Pi4B + Allo Boss DAC I2S v1.2 or Topping D10S

[PaulW]

My son will be building a media player for a friend who is technology illiterate and will use the player strictly for streaming FLAC files (and MP3s, unfortunately) to an older analog-only receiver and from an attached USB flash drive or SSD. He will control the device with his phone &/or tablet. We will configure the player for him prior to sending it to him and walk him through setting it up on his network.

This noob has scoured the Net for the last week trying to come up with the best and reasonably priced options, as this will be my gift to the friend. So.....which option would be better and least troublesome?

Pi4B + Allo Boss DAC I2S v1.2 HAT
or
Pi4B + Topping D10S USB DAC

Are there other HATs or external DACs that would be better options than these? I'd like to keep the cost to around $200 Cdn ($150US) (we're in Canada and importing the Schiit Modi 3+ was too expensive).

Thanks! All help is appreciated!

 

[Rock Rabbit]

Pi + Allo Boss is good enough for 16 bits, compact one box solution with only one external supply. On the other side an external DAC gives more flexibility and extra formats (Dsd, PCM over 192k sample rate).
For the price Allo Boss is a very good solution (excellent bass), for less money you can use an USB dongle DAC (Apple, Meizu etc), but dongle cable could be an issue.

 

[Sukie]

Normally I'd suggest checking out HiFiBerry DAC+ Pro, but it's out of stock on that website. There are other HiFiBerry HATs available, but I'd stick with the Allo Boss if that's the route you decide to go down.

The Allo Boss measures really well for a HAT DAC, but it is out performed by the Topping D10s. However, there won't be any differences in sound quality between the two.

My advice would be to make up a single unit out of
RPi4 2 GB
Allo Boss DAC I2S v1.2
Acrylic Case for RPi 4B + Boss - Black
Power supply

That comes in at $164.60.

You'll also need a Micro SD card. There are plenty of options for software. I've used Moode and Volumio, as well as Roipeee (but I use that as a Roon Bridge, so not relevant). Is your son familiar with configuring an RPi?

I'm suggesting these things form the UK, so I hope I've linked the correct site for you in Canada.

Last thing - you should be really proud of your son. He sounds like a wonderful young man, constructively using his time in this way.

 

[FooYatChong]

My son has a Pi with a Tempotec Sonata HD Pro.
Uses the Sonata with his iPad too.

 

[PaulW]

Obviously, the key is sound quality. If there's no appreciable difference in sonic quality between the Boss and the Topping, then I think that the all-in-one is the way to go. My friend's system is quite good and likely cost in the $3-4,000 range, so I don't know if that should make a difference if choosing the Boss over the Topping.

 

[PaulW]

Last thing - you should be really proud of your son. He sounds like a wonderful young man, constructively using his time in this way.

Well...he's a university graduate with a degree in computer science and LOVES playing around with this kind of stuff.

Virtually all of the UK stuff is available locally, so no worries!

 

[PaulW]

One last question before I pull the trigger on the Rpi4/Boss combo. Is there an advantage in getting the RPi4 with 4GB RAM vs. 2GB RAM, if the unit will be used exclusively for playing FLAC & MP3 files from attached USB devices? Will loading or library refreshing be any quicker with 4GB?

Thanks to all!

 

[Sukie]

Well...he's a university graduate with a degree in computer science and LOVES playing around with this kind of stuff.

Virtually all of the UK stuff is available locally, so no worries!

My apologies - I had in my mind that he was younger! A degree in computer science makes him immeasurably more qualified than me. It'll be no problem for him to get the thing up and running.

Having said that, you should still be proud of him!

 

[Sukie]

One last question before I pull the trigger on the Rpi4/Boss combo. Is there an advantage in getting the RPi4 with 4GB RAM vs. 2GB RAM, if the unit will be used exclusively for playing FLAC & MP3 files from attached USB devices? Will loading or library refreshing be any quicker with 4GB?

