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DAC sound card or nothing?
Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2017 8:30 am
by shesaysidontlisten
I'm looking at sound card options and I'm wondering if only DAC USB boards work. I was looking at this one:
Sabrent USB External Stereo Sound Adapter for Windows and Mac. Plug and play No drivers Needed. (AU-MMSA)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IRVQ0F8/re ... eAbXSFT7CN
I found this page indicating it should work with a Pi:
https://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/view ... 5&t=132046
But I don't know enough about the DAC cards. What about them makes them work for our purpose? Is it just the headphone connections being easily accessible?
Re: DAC sound card or nothing?
Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2017 8:56 am
by VeteranGamer
that will work (its actually a pretty decent one)
but you can get a similar one for a fraction of the cost (which will also work).....
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/USB-Sou ... eLevelAB=0
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Re: DAC sound card or nothing?
Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2017 9:25 am
by shesaysidontlisten
Wonderful! I'm gonna get one then. Do I still need an amp if I use it?
Re: DAC sound card or nothing?
Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2017 9:44 am
by VeteranGamer
shesaysidontlisten wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2017 9:25 am
Wonderful! I'm gonna get one then. Do I still need an amp if I use it?
you might be able to get away without using an amp.....
the sound card is obviously powerful enough for sound out of the headphones, and i think if you use one of the common speakers used in most builds you might not need a amp....
i personally have only used it with an amp, but i am aware of members that have used it without and have been very pleased with the results...
the amp could actually be overkill.....
you could always order an amp with the sound card (there so cheap, and could come in handy)....
if ordering the one from aliexpress, most seller that have it might also hold the amp
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/PAM8403 ... eLevelAB=0
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Re: DAC sound card or nothing?
Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2017 11:18 am
by RichardG867
VeteranGamer wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2017 9:44 am
the sound card is obviously powerful enough for sound out of the headphones, and i think if you use one of the common speakers used in most builds you might not need a amp....
These cheap sound cards will overheat and kill headphones because they lack a DC filtering capacitor as a cost-cutting measure. There are several guides on how to add said capacitor out there.
Re: DAC sound card or nothing?
Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2017 11:53 am
by shesaysidontlisten
VeteranGamer wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2017 9:44 am
shesaysidontlisten wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2017 9:25 am
Wonderful! I'm gonna get one then. Do I still need an amp if I use it?
you might be able to get away without using an amp.....
the sound card is obviously powerful enough for sound out of the headphones, and i think if you use one of the common speakers used in most builds you might not need a amp....
i personally have only used it with an amp, but i am aware of members that have used it without and have been very pleased with the results...
the amp could actually be overkill.....
you could always order an amp with the sound card (there so cheap, and could come in handy)....
if ordering the one from aliexpress, most seller that have it might also hold the amp
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/PAM8403 ... eLevelAB=0
.
I already have some PAM8403's or whatever because I intended to use GPIO sound. The sound was so distorted and had so much interference (even after making a filter) that I decided to just bite the bullet and do the USB hub and sound card. I know emulation won't give perfect sound, but it's worth the extra 15 bucks to be happier with it.
Re: DAC sound card or nothing?
Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2017 12:58 pm
by VeteranGamer
RichardG867 wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2017 11:18 am
VeteranGamer wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2017 9:44 am
the sound card is obviously powerful enough for sound out of the headphones, and i think if you use one of the common speakers used in most builds you might not need a amp....
These cheap sound cards will overheat and kill headphones because they lack a DC filtering capacitor as a cost-cutting measure. There are several guides on how to add said capacitor out there.
the sound card already has an headphone out....
so the headphone aspect shouldn't be an issue.....
and im pretty sure other members have used this sound cards in many builds....
but if you think there are guides to make things better, it would be nice for you to actually share them....
.
Re: DAC sound card or nothing?
Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2017 1:01 pm
by VeteranGamer
shesaysidontlisten wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2017 11:53 am
I already have some PAM8403's or whatever because I intended to use GPIO sound. The sound was so distorted and had so much interference (even after making a filter) that I decided to just bite the bullet and do the USB hub and sound card. I know emulation won't give perfect sound, but it's worth the extra 15 bucks to be happier with it.
the USB audio setup should sound a lot better than PWM audio....
its definitely worth the effort
.
Re: DAC sound card or nothing?
Posted: Mon Nov 20, 2017 2:34 am
by vnman
This is one of those hits and miss affair...I ordered from 1 supplier and it works with retropie, the next order the card does not showed up with retropie but does showed up with volumio (Audio distribution).
I am now leaning toward I2S DAC for my next build...
On order -
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Raspber ... 71341.html
Re: DAC sound card or nothing?
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2017 9:02 pm
by shesaysidontlisten
VeteranGamer wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2017 1:01 pm
shesaysidontlisten wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2017 11:53 am
I already have some PAM8403's or whatever because I intended to use GPIO sound. The sound was so distorted and had so much interference (even after making a filter) that I decided to just bite the bullet and do the USB hub and sound card. I know emulation won't give perfect sound, but it's worth the extra 15 bucks to be happier with it.
the USB audio setup should sound a lot better than PWM audio....
its definitely worth the effort
So I plugged in the hub and sound card and my headphones straight to the sound card headphone jack and I hear nothing. I made the /etc/asound.conf file and referenced 003, which is the device number from lsusb. Verified by unplugging and checking it again.
Is there another step I'm missing? I feel like it's something obvious...