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DACPi
DACPi
DACPi internal view
DACPi
X950 DAC Interface
DACPi

Contents

Overview

Geekworm DACPi is an ultra-thin desktop DAC kit based on the latest raspberry pi 4;

We know that there are many DAC expansion boards released on the market, but they have a common shortcoming that they are too thick. We redesigned the DAC expansion board (X950) and tried our best to make this DAC the thinnest and matched a NUC style aluminum alloy shell, the final thickness of DACPi is only 31mm, Geekworm hope you can like it.

DACPi adopts modular design, it composed of three parts: X950 DAC Shield, cooling system(P165-B embedded heatsink), and a ultra-thin NUC style aluminum case;Just simply assemble them with the Raspberry Pi 4 motherboard.

  • X950 shield can turn your Raspberry pi 4 into a ready-to-play High Resolution Network Music Player.
  • The shell is made of all aluminum alloy, CNC processing method, surface anodizing treatment.
  • For the cooling solution, considering that the active cooling fan will interfere with the sound quality, we abandoned the active cooling solution in DACPi, and we only use P165-B to dissipate heat, which can provide enough heat dissipation if there is no overclocking, but P165-B may be a slight impact on WIFI. You can remove the heatsink also.

The DACPi has been discontinued in 2024, please refer to AMPi, thanks!

For Use With

Raspberry Pi 4 Model B Only

(X950 is compatible with Raspberry pi 3 also, but both DACPi case and P165-B are not compatible with Pi 3)

Features

  • Thinnest design case, only 31mm thickness
  • NUC style aluminum alloy case
  • High-quality DAC
  • Passive heat dissipation, no noise
  • Use high quality PCM5122 DAC chip
  • PCM5122 support Full-HD audio – up to 32-bit/384kHz playback (BUT pi 4 only support 24-bit/192kHz)
  • Built-in high-quality audio headphone amplifier (TI TPA6133A)
  • Class leading audio: 112db SNR, and THD of 0.0019%
  • On-board RCA connectors
  • Powered by the Raspberry Pi PSU- no additional power supply required

Operating System

  • Moode Audio Player
  • OSMC
  • Openelec
  • Raspbian Jessie
  • Volumio
  • Max2Play
  • Ropiee

Packing List

  • 1 x DACPi NUC style shell
  • 1 x X950 DAC Shield
  • 1 x P165-B heatsink
  • 1 x screw pack

Power supply

Power supply: 5Vdc +/-5% , ≥3A (Via Type-C port of Raspberry pi 4)

We recommend that you use our 20W 5V 4A Type-C power adapter USB C PSU.

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09J856PND

FAQ

Q1. Will the Alu case affect the WIFI?

A: As our test, 2.4G WIFI AP was usable. But different Raspberry Pi individuals have different degrees of WIFI interference. As well as aluminum alloy case will interfere with pi 4’s WIFI to a certain extent. So it is strongly recommended to use ethernet or 5G AP.

Q2. Will this work with ropiee?

A: It works with RoPieee just pick "Audio HAT: IQandIO Pi-DAC(+/PRO/Zero)" and I using Spotify and it playing real good sounds very good. (from the feedback of buyer)

Q3.Use the latest version of Raspbian, the os can not see the DACPi

A: If the line 'dtoverlay=iqaudio-dacplus' does not work, please try to use this line 'dtoverlay=rpi-dac'.(from the feedback of buyer)

Q4: What should I do if encounter an error message: Failed to open "alsa"? A:
  1. Only 5 wires are connected to PI 4, so pls make sure that the connection between X950 DAC and PI 4 is well and reliable.
  2. Pls make sure that the Pi 4 firmware has been burned completely.
  3. Make sure the configuration in Volumio is correct. (VOLUMIO 3 is not supported temporarily, please use VOLUMIO 2 or other OS to play, we are communicating this issue with VOLUMIO.)
  4. Do not use X950, just use the official firmware of Raspberry Pi 4 to check whether the Pi 4 motherboard is working properly.
  5. If you have the official dac of Raspberry Pi 4, you can also use it to test the firmware.

The last two are elimination methods to eliminate some problems.

User Manual

Installation Video

https://youtu.be/Ujd5kJAghlE

Thanks for the video from leepspvideo!


 

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Anonymous user #9

12 months ago
Score 0  
Filter PSU board can be added?
 

Walker

12 months ago
Score 0  
Hi, we haven't tested this one.
 

Anonymous user #8

22 months ago
Score 0  
they write, Only 5 wires are connected to PI 4 ... but which 5 gpio are connected ? 5 volt and ground, and which for audio ?
 

Anonymous user #7

23 months ago
Score 0  
Hi, just purchased via amazon and tried to use Moode Audio - no dice. Any hints are WELCOME
 

Anonymous user #7

23 months ago
Score 0  

output of aplay -l in moode also gives me:

        • List of PLAYBACK Hardware Devices ****

card 0: sndrpihifiberry [snd_rpi_hifiberry_dac], device 0: HifiBerry DAC HiFi pcm5102a-hifi-0 [HifiBerry DAC HiFi pcm5102a-hifi-0] Subdevices: 1/1

Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
 

Lisa

23 months ago
Score 0  
Hi, please email us [support@geekworm.com] and tell us your order number,Thanks.
 

Anonymous user #6

33 months ago
Score 0  
I have purchased the dacpi from Amazon and and trying to use picoreplayer or Volumio… I can’t get sound from either with rca to rca of my denon avr. Can you kindly let me know with the exact DAC that comes with this, what model option I need to choose in the model drop down to get the sound to work?
 

Anonymous user #6

33 months ago
Score 0  
Volumio 2, fyi
 

Lisa

33 months ago
Score 0  

Hi,

please refer X950 software#Volumio
 

Anonymous user #5

35 months ago
Score 0  

Hi, for me it works only with dtoverlay=hifiberry-dac on the config.txt file.

aplay -l comand gave me that it is a PCM5102a and not a PCM5122

pi@moode:~ $ aplay -l

        • List of PLAYBACK Hardware Devices ****

card 0: sndrpihifiberry [snd_rpi_hifiberry_dac], device 0: HifiBerry DAC HiFi pcm5102a-hifi-0 [HifiBerry DAC HiFi pcm5102a-hifi-0]

The same with RaspianOS, Volumio3, and rAudio1.
 

Lisa

35 months ago
Score 0  

Hi,

Where did you buy the DACPi? could you please tell us your order number,Thanks. you can also contact us by [support@geekworm.com]
 

Anonymous user #4

36 months ago
Score 0  
HI, how can we install it in a ARCH LINUX?
 

Lisa

36 months ago
Score 0  
Hi,You can refer to whether the official DAC supports ARCH LINUX.But we do not recommend installing ARCH LINUX.
 

Anonymous user #3

39 months ago
Score 0  
With the latest Rasbian, this does not work. I have tried both overlay lines. The original one does show errors inn syslog when audio is played. The second one does not, but, still no audio is output.
 

Lisa

39 months ago
Score 0  
Hi,Please test it with a music system first; Or try to use a headphone cable to test.
 

Anonymous user #1

40 months ago
Score 0  
With max2play the 1st time it comes up will show big blocks can pick for the audio DAC. Just pick "IQaudIO Pi-DAC+" Must be the same audio chip this uses and reboot and play your music. Works real good.
 

Anonymous user #1

41 months ago
Score 0  
It works with RoPieee just pick "Audio HAT: IQandIO Pi-DAC(+/PRO/Zero)" and I using Spotify and it playing real good sounds very good.
 

Anonymous user #2

40 months ago
Score 0  
Thanks.