Build Yourself This Portable Hi-Res Audio Player On The Cheap Using A Raspberry Pi

Key Takeaways

Build a Hi-Res portable audio player using a Raspberry Pi Pico.
You’ll need a few other parts like a DAC, LCD board, and LCD.
The project was conceived by Elehobica, providing instructions and software.

If you’re someone who’s looking to dive into a new project, and wants to build something from scratch, an SBC can be an awesome solution, providing a great way to learn about hardware, software, and everything in between. In 2024, there’s a wide variety of great SBCs out on the market, with one at nearly every price point, which makes it extremely easy to pick one up if you’re looking to start tinkering away.

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With that said, the folks at Hackster spotted this awesome Raspberry Pi project that was listed on Adafruit Industries websitewhich comes from the mind of Elehobica. Using relatively inexpensive parts, and following some directions, you can now build yourself a Hi-Res portable audio player using a Raspberry Pi Pico.

Fun, cheap, and interesting

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When it comes to the actual components, there’s not a lot going on here, with the Pico Pi doing most of the heavy lifting. In addition, you’re going to need a DAC, LCD board, along with a tiny LCD. With just those components, you can get this thing up and running, thanks to the hard work from Elehobica, which has provided the necessary instructions and software on GitHub to get this thing up and running.

As far as the features of this device, you’re going to be able to play Hi-Res audio with a maximum of 24-bit at 192KHz. Of course, if you want to, you can always scale that back with support for 16-bit audio as well at 44.1KHz, 48KHz, 88.2KHz, 96KHz, and 176.4KHz. You’ll also want to grab an SD card to store all your audio files because there is no streaming here.

So if you’re looking to start this project, be sure to pick up the Raspberry Pi Pico and other components to get yourself off on the right foot.