Hello!
I received my audio card at the beginning of the week, and I wanted to share my first impressions with you.
My needs are pretty simple : I want to use a RaspberryPi and LogitechMediaServer/Squeezelite to listen to music on my HIFI installation. I searched the web for some USB DACs, custom board for Rpi,... but they were too expensive, or they were shipped from US or China (I live in Belgium),... So, I was happy to find one that was not too expensive, and easily shipped to my home.
It's shipped in a little cardboard box, the packaging is similar to the one of the RasberryPi itself.
The connection with the RaspberryPi is very easy, as you don't need to solder the connector P5. The only issue (not really...), is that the sound card is a little bent because it touches the audio jack of the RaspberryPi.... Any way, if you use the little screw (provided in the box) to maintain the card in place, their should not be any problem.
I didn't try to compile the drivers and software by myself, but I hope that they will be integrated in the mainstream Raspbian distribution ASAP. Instead, I downloaded the full OS image available on the website. I had to be patient... it's a 4Go ZIP file which seems to create a 6Go filesystem. Fortunately, I had a 8Go SD card laying around!
The OS image boots directly to the graphical interface. I tried to play the HD tracks as explained in the user manual, but then, the rPi would become verry slow, and the CPU was 100% used... Anyway, I tried to read some MP3 file with command like (mpg123), and it works great. I tried the analog and digital output. The sound quality is quite good, far better than the audio output of the raspberryPi!
And then I installed Logitech Media Server and Squeezelite. Since then, it is connected to my hifi amplifier and works great!
So, appart from the little mechanical problem (the board that touches the audio connector of the rpi), the software the is not (yet) integrated in Raspbian, and the absence of a specific enclosure, I would say that it is a very good product!
I didn't try any audio input and recording, though...
I wrote an article on my blog in French and English, if you wish to read it ;-)
And you, what do you think of this board?
