DIY streamer with onboard storage?

[Giuanniello]

Hello,

trying to keep it short, I use an old MacMini (from 2010, only 4GB RAM and small mechanic HD) to stream uncompressed music to a DAC, the Mini does fine with an old version of Volumio but often times I have to restart it as it looses connection and I can't access the music via mobile phone app, I have another more recent (2014!!!) Mini with plenty space and RAM which could become the next media server but while I can substitute it with another one as my main computer I have to find a solution to host my music onto some box which I'd connect to the DAC in either USB or I2S, do you have any suggestion for something DIY based on a Raspberry or something similar?

Grazie

 

[somebodyelse]

Maybe try daphile? I think it'll run on Intel based Macs. It uses LMS rather than MPD on Volumio, but is another linux-based appliance that doesn't need a monitor, although you can use one for local control. On the Pi there are a lot of options, so I'd suggest getting a few uSD cards and trying a few to see which suits you best. It's also possible to configure a linux installation for use as a media player, such as the threads on setting up CamillaDSP.

 

[Giuanniello]

Thanks @somebodyelse I will dedicate the MacMini 2024 with an i7 CPU, 16GB RAM and 1TB SSD to Daphile once I replace it next summer, it got old for my tasks but should do pretty well as a music server

Grazie

 

[somebodyelse]

Daphile doesn't need anything near that spec. Even the 2010 Mini is higher spec than anything I've used it on - the last was a Wyse R90L thin client from about the same time. An SSD does help to keep mechanical noise down though.

 

[Giuanniello]

Daphile doesn't need anything near that spec. Even the 2010 Mini is higher spec than anything I've used it on - the last was a Wyse R90L thin client from about the same time. An SSD does help to keep mechanical noise down though.

My mistake, I was pretty sure the 2010 Mini wasn't using an Intel CPU but it actually does and it is a 64bit CPU and the good news is that RAM can be upgraded for cheap, it might well become the music server, I will give a look at Daphile and eventually try and install it./

Thanks for your input

Giovanni

 

[somebodyelse]

Daphile is 32bit, and will run in 512MB RAM. You really don't need to upgrade. You will need to wipe the HDD before you try to install though - daphile won't overwrite existing partitions. This is mentioned in the installation guide, but easily missed.

 

[Gee2]

There is also a 64bit Daphile version assuming the Mac Mini has a 64bit CPU.

 

[Giuanniello]

Ciao @Gee2 and @somebodyelse actually the 2010 Mini's CPU is a Core 2 Duo so it's a native 64bit, haven't got time yet to understand how DAphile works, if it is just (...) a software I'd try straight away, if it a Linux based OS and it needs to wipe MacOS I rather wait as I need to backup all the music if something goes wrong, I still have to do it anyways as it's a few months I don't

 

[D2013]

what is your budget?

A pi5, with m.2 ssd and case should work fine. Another option is an ASUS Nuc 13 pro. You can get a barebones (add your own storage and ram) i3 kit for $310.

Amazon.com

 

[somebodyelse]

If you're a cheapscate my R90L was <£20 and fanless. Add an NVMe drive and a £24 adapter. More details here. It uses a bit more power than the Pi though.

Ciao @Gee2 and @somebodyelse actually the 2010 Mini's CPU is a Core 2 Duo so it's a native 64bit, haven't got time yet to understand how DAphile works, if it is just (...) a software I'd try straight away, if it a Linux based OS and it needs to wipe MacOS I rather wait as I need to backup all the music if something goes wrong, I still have to do it anyways as it's a few months I don't

daphile is a full linux OS not an app, and needs a wiped disk to install to. If I remember correctly you could also run it direct from the USB stick without installing, but it won't be able to save any configuration changes that way. I could be wrong - I haven't done that for a couple of years.

 

[Giuanniello]

ciao @somebodyelse I will try to start the MacMini off a USB stick with onboard Daphile to see if it works and how. Grazie

 

[pablolie]

so many options these days. I use something called the Lyrion music server, it's free (I have no idea why, it rocks so I donate) that has minimal hardware demands. And runs on pretty much any OS.

 

[somebodyelse]

so many options these days. I use something called the Lyrion music server, it's free (I have no idea why, it rocks so I donate) that has minimal hardware demands. And runs on pretty much any OS.

Daphile is a combination of LMS (was Logitech Media Server, now Lyrion Music Server), squeezelite, BruteFIR, just enough linux to run them, and a web interface so you don't need to know anything about linux. In that respect it's similar to piCorePlayer with the LMS part pre-installed, and targetting PC hardware instead of a Pi.

 

[Gee2]

And the PC hardware requirements are very modest:
◦ Computer to run Daphile:
▪ Processor: x86 architecture based, minimum i486
▪ RAM: 512MB
▪ Network adapter: Ethernet and/or wireless
▪ Bootable storage device: 2GB (SATA, IDE or USB)
▪ Audio device: internal (PCI), USB or FireWire
◦ Another web browser equipped device to access Daphile

 

[TonyJZX]

i literally picked up a laptop from the garbage bin today that would work on this

in fact i used to see these in defence utils transport and they were used by obama in his daily briefings

4gb mem core2 duo 2.5

240gb sata hdd and the usual wifi

you could probably hook up a 1-4fb portable hdd and realistically all the music you would ever listen to would fit on it as long as it wasnt 24/96

keep to redbook flac or less and it would do me

if you hook up $10 usb to 3.5mm adapter like a fiio ja11 it probably has more fidelity than you would need day to day