Loaner: Pi2AES digital transport (fully assembled and ready to use)

Discussion in 'Closed Loaners' started by loadexfa, Dec 6, 2020.

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  1. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    Mostly standard rules:
    • FedEx/UPS only for shipping
    • Insure for $200
    • Friends get first priority, then Contributors
    • 7 days per person. There is more of a learning curve with this one, if you need more time let me know
    • Please state your location
    • Please post impressions here
    I will be pre-installing Volumio and Tidal so you can try music that you know. Please don't add your music to the internal memory card. Using an external USB drive is fine. I will include an RCA cable, you may want to get your own BNC, AES, or I2S (HDMI) cable(s) since those tend to be better if they are an option for your DAC.

    I expect the loaner to begin in December, waiting for some final pieces to arrive. Once the US loaner has died down, we can coordinate other parts of the world.

    List:

    Will be grouping by region so HotRatSalad and Tommy may get pushed further down depending on additional responses.

    Thank you @Michael Kelly for contributing the Pi2AES, Meanwell, and case.

    Thank you @rhythmdevils for Volumio & Tidal + being the staff coordinator.

    The plan for now is to keep this as an ongoing loaner, want to give a lot of people the chance to try it.
     
    Last edited: Apr 11, 2021
  2. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    I'm surprised there have been no takers so far. I'll open this to anywhere in the world, grouped by region depending on who responds.

    I'll give this another week for responses.
     
  3. jexby

    jexby Posole Prince

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    ok, I'll bite. Location: Colorado
    only have the Bifrost2 to test the SPDIF connections to compare the the Unison USB.
     
  4. scblock

    scblock Friend

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    I’ll bite as well, also Colorado. I’ll be able to compare to Pis running a HifiBerry Digi+ Pro and USB on Bifrost (Gen 5), Modi Multibit (Gen 2), and Modius (Unison).
     
  5. Tommy

    Tommy Acquaintance

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    Curious to test this if it ever reaches Canada. Will likely have a Yggdrasil GS to test with at that stage.
     
  6. HotRatSalad

    HotRatSalad Friend

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    I would like to try this, however I have to mention what a mess USPS is right now. Almost no tracking and very slow. If you can stick me in with closer New England peeps as they join up, I can wait.
     
  7. YMO

    YMO Chief Fun Officer

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    Your loaner, but please FedEx/UPS only this since it takes time to acquire a Pi2AES and trusting the USPS is like trusting the government to something right.
     
  8. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    Yeah after seeing what happened with the Abbas loaner I agree. I'll update the original post.
     
  9. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    Speaking of USPS "fun", some parts for this were delayed, right now I anticipate being able to ship out to jexby in 1-2 weeks. Will post an updated ETA within a week.
     
  10. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    Quick update, still waiting on parts. Some pieces are in transit but others waiting acceptance. At this rate, the loaner will start in January. :(

    I know we like to pick on the USPS, I think it's worth recognizing they are short-handed and have been a punching bag for politicians to mess with, especially this year.
     
  11. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    @jexby I'll get this out on Saturday, please PM me your address!
     
  12. wbass

    wbass Friend

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    If it's possible to be added to the list, I might be interested in this. In Chicago. DACs are Yggdrasil Analog 2, Matrix X-Sabre Pro. Could do comparisons to Node 2i, Lumin U1 Mini, possibly an Aurender unit, possibly a microRendu (if I can get it working). Yeah, I'm auditioning streamers.... No worries if it's too late in the game. Thanks.
     
  13. HotRatSalad

    HotRatSalad Friend

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    I'm still down for this !

    New Hampshire

    pushing me down the list for logistics is cool by me.
     
  14. rhythmdevils

    rhythmdevils MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    I’ll have MyVolumio account ready and a Tidal account which I may add a test track playlist to. Which will turn your ears to gold. :p:p

    you can pass on the username and password for both via pm.
     
  15. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    You're in!

    I can verify this from listening to some of these recommendations. :bow:

    I think entering the info once (after I finish the Pi) should be sufficient, Volumio has been good about keeping the login info for me except when upgrading. If something like that happens, we can pass the info on to the offending upgrader. ;)
     
  16. Melvillian

    Melvillian Friend

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    If possible i'd like to join the loaner tour. If not, that's ok.
     
  17. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    You're in!

    I’ll leave the loaner open to new folks for a while.
     
    Last edited: Dec 30, 2020
  18. wrestler

    wrestler Acquaintance

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    If possible, could I get added to this?

    I live in bay area too as @loadexfa. I've been curious about what difference this makes compared to USB on my schiit modi MB system. Thank you!

    (Also, does it ship with a coax cable? If not, I'll buy one before the loaner is ready)

    EDIT: just noticed "I will include an RCA cable"
     
  19. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    You're in!
     
  20. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    It's assembled and I'm currently listening to Tidal music with Volumio to test. :punk:

    List of items being shipped
    • Assembled Pi + Pi2AES in case
    • Meanwell power supply
    • Power cable for the Meanwell
    • Adapter for the Meanwell (attached)
    • RCA cable for digital out
    Quick Start
    1. Plug the Pi into your DAC using the supplied RCA cable or whatever you may have. If you have BNC, AES, or I2S (via HDMI), all of these are usually better quality than RCA. Don't bother with optical, it sucks
    2. Plug the Pi into an Ethernet cable to access your network/internet
    3. Plug in the power. Wait 2 minutes for boot
    4. Use a web browser to go here: http://volumio.local
    5. If step 4 doesn't work, you'll need to find the Pi's IP address on your network. Fing is a good utility for this purpose and is available for both iOS and Android. Once you know the IP, use that instead for step 4. For example, http://111.111.111.111
    How do I play music?
    You have 4 options: Tidal with Volumio, Roon bridge, UPnP streamer, Airplay streamer

    Tidal
    From your web browser (looking at http://volumio.local), Tidal is on the left menu. You can browse using the various options or do a search (box is in the upper right).

    Roon
    I installed Volumio's Roon bridge plug-in so you should be good. I don't have Roon, sorry, you're on your own if it doesn't work.

    UPnP
    Grab a UPnP player. Some popular options are mConnect (iOS), BubbleUPnP (Android), and Audirvana (Win or Mac). They all have either a free option or a free trial. You should see Volumio in the list of devices to play to. You can use any of these to sign in to Tidal, Qobuz, or Spotify. They can also play local files from your phone or computer.

    Airplay
    Volumio should show up on the list of "speakers" on your iOS device or Mac computer. You can play directly from your files and apps for music streaming services.

    Enjoy! Feel free to post here if you have trouble or one of the other Pi2AES threads. I watch them all so I'll see your post.
     
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