Beagleboard as music system?

Hello all,
Recently, I’ve wanted to get a decent MP3 based music system. The plan was to get a nice amp/speaker setup and a Windows tablet to play MP3s into it. I thought a Windows tablet would be good basically for Dropbox (easy sync on my music), VNC server(control it without leaving my desk), and other amenities like touchscreen, silent running due to SSD etc. Now I’m thinking as a kind of project, I may wish to make a RISC OS system to do it. So, a few questions:

1) Does the Beagleboard under RISC OS have good, reliable, stereo sound?
2) Any decent, affordable touch screens available, that work under RISC OS?
3) Any VNC servers work on the Beagleboard?
4) Anything I’ve forgotten here?

I know I won’t get Dropbox, but maybe I can work on that.

I know it’s not a sensible option compared to a Windows tablet, but infinitely cooler I think.

Cheers

Garry

Geexbox is being ported to the BB.

A dual-boot BB would be far more sensible than a windows device.

Hi Jess, Thanks for the input, but I should clarify that I’m really looking to do this on RISC OS. Linux on BB does not really interest me I’m afraid!

Right now there is a huge showstopper for using a RISC OS Beagleboard as a music machine.

Every time !DigitalCD changes to another track here (I have to use !DigitalCD as I only use uncompressed 16/44.1 .wav files) there is a significant thump – it is almost as if the sound system is resetting itself…

It is probably a small bug in the soundsystem, hopefully…

significant thump

Is it this pop (maybe a thump if you’ve got the volume whacked up)? If so, I think it’s been noted.

• Touchscreen Driver: Thomas Milius was working on a touchscreen driver as he wanted to use the beagleboard as an ODB2 testing tool for his car. The driver did mostly work about half a year ago.
• Touch Screen working with the Beagleboard: Either the touchscreen needs to have DVI input, or you need a DVI-VGA converter and a cheap VGA one (Thomas’ solution).

Maybe the AI Touchbook would be fine, too? (Others should comment on this)

Is that this driver, referred to in Touchscreen Driver? I’d be very interested in trying it on the TB – do I have to build it, is it already included somewhere or is there a built module available for download elsewhere? Thanks.

Thank you for the replies, I was planning on using AMPlay to play the MP3s, I’m not sure if that makes any difference to the pop/thump problem. I’d like to go with AMPlay, as it has an API for controlling it, so maybe in time I could make a remote control solution, either through IR or run a little server on RISC OS and communicate with it over a socket.

The touchscreen is something I know truly nothing about and I’ll probably need to research a bit. I could probably live without it though, as I could get a compact USB trackpad or something.

Thanks again for the inputs, one more thing, are there any RISC OS dealers which sell Beagleboards all put together with RTC batteries in place etc. Basically like the ARMini without the price tag, CD ROM etc. Just the clear perspex case is fine with me.

Cheers

Garry

Just another little thing, I got RPCEmu working (with RISC OS 4, as I was not having much luck with RO5), and I also got AMPlay working. However, it’s very unreliable. I’ll be playing a song, switch to another and get “Internal error: abort on data transfer at &02248664”. Can I write this up to a problem with my RPCEmu system maybe, and a real ARM system will be more reliable?

I tried my music on HostFS and the ADFS disk image, same problem.

Cheers

Garry

I would go for DCD myself, since it is still in development. (It can use the amplayer module or its own.)

On my Iyonix I regularly stream mp3 radio for hours on end. (using DCD, and amplayer)

I stream FLAC files from a NAS box via Sunfish on the BB xM using DCD without any problems (so far up to an album full at a time).

Actually, I just tried Digital CD, and it works a lot better, there were a few sound glitches, but RPCEmu was performing at about 60 MIPs on my PC, so I think it was on the edge of not being able to keep up. A BeagleBoard xM,as I understand it, is rather faster.

I’m having doubts if RISC OS suits a touchscreen for this purpose, as the UI is obviously aimed at a mouse, but maybe I could get a USB trackpad, with 3 buttons, instead.

Digital CD plays mp3s and mp3 streams fine on a StrongArm RPC. I’ve not tried the Flag, Ogg, or AC3 on RPC, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it did them just as well too.

Task usage reports 8% on my Iyonix while playing an mp3. And for this sort of thing a BB should really be far faster than an Iyonix

Sounds good to me, I think I need to forget the touchscreen though, even if I had one, I could not type into the system, which even as a music player, I need to do.

In the interests of keeping it all small, and the risk of going OT, could something like this work:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B002D117JW/ref=s9_simh_gw_p147_d0_g147_i1?pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=0MGE5H7SXYH791STBE1H&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=467128533&pf_rd_i=468294

Keyboard and pointing device in a small package is just what I need for this I think.

something like that, but probably not that particular item, since it only has two mouse buttons. You need it to connect to its own receiver that presents itself as bog standard mouse and keyboard. (Until we get a bluetooth stack.)

but probably not that particular item

"After 2 months use I can declare this newer model is unreliable (it loses contact with the pc) and requires turning off when not in use otherwise your batteries will be flat in 2 days, very disappointing, I would recommend the older silver model over this."

Of course, I’ll have to look for 3 buttons, completely forgot…

That one was just an example, but looks ideal other than the 2 buttons, and also I’d probably rather wired than wireless, I don’t want to have to worry about charging it.

Is that this driver, referred to in Touchscreen Driver? I’d be very interested in trying it on the TB – do I have to build it

Yes, it is this