USB Soundcard Quality and Boot issues

USB Soundcard Quality and Boot issues - Printable Version

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USB Soundcard Quality and Boot issues - Kleekru - 02-06-2023

I have a mostly working setup with a RPi3, 3.5 Touchscreen with scaled down CarPlay form my vintage single DIN Beetle restoration. I have an Amp and Kenwood speakers and have been successful enough to get the sound through a USB soundcard, to the amp to the speakers but I have 2 problems alluding me: 1) The Pi goes into a nearly endless boot loop when the USB soundcard is plugged in (UGreen C-Media Kernel). Boots fine when not plugged in and then after boot, I plug in and get sound.
2). The quality is not great… muffled, background noise, etc. I know these speakers should produce something better. I suspect it is something that needs tuning.
Please help.

RE: USB Soundcard Quality and Boot issues - Daniel_BlueWave - 02-06-2023

Looks like there could be an issue with your sound car. Make sure that you are using good power supply. Try one dedicated for Rpi. Would be good if you could check with different sound car too.

Similar issues:
https://bluewavestudio.io/community/thread-3645.html?highlight=endless+boot
https://bluewavestudio.io/community/showthread.php?tid=2142

RE: USB Soundcard Quality and Boot issues - Kleekru - 02-07-2023

(02-06-2023, 05:05 PM)Daniel_BlueWave Wrote: Looks like there could be an issue with your sound car. Make sure that you are using good power supply. Try one dedicated for Rpi. Would be good if you could check with different sound car too.

I’m using the UGreen Soundcard recommended by you in your list of recommended hardware but using a 3.5 audio Jack to an amp.

Regarding the power supply. I’m getting a consistent 4.9V but it seems it needs to be above 5. I will be using this in a car of course so using the RPi power supply is not an option. I do have a 12v DC to 5v DC YSB buck converter that I will use instead to see if I get better voltage and report out.

Any suggestions on sound quality?

RE: USB Soundcard Quality and Boot issues - Daniel_BlueWave - 02-07-2023

Suggestion is under the link:
https://bluewavestudio.io/community/showthread.php?tid=2142

In case you are not happy with the quality of your sound card, would be good to check other one.
Anyhow, it would be worth to check with original power supply so you can confirm if this could be the issue.

RE: USB Soundcard Quality and Boot issues - Kleekru - 02-09-2023

(02-07-2023, 01:57 PM)Daniel_BlueWave Wrote: Suggestion is under the link:
https://bluewavestudio.io/community/showthread.php?tid=2142

In case you are not happy with the quality of your sound card, would be good to check other one.
Anyhow, it would be worth to check with original power supply so you can confirm if this could be the issue.

Ok, just ordered the power supply. I did separate the power supply fir the amp and the Pi and that has seemed to help but now can’t get any sound from the Pi. I have a steady 5v at the amp from the buck converter but still not sure how to isolate the power supply in the car. Someone must have a proper auto power and speaker setup that they can recommend. Should be a fundamental part of the OpenAuto setup, right?

Finally. Do you recommend one of the Raspberry Pi DACs, perhaps the one with the built in amp instead of an external USB soundcard for better quality?

RE: USB Soundcard Quality and Boot issues - Daniel_BlueWave - 02-10-2023

There are some other Users solutions available at the forum, check 'ground loop isolator' topics.

We do not recommend DACs as in our opinion they are not bringing much benefits and could case more issues: https://bluewavestudio.io/community/showthread.php?tid=1558
However, you can check other projects: https://bluewavestudio.io/community/forum-62.html

RE: USB Soundcard Quality and Boot issues - Kleekru - 02-21-2023

ok, I received and tried using the official Raspberry Pi power supply but it still goes into a very long loop but not endless (15+ minutes… or longer. I haven’t timed it but after a few minutes it might as well be endless). It eventually comes out if I leave it. Anyway, I need some troubleshooting steps. Is there a log I can check to see what is taking so long?

If I plug in the soundcard AFTER boot, I can get CarPlay sound/music to work but not the microphone yet. still can’t get good quality from the Kenwood speakers and XH-M180 12v amp but I want to address the boot issue first to eliminate at least one issue. [url=https://www.amazon.com/Taidacent-XH-M180-TDA7850-Amplifier-Four-channel/dp/B07W5T3764/ref=sr_1_1?crid=26H9WLZ3HJDQL&keywords=xh-m180&qid=1676947177&sprefix=%2Caps%2C508&sr=8-1][/url]

RE: USB Soundcard Quality and Boot issues - Daniel_BlueWave - 02-21-2023

Let's see.
Give us these detail with issue description:
https://bluewavestudio.io/community/thread-1385.html

RE: USB Soundcard Quality and Boot issues - Kleekru - 02-25-2023

(02-21-2023, 02:20 PM)Daniel_BlueWave Wrote: Let's see.
Give us these detail with issue description:
https://bluewavestudio.io/community/thread-1385.html

I just tried a new soundblaster USB Soundcard (Creative Labs Sound Blaster Play! 3 External USB Sound Adapter for Windows and Mac. Plug and Play (No Drivers Required). Upgrade to 24-Bit 96Khz Playback https://a.co/d/h5ck6rP ) and it fixed both of my issues. The boot splash screen ran normally and it seems the sound has improved. I’ll test more and report back.

I have the following setup:
- RPi 3B
- RPi official power supply (I’ll try again with the buck converters and report out)
- XH-M180 4 channel 50 watt Amp
- Quimat 3.5 Inch Touch Screen TFT LCD Display
- CarPlay adapter (not wireless, need to find one)

RE: USB Soundcard Quality and Boot issues - GSPW - 02-25-2023

(02-10-2023, 07:47 AM)Daniel_BlueWave Wrote: We do not recommend DACs as in our opinion they are not bringing much benefits and could case more issues: https://bluewavestudio.io/community/showthread.php?tid=1558

Sorry but that is a serious limitation, bear in mind some users here are focused on sound quality ('SQ' as they say in car audio) and usually have a DSP in their cars. They will usually connect the Pi to their DSP using a DAC or digital to digital converter (USB to coaxial/optical).