Asynchronous I2S FIFO project, an ultimate weapon to fight the jitter

Hi Shane,

With 22.xxx MHz XO, you can run music up to 176KHz. Pulsar OCXO are super, so for the best ones you can touch.

Ian

I can certainly recommend the professional service and very well packed and sorted product from Pulsar, arrived today - time to get busy.


Shane
 

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Yeah, Ian.. .you know he said he select me a 22.xxx close to 11.xxx performance.. has a few in stock. Good time to buy, costs a bit ... but in context, maybe the best value.

I know, PN looks superb. Mr. Ian can you please share with us the PN charts for your Pulsars Clocks

Thanks to Mauro at Pulsar - great guy to deal with.
Pulsar Clock & Power

Nounouchet, hello <1Hz is key, but you need to find your own bait to catch the fish!. OK, look 0.1Hz to 1Hz, naturally follows to 10Hz. Compare?.. what - nah these just sit on the shelf.

Shane.
 
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nOObie Questions Ian Fifo

Have been reading about Ian's Fifo and about the No Dac, No USB with great interest.

Not understanding that sometimes refer to using Amanero with Raspberry Pi, could someone explain how the two would work together? I understood that you either use Raspberry Pi or Amanero (or JL Sounds).

Could you confirm my understanding of Ian's Fifo device setup?
Ethernet or WiFi > Raspberry Pi > Ian Fifo S/PDIF Interface Board >Ian I2S FIFO KIT > Dac
I understand that you do not need the Dual XO if you are not changing formats.

Is there an inexpensive Dac (less than $200 that would recommended with the Raspberry Pi and Ian Fifo kit ?

Thank you for the patience and guidance !
 
The Amanero is a USB to I2S interface, so a valid setup would be:

Ethernet or WiFi > Raspberry Pi > Amanero > Ian I2S FIFO KIT (with XO or Dual XO board) > Dac

Such a setup would be preferred if you would prefer to keep your RPi in a separate enclosure from your DAC.

If you'd be OK with having everything in one enclosure, you could do this:

Ethernet or WiFi > Raspberry Pi > Ian I2S FIFO KIT (with XO or Dual XO board) > Dac

So you'd utilize the RPi's I2S output, skipping the Amanero.

Regarding the Dual XO board, you pretty much need it in every use case, unless you'd have the RPi upsample everything to a certain sample rate, in which case you could go for the single XO board. But you will need some kind of XO board - besides supplying the clock, it also does the I2S signal reclocking.

Regarding the inexpensive DAC, it's not easy to find one that would benefit substantially from Ian's FIFO, especially if the $200 should also cover the power supplies. Perhaps some AK4490/7 design.
 
nOObie Questions Ian Fifo

Dear Dimdim,
Thank you for the reply ! Have enjoyed reading your blog.

Am I correct that skipping the Ameno would be preferable? It seems that keeping with the I2S is preferable.
Ethernet or WiFi > Raspberry Pi > Ian I2S FIFO KIT (with Dual XO board) > Dac

Any suggestions for AK4490/AK4495/AK4497 Dacs (Around $200)? Found on ebay: Dual AK4495 or Assembled AK4495

Thank you !
 
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In theory, using Ian's FIFO should eliminate any sound quality differences between using the RPi's I2S output and using an Amanero, so if you intend to build everything in one box you may as well skip the Amanero.

Regarding the relatively cheap Chinese DACs off of Ebay, you should keep in mind that most of the times their design is not optimal and the parts used are not exactly "top shelf", but they are indeed cheap, so they are a good starting point.

I don't know exactly how skilled you are in soldering, but if you feel up to it a very honest choice might be this one: ES9028 ES9028PRO /ES9018 ES9018S Q8 HiFi Audio DAC Decoder DIY KIT | eBay plus an ES9028PRO chip. You will get a DAC that has a SOTA DAC chip and fully supports pretty much every sampling rate and data format, including DoP.

But, to get the most out of it, like with all Ebay DACs, you'll eventually have to do some parts substitution and/or substantial modding.

Edit: Or just spend ~$20 more and spare yourself the soldering: http://www.ebay.com/itm/ES9028-ES90...891304?hash=item2a8559f3e8:g:-rsAAOSwrfVZRoM4