SMSL PO100 pro with RPI 3b+ vs RPI 5

[ajuvignesh]

Hi all,

I am planning to dive into either gentooplayer or audiolinux on a raspberry pi. The idea is to run audirvana on it.

The usb implementation of my minidsp streamer is poor and therefore the only option is coaxial or optical.
The cheapest way to get coaxial from a raspberry pi device is with SMSL PO100 pro ddc.
I already have a raspberry pi 3b+ in hand.

So, will there be any difference in sound quality if the small po100pro is connected to the usb of RPI 3b+ vs RPI 5 to take the coaxial out considering the fact that 3b+ has bad usb implementation.

Or, should I skip the SMSL ddc + RPI altogether and go with allo digione signature for a better coaxial output?

Totally confused here. Digione signature will be an expensive route to take while Raspberry + SMSL ddc would be cheaper to buy.
Any thoughts?

 

[rrunner]

I use gentoo player on RPi4, USB dac for daily usage.

I also have the ustars r19hat for coax out as well as SMSL po100 ddc for use with a different dac that has coax input. My advise would be to stick to either Rpi4 8gb or Rpi5 and work around those for better upgradability, support. Yes, every change makes a difference.

 

[ajuvignesh]

I use gentoo player on RPi4, USB dac for daily usage.

I also have the ustars r19hat for coax out as well as SMSL po100 ddc for use with a different dac that has coax input. My advise would be to stick to either Rpi4 8gb or Rpi5 and work around those for better upgradability, support. Yes, every change makes a difference.

Thank you. So a rpi 5 8 gb + po100 pro is just fine? It will save a ton of money for me.

 

[rrunner]

It is sufficient and multiuse capability.

 

[reignofchaos]

It all depends on your DAC - how good its usb input is.

 

[keroo1099]

I know that the SMSL PO100 Pro connected between a old Dell laptop and my Topping DX9 has made a tangible difference to musicality connected via I2S. It's been one of the cheapest and best investments so far.

I have posted a review here on the SMSL on a followup to my DAC review.

 

[Nero9]

I think linux guru mbhangui can help here.

 

[mbhangui]

Hi all,

I am planning to dive into either gentooplayer or audiolinux on a raspberry pi. The idea is to run audirvana on it.

The usb implementation of my minidsp streamer is poor and therefore the only option is coaxial or optical.
The cheapest way to get coaxial from a raspberry pi device is with SMSL PO100 pro ddc.
I already have a raspberry pi 3b+ in hand.

So, will there be any difference in sound quality if the small po100pro is connected to the usb of RPI 3b+ vs RPI 5 to take the coaxial out considering the fact that 3b+ has bad usb implementation.

rpi3b+ struggles especially if you do any kind of sample rate change or play DSD when your dac doesn't support DSD, etc. RPI4 is good enough. Regarding allo digione, allo went dead few years back. It is now handled by ex employees but without the real guy who made all their products (Johan). No new product has come from the new company rabas.in. Most of the documentation hosted on aws is gone. Avoid allo for now.

 

[jaiwant_alex]

I use HiFiBerry Digi Standard to get Coaxial output from RPI4 , which runs Jriver for Linux. I think the SMSL or Hifiberry will do a fair job, though digione signature would be an upgrade. It would cost more as it would also need a LPS/SMPS

 

[ajuvignesh]

rpi3b+ struggles especially if you do any kind of sample rate change or play DSD when your dac doesn't support DSD, etc. RPI4 is good enough. Regarding allo digione, allo went dead few years back. It is now handled by ex employees but without the real guy who made all their products (Johan). No new product has come from the new company rabas.in. Most of the documentation hosted on aws is gone. Avoid allo for now.

Thanks for the caution. Sad to see allo like this. Yeah, I shall go with rpi 4/5. My dac supports dsd but by streamer doesn’t pass through it. It converts dsd to pcm for room correction.

