Soundquality Rasperry I2s vs Amanero I2s
Hi
Right now I use the Dam1021 with a battery powered amanero usb interface and could not be happier; the soundquality is very good.
I want to move my Dam board to a new enclosure and since I use it most of the time with moode on a raspberry PI I ask myself if it would make sense to put the pi in the same enclosure and go straight to the Dam.
The raspberry would get a very clean power supply. Can I expect sound differences compared to the amanero setup?
Since I heard an improvement on the amanero from going usb powered to battery powered, I ask myself if it is just a matter of a clean ground, or if other things, like the insufficient clock on the PI have an influence also. Even with the Fifo on the Dam....
Thanks for your opinions in advance...
Hi
Right now I use the Dam1021 with a battery powered amanero usb interface and could not be happier; the soundquality is very good.
I want to move my Dam board to a new enclosure and since I use it most of the time with moode on a raspberry PI I ask myself if it would make sense to put the pi in the same enclosure and go straight to the Dam.
The raspberry would get a very clean power supply. Can I expect sound differences compared to the amanero setup?
Since I heard an improvement on the amanero from going usb powered to battery powered, I ask myself if it is just a matter of a clean ground, or if other things, like the insufficient clock on the PI have an influence also. Even with the Fifo on the Dam....
Thanks for your opinions in advance...
@Søren
Apologies for asking/requesting firmware related questions/features.
I know you have mentioned that generating firmware is a time consuming task.
Does volume pot mode set gain to over 0 (+10) ?
If so would you be able to add a firmware feature to cap the max gain in volume pot mode to a user set-able/stored number other than +10?
How does one update the firmware or change filters on the new consumer DAC's (1321/1421/1541)?
Apologies for asking/requesting firmware related questions/features.
I know you have mentioned that generating firmware is a time consuming task.
Does volume pot mode set gain to over 0 (+10) ?
If so would you be able to add a firmware feature to cap the max gain in volume pot mode to a user set-able/stored number other than +10?
How does one update the firmware or change filters on the new consumer DAC's (1321/1421/1541)?
I think HF noise on the i2s lines can leak into the dam1021 over the isolated inputs which means the cleaner the 5V power powering the Pi the better.
The Amanero also appears rather poor at isolating any USB power noise coming in but as long as its got clean power that is likely the only explanation as to why it sounds better.
A Singxer C1 has far more power regulation circuitry and filtering caps than a stock Amanero which likely explains the differences in overall SQ in my setup after dumping the Amanero.
The dam1021 reclocks everything coming in so the Pi's i2s output should be indistinguishable from an Amanero in most cases, as long as you're powering them with something that's clean.
Thanks for the reply!
So you used the Amanero with USB power and not an external supply?
I have a serial resistor connected to the pot so 0db is my maximum volume. It is not an elegant solution but it works.
This is my first post in this forum, so please don’t be too harsh on me.
Never taking on a DIY audio project before, and with dam1021 appearing to be somewhat complex to complete for somebody with my level of understanding, I am looking for an advice which I hope members of this forum will be willing to provide. I do have a technical background, and I did some soldering on electronic boards in the past, but I have no experience with anything as advanced as this project appears to be. I am not at all afraid to tackle this, especially based on what I believe it can potentially provide for my listening enjoyment, but I am afraid of becoming stuck with no ability to move forward on my own. In the end, what I am really looking for is from somebody who already did it to tell me if this is going to be a straight forward venture, or do I need almost a designer level of understanding and an expert level hands-on experience in electronics, to be able to complete it?
At this point I am considering if I should instead just go with dac1101. My biggest concern with doing that is potential inability to load NOS filter(s) which I would really like to try. The Soekris site states, among the other things about dac1101, that: 'The music is delivered ..., with digital processing in a "programmable" FPGA chip with selectable advanced digital filters...' The "programmable" implies that users should be able to program it, why would they otherwise care if it is programmable or not. This is inconclusive to say the least, especially since it is not explicitly mentioned or supported anywhere else that I can find.
