick and responsive. My server shows 4557 albums, with 1207 artists, and 99.99% of it is FLAC. The control interfaces have next to no lag to them.
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Post by Tim on Oct 24, 2017 10:28:45 GMT
If you were using the embedded server in the Touch then you will have encountered issues. I was and I did
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Post by Greg on Oct 27, 2017 21:33:19 GMT
I bought a Digi+ Pro when they were first released. Agree, the board fixed to an RPi offers a significant mark up in sound quality. Since then I moved onto a microRendu which really was a gobsmacking improvement in terms of revealing fine micro detail and sound nuences. With Devialet development, the m/Rendu is now obsolete with Roon on Ethernet straight into Devialet Air. I hang onto my RPi/Digi+ Pro because I feel sure I’ll have some use for it, somehow, at some point. However, reading further afield suggests that the Digi+ Pro boards performance has been significantly superseded by the ‘allo’ Digione SPDIF Output module. www.allo.com/sparky/digione.htmlThis Indian based company seems to be doing some very clever and affordable things. It is well worth having a good look around the allo.com site, particularly if you are into tinkering or looking to set up a minimalist system. I have no doubt that if I find a good use for my RPi, the Digi+ Pro will be replaced with the the allo Digione module.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 27, 2017 22:38:44 GMT
Is that Chicken Renduloo some kind of Streamer Greg? I cant see me ever changing my original HRT 'Streamer', i just love the sound of it.
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Post by Stratmangler on Oct 29, 2017 22:33:24 GMT
Just playing the Radio Paradise FLAC stream, using LMS 7.9.1 - there's a new 3rd party plugin that deals with it, and the FLAC stream sounds excellent. I do have a pretty stable 200mbps Virgin connection, so the bandwidth is not a problem.
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Post by MartinT on Oct 29, 2017 22:45:15 GMT
And the best thing is Radio Paradise is nearly always good to listen to. I stream it from my phone to the car most days on my commute.
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Post by Stratmangler on Oct 30, 2017 11:19:13 GMT
Latest bit of buggering around with things - there's now a way to designate a Spotify endpoint in LMS 7.9.1, and I have my main Squeezebox Touch playing material being selected from the Spotify interface on my laptop. Which means I can control it from anywhere in the world, as long as I have an internet connection.
This is something that might be of interest to Jerry, because it would mean that he could control all of his music selections from his laptop, but then play them via a dedicated music playing machine, rather than the current thing of hooking his laptop up via the compromised audio interfacing the laptop has.
If I recollect correctly, Martin said that there was similar connectivity with Volumio.
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Post by MartinT on Oct 30, 2017 11:35:09 GMT
If I recollect correctly, Martin said that there was similar connectivity with Volumio. Yes, Volumio has a Spotify Connect plug-in which allows the Spotify interface to be used. You can direct music to any given Spotify Connect player from anywhere. I've just checked and I can play music at home from here at work!! I have amusingly made the mistake of playing music in the Music Room but accidentally sending it to the Pioneer player in the kitchen, causing Ruth a WTF moment
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Post by Tim on Oct 30, 2017 16:39:41 GMT
I've just checked and I can play music at home from here at work!! I had a bit of fun with this in China, when my friends got a Blusound player and I setup Spotify connect for them. They had no idea what was happening when I used to 'tinker' with what they were listening to, when I got back to my apartment. Naughty I know, but a laugh.
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Post by ChrisB on Oct 30, 2017 18:42:06 GMT
I've made Mischa jump out of her skin once or twice by firing up something noisy in the room she's in from elsewhere. Great fun!
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Post by mikeyb on Oct 30, 2017 21:28:37 GMT
You can get Spotify Connect to work on MoOde too 😊
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Post by MartinT on Nov 16, 2017 14:44:31 GMT
Using a BT Hub as a NAS for Streaming
The USB socket on the back of BT Hubs from the early Home Hub 3 to the latest Smart Hub (6) is a handy means of storing music for streaming to any device on the network. Other broadband/cable routers may have a similar feature. Plug a suitably large USB stick into the back of the Hub, then access it from any computer for writing files to it and stream to any Raspberry Pi or other streaming device as a NAS (Network Attached Storage).
Writing to the USB Device
In Windows 10, open Explorer (This PC) and point it to the IP address of the Hub followed by the device name as formatted, e.g. \\192.168.1.254\music for a default hub and USB drive named music.
Streaming from the USB Device
In Volumio you would set it up (using the example above) as IP address 192.168.1.254, folder name music and protocol CIFS. No need for username or password authentication. This would be the same for most streaming builds that allow NAS attachment. Let it scan the USB drive and it should list folders and files ready for playback.
Fix for Windows 10 1709 (Fall Creator's Update)
Windows 10 version 1709 disables SMBv1 protocol as used by many routers and hubs like the BT. You simply get an unable to open device error message. Fix it as follows: - Go into Control Panel, Programs and Features - Click Turn Windows features on or off - Expand SMB 1.0/CIFS File Sharing Support - Tick SMB 1.0/CIFS Client - Restart After restarting, Windows 10 should now be able to access the USB drive in the Hub.
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