 

[ajuvignesh]

I use HiFiBerry Digi Standard to get Coaxial output from RPI4 , which runs Jriver for Linux. I think the SMSL or Hifiberry will do a fair job, though digione signature would be an upgrade. It would cost more as it would also need a LPS/SMPS

Correct. SMSL seems to be a good option now. After the caution by mbhangui, I am staying away from allo.

 

[ajuvignesh]

It all depends on your DAC - how good its usb input is.

The usb input of my dac is good. But I have a room correction system in between. Its usb implementation is bad. So, coaxial is the way out.

 

[ajuvignesh]

I know that the SMSL PO100 Pro connected between a old Dell laptop and my Topping DX9 has made a tangible difference to musicality connected via I2S. It's been one of the cheapest and best investments so far.

I have posted a review here on the SMSL on a followup to my DAC review.

Thank you. I will read that review. Youtuber cheapaudioman too says that it’s totally worth it and upgraded his wiim’s performance by 3x

 

[ajuvignesh]

can I run rpi 4 and smsl po100 pro with allo nirvana? Smsl will be connected to the rpi’s usb.
Nirvana is 5v 2.8 amps
Rpi is 5v 3 amps
Smsl po 100 pro is 5v 200 mA

 

[keroo1099]

Thank you. I will read that review. Youtuber cheapaudioman too says that it’s totally worth it and upgraded his wiim’s performance by 3x

I would take that claim with a bagfull of salt.

 

[reignofchaos]

The usb input of my dac is good. But I have a room correction system in between. Its usb implementation is bad. So, coaxial is the way out.

Then it is worth it. I have a po100 pro which I use to convert the noisy output of my PC USB to i2S that feeds a holo cyan 2 in my desktop system. It works rather well.

 

[mbhangui]

can I run rpi 4 and smsl po100 pro with allo nirvana? Smsl will be connected to the rpi’s usb.
Nirvana is 5v 2.8 amps
Rpi is 5v 3 amps
Smsl po 100 pro is 5v 200 mA

RPI requires 3A peak. Nirvana can supply only 2.8. When the current consumption reaches the peak, voltage will go below 5v and the RPI will complain in /var/log/messanges and dmesg output. I have both Shanti and Nirvana. The Nirvana is unable to power a RPI4 and a Reclocker that I have and the RPI just doesn't complete the boot. No issues with Shanti as far as load is concerned.

200 mA is hardly a load.

 

[ajuvignesh]

I would take that claim with a bagfull of salt.

Okay. Lemme see if there are any review on Internet.

Then it is worth it. I have a po100 pro which I use to convert the noisy output of my PC USB to i2S that feeds a holo cyan 2 in my desktop system. It works rather well.

Thanks. Does it have galvanic isolation built in?

RPI requires 3A peak. Nirvana can supply only 2.8. When the current consumption reaches the peak, voltage will go below 5v and the RPI will complain in /var/log/messanges and dmesg output. I have both Shanti and Nirvana. The Nirvana is unable to power a RPI4 and a Reclocker that I have and the RPI just doesn't complete the boot. No issues with Shanti as far as load is concerned.

200 mA is hardly a load.

Thanks. Slightly off topic. Is there a difference between nirvana and shanti in terms of sound quality?

 

[rwnano]

I have a macbook pro running linux Ubuntu as Spotify streamer outputs to topping d10s dac through to my amplifier. Works well. Am I missing out on something?

 

[mbhangui]

Thanks. Slightly off topic. Is there a difference between nirvana and shanti in terms of sound quality?

For RPI3 and below it doesn't matter nirvana or shanti. The Nirvana SMPS is one of the few well designed SMPS and gives extremely stable supply as long as power drawn doesn't exceed around 2 amps. For RPI4 and above or any device with demanding load, Shanti has more grunt and hence will easily maintain a constant voltage. The only issue with shanti is two thin cables supplying the 3A and 1A output. A thicker wire should be there to reduce the I²R loss. With a bit of diy you can put thicker cable and use aviation connector for the two outputs. You just need to drill two holes - one for the 3A output and one for the 1A output. Something like below. But even without the DIY the shanti very good for the price it sells for.