Additionally, the lack of I2S input option in dac1101 doesn't necessarily go in its favor for my intended application.
Overall, from what I know, dam1021 would certainly be my preferred way to go.
Never taking on a DIY audio project before, and with dam1021 appearing to be somewhat complex to complete for somebody with my level of understanding, I am looking for an advice which I hope members of this forum will be willing to provide. I do have a technical background, and I did some soldering on electronic boards in the past, but I have no experience with anything as advanced as this project appears to be. I am not at all afraid to tackle this, especially based on what I believe it can potentially provide for my listening enjoyment, but I am afraid of becoming stuck with no ability to move forward on my own. In the end, what I am really looking for is from somebody who already did it to tell me if this is going to be a straight forward venture, or do I need almost a designer level of understanding and an expert level hands-on experience in electronics, to be able to complete it?
At this point I am considering if I should instead just go with dac1101. My biggest concern with doing that is potential inability to load NOS filter(s) which I would really like to try. The Soekris site states, among the other things about dac1101, that: 'The music is delivered ..., with digital processing in a "programmable" FPGA chip with selectable advanced digital filters...' The "programmable" implies that users should be able to program it, why would they otherwise care if it is programmable or not. This is inconclusive to say the least, especially since it is not explicitly mentioned or supported anywhere else that I can find.
Additionally, the lack of I2S input option in dac1101 doesn't necessarily go in its favor for my intended application.
Overall, from what I know, dam1021 would certainly be my preferred way to go.
Go for it. You'll get help on this forum if you get stuck. Follow the links provided in the very first post of this thread regarding info and how-to's, especially the hifiduino Illustrated Guide. Also Dimdim's site has good info.
The DAMs are well worth the effort and you'll have fun....
Thanks for the encouragement derekr.
Those are my thoughts too. Just putting it together might not be very difficult, but selecting and sourcing the right components to put in the mix will be a much bigger challenge for me.
...I was really hoping somebody will comment on possibility to program dac1101 with different filters.
Those are my thoughts too. Just putting it together might not be very difficult, but selecting and sourcing the right components to put in the mix will be a much bigger challenge for me.
...I was really hoping somebody will comment on possibility to program dac1101 with different filters.
Thanks for the encouragement derekr.
Those are my thoughts too. Just putting it together might not be very difficult, but selecting and sourcing the right components to put in the mix will be a much bigger challenge for me.
...I was really hoping somebody will comment on possibility to program dac1101 with different filters.
To just start out there is very little you need, just use a small 7vac double winding transformer and your i2s source along with +3.3V to the isolation power. (get that from a raspberry pi or usb-i2s adapter to start with)
What gets fun and interesting is assembling better power supplies and adding various upgrades and whatnot once you get addicted. Good luck!
Robert,
What OS?
Be sure to load PCM1794a module (left justified I2S) and connect 4 wires to 7-pin I2S header.
GND is needed.
Thanx for answering, Gavinb!
I use Archphile for Odroid C2. Tried to load the pcm1794a modules, but they obviously aren't recognized (got an adequate message). With pcm5102 modules 1021dam just locks, but doesn't play.
With Volumio 2 on Odroid C2 it works (but that's no way for me;-)).
With Archphile Odroid C1+ version it worked after following this workaround:
1. add the following lines to you /boot/boot.ini
# Enable I2S DAC
setenv enabledac "enabledac"
right under
setenv hdmioutput "1"
2. Add
${enabledac}
at the end of the bootargs line
setenv bootargs "console=...<many args>... ${hdmi_hpd} ${hdmi_cec}"
so that it looks like
setenv bootargs "console=...<many args>... ${hdmi_hpd} ${hdmi_cec} ${enabledac}"
3. reboot and enjoy
After reboot, check that
aplay -l
shows two sound cards (HDMI and ODROID DAC) and that mpd.conf refers to the correct device (the ODROID DAC)
But with Odroid C2's /boot/boot.ini the essential lines aren't there or look different. I tried it- but without success.