Celestion44
Established Member
Current situation;
Raspberry Pi4 with Allo Boss v1.2 DAC HAT
Rega Brio amp
Castle Severn 2 speakers
I have the “older“ RPI 4 which is, supposedly super choosy about PSU and why the official (switching) one is recommended . Revisions to the RPI 4 have apparently corrected this, but I simply couldn’t source one!
Both the PI 4 and Boss DAC have usb-c power inputs. The Pi 4 apparently needing 5v 3 amp and the Boss DAC 5v, but no specifics for power draw. I reckon min 600ma.
This setup gives 3 power options;
a power everything from the Pi
b power everything from the Boss DAC
c power them separately
I have watched numerous videos from the usual well known sources and the consensus seems to be to power them separately or “at worst“ power both from the DAC HAT.
You then end up down the rabbit hole of linear v switching PSU with powerbanks then thrown in for good measure.
As I only have the official RPi 4 PSU, I am limited in what I can do. I don’t mind spending money sensibly but I don’t want to buy something to find it makes no appreciable difference.
I have so far powered both devices from the Boss DAC HAT and that works without issue. But, also just for a laugh (not expecting anything to work), I connected an existing RAVPOWER power bank (with a modest 6000 mah battery) to the Boss DAC and then powered the Pi 4 directly from the official PSU.
Altnough getting this combination to work is a little tricky (I have to turn on battery power 3-5 seconds before firing up the Pi 4), I am convinced that I am hearing better overall SQ When using the power bank to the DAC. the impression is of a slightly richer, more detailed sound. My problem is that I don’t know if this is real or whether it’s partially the placebo effect and whether it’s my imagination. In some ways I suppose it doesn’t matter because if I think the SQ has improved then that’s all that matters to me.
However, I do want to move on from the current unsatisfactory situation of a low capacity power bank and I can see three options;
1) buy a higher capacity power bank but still have the fiddling around with powering up in sequence
2) buy a high quality SMPS (something like the IFI psu) and use it for the Boss DAC, with the official Pi psu powering the Pi 4
3) consider a linear PSU
Sorry for the long winded (rambling?) post but any help/pointers/thoughts will be much appreciated. I’m sure with the popularity of the Pi as a streamer, there must be a fair few AVF members experiencing the same sort of issues as me.
PS - by the way, delighted so far with the ALLO Boss DAC hat.
Raspberry Pi4 with Allo Boss v1.2 DAC HAT
Rega Brio amp
Castle Severn 2 speakers
I have the “older“ RPI 4 which is, supposedly super choosy about PSU and why the official (switching) one is recommended . Revisions to the RPI 4 have apparently corrected this, but I simply couldn’t source one!
Both the PI 4 and Boss DAC have usb-c power inputs. The Pi 4 apparently needing 5v 3 amp and the Boss DAC 5v, but no specifics for power draw. I reckon min 600ma.
This setup gives 3 power options;
a power everything from the Pi
b power everything from the Boss DAC
c power them separately
I have watched numerous videos from the usual well known sources and the consensus seems to be to power them separately or “at worst“ power both from the DAC HAT.
You then end up down the rabbit hole of linear v switching PSU with powerbanks then thrown in for good measure.
As I only have the official RPi 4 PSU, I am limited in what I can do. I don’t mind spending money sensibly but I don’t want to buy something to find it makes no appreciable difference.
I have so far powered both devices from the Boss DAC HAT and that works without issue. But, also just for a laugh (not expecting anything to work), I connected an existing RAVPOWER power bank (with a modest 6000 mah battery) to the Boss DAC and then powered the Pi 4 directly from the official PSU.
Altnough getting this combination to work is a little tricky (I have to turn on battery power 3-5 seconds before firing up the Pi 4), I am convinced that I am hearing better overall SQ When using the power bank to the DAC. the impression is of a slightly richer, more detailed sound. My problem is that I don’t know if this is real or whether it’s partially the placebo effect and whether it’s my imagination. In some ways I suppose it doesn’t matter because if I think the SQ has improved then that’s all that matters to me.
However, I do want to move on from the current unsatisfactory situation of a low capacity power bank and I can see three options;
1) buy a higher capacity power bank but still have the fiddling around with powering up in sequence
2) buy a high quality SMPS (something like the IFI psu) and use it for the Boss DAC, with the official Pi psu powering the Pi 4
3) consider a linear PSU
Sorry for the long winded (rambling?) post but any help/pointers/thoughts will be much appreciated. I’m sure with the popularity of the Pi as a streamer, there must be a fair few AVF members experiencing the same sort of issues as me.
PS - by the way, delighted so far with the ALLO Boss DAC hat.