Thanks to all!

No. 2GB is more than enough for streaming.

 

[PaulW]

My apologies - I had in my mind that he was younger! A degree in computer science makes him immeasurably more qualified than me. It'll be no problem for him to get the thing up and running.

Having said that, you should still be proud of him!

He started his very first job last January and has been in virtual lockdown since last March, but continues to work from home with his space age PC setup. We ARE proud of him!

Thanks for the advice. I'll be placing my order now from BuyaPi.ca

 

[Sukie]

but continues to work from home with his space age PC setup.

Love it.

 

[PaulW]

Have you noticed audible differences between basic power supplies and upgraded ones, such as the Allo Nirvana?

 

[JeffS7444]

One last question before I pull the trigger on the Rpi4/Boss combo. Is there an advantage in getting the RPi4 with 4GB RAM vs. 2GB RAM, if the unit will be used exclusively for playing FLAC & MP3 files from attached USB devices? Will loading or library refreshing be any quicker with 4GB?

If anything, a Pi 4 with 2 GB is very generous: My older Pi 3B (not "+") already works great for the task.

Don't forget that USB output to a DAC is also an option with Pi 4 (it's iffier with older Pis which shared USB bandwidth with networking)

 

[PaulW]

Also... can the Allo Nirvana power a RPi4/Boss combo?

 

[PaulW]

Don't forget that USB output to a DAC is also an option with Pi 4 (it's iffier with older Pis which shared USB bandwidth with networking)

I tried to find a reasonably priced external USB DAC, such as the Schiit. However, there didn't seem to be any that fell within our self-imposed budget for this gift. The Schiit worked out to costing over $200 Cdn after exchange, shipping, taxes, etc. Can you recommend one or two that would be better than the RPi4/Boss combo?

 

[Sukie]

Have you noticed audible differences between basic power supplies and upgraded ones, such as the Allo Nirvana?

I'm perfectly happy with the standard power supply. I don't use HATs with my RPis (only because I've got enough DACs not to need them) but I've not heard of issues using standard supplies. There's occasional chatter about noise, but this is roundly rejected on this forum (no hard evidence).

 

[PaulW]

I guess I'm back to the question of whether I should do the Boss HAT or Topping d10S (or other comparably priced) combo. SJ has already said that there likely wouldn't be an appreciable difference in sound quality between the two options and I want a simple solution for my friend.

Jeff. Do you have a USB DAC recommendation?

 

[Sukie]

I tried to find a reasonably priced external USB DAC, such as the Schiit. However, there didn't seem to be any that fell within our self-imposed budget for this gift. The Schiit worked out to costing over $200 Cdn after exchange, shipping, taxes, etc. Can you recommend one or two that would be better than the RPi4/Boss combo?

The differences that we're talking about are outside of audible range. (I'm no expert in this, but have drawn conclusions from this forum.) Amirm recommends the Allo Boss in his review. He rightly says that the Topping D10s is "better", but that's from a measurements point of view. A SINAD measurement of 93 is still pretty good, just not top tier.

The choice is between a one case solution and a two case solution. Full disclosure: I run an RPi4 with a Topping D10s and it's great. Obviously it pushes the price up slightly, but it's up to you.

 

[PaulW]

I guess that if there's no audible difference, I will get the RPi/Boss combo. As I had mentioned earlier, my friend is computer illiterate and will get intimidated by having to deal with multiple devices.

Thanks to all again!

 

[JeffS7444]

I tried to find a reasonably priced external USB DAC, such as the Schiit. However, there didn't seem to be any that fell within our self-imposed budget for this gift. The Schiit worked out to costing over $200 Cdn after exchange, shipping, taxes, etc. Can you recommend one or two that would be better than the RPi4/Boss combo?

Not off the top of my head, no. I think that the recommended combo will work very nicely, and if I already had a USB-C charger and USB-C cable, I'd try using that for a power supply rather than buying something new.