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I've tried a few DAC HATs, a reclocker board, and a linear power supply.
Each upgrade has made the sound quality slightly better, but after attending a few meetings at a local audio meetup grounp I am starting to realize that as advanced as the PI DAC HATs are they really don't compare to even cheap stand alone DACs. I still want to use the Raspberry PI as a transport as I feel that going back to a Windows based PC would be a step back at this point.
What are my Digital HAT options?
Is one better than another?
Is my Allo Kali Reclocker compatible with any of them?
Do I even need a reclocker or will that be left up to the DAC to I choose?
Are there any advantages to Toslink .vs spdif or visa versa?
What are some cheap, but good current production DACs?
Follow Ups:
I've been very pleased with the Allo DigiOne driving a Schiit Gungnir Multibit. I'm using the BNC output on the DigiOne and the BNC input on the Gungnir. Cable is Blue Jeans. Power is the iFi iPower 5v. OS is Moode 3.8.4 with RT kernel. Server is LMS.
I've driven the Gungnir with several other sources: modded SBT, RPi over USB, and Hifiberry Digi+ Pro. The Digione smoked all of these. Impressive bang for the buck with the inexpensive Blue Jeans cable and iFi power. Very musical, detailed, and rhythmic.
Have a look at iqaudio
I have an rpi plugged directly into my Schiit Modi Multibit. It sounds great. Looking to add an Allo Digione soon.
A decent DAC that YOU like the sound of is key.SCHIIT is as good a place as any to start.
S/PDIF done correctly should sound better than TOSLINK but may not due to other reasons.
ALLO DigiOne should be at the top of the list, if others here are to be believed. I have had good luck with the HiFiBerry Digi+ Pro.
Next up is a REALLY good 5V supply. Spare NO expense here! I tried my $400 LPS-1 UltraCap supply that normally powers my uRendu on my Pi (LPS-! has a voltage selector switch which includes 5V) and it made a world of improvement over both the iFi iPower and the Jameco LPS, one of which I usually use to power the Pi.
OK, NOT suggesting a $400 supply makes any sense for the Pi, but it does show how important clean power is when dealing with digital audio. Maybe a TeraDak 5V supply of something of that sort? Some have good luck with high capacity 5V rechargeable battery packs; the kind you use to re-charge a cell phone. I have a 24,000 mAh pack that sounds better than the cheap wall wart that came with the Pi (throw that away the day you get your Pi and move up to something, anything, better).
Edits: 09/25/17
Are there any advantages to Toslink .vs spdif or visa versa?
"Optical had to go..." according to Allo based upon inherent jitter.
I use the BNC output currently.
Check our http://www.pi2design.com
They have a 502dac hat there with BNC optical outs. I'm using a Cable with a BNC connector on one end and RCA on the other. Got the cable from eBay for around $20. It uses Belden wire. This hat sounds phenomenal. I have gone through many comparisons with this.
Compared it to Daphile software on a computer, a high end FireWire computer sound card, my Squeezeboxes and directly to my CD player with Spdif. Everything going to my Schiit Mimby dac. The pi2design spdif out sounds better than all of the above. It looks more high end than the Allo, though I have not heard that. Check out their website, it appears they are having specials right now. I'm a very happy customer!
Check our http://www.pi2design.com
They have a 502dac hat there with BNC optical outs. I'm using a Cable with a BNC connector on one end and RCA on the other. Got the cable from eBay for around $20. It uses Belden wire. This hat sounds phenomenal. I have gone through many comparisons with this.
Compared it to Daphile software on a computer, a high end FireWire computer sound card, my Squeezeboxes and directly to my CD player with Spdif. Everything going to my Schiit Mimby dac. The pi2design spdif out sounds better than all of the above. It looks more high end than the Allo, though I have not heard that. Check out their website, it appears they are having specials right now. I'm a very happy customer!
It looks more high end than the Allo...
The DigiOne to which I linked is not a DAC - just S/PDIF output.
The 502dac is designed first for S/PDIF. It is better than the Digione from all the research I have done. I know it has Dac in the name, but the dac part of it is just OK, they actually came out with the 502dacpro, Which is suppose to be better as a dac with the same S/PDIF out as the 502dac. I'm very happy with my setup and I have a very revealing system.
I have no use for an internal DAC to increase its power consumption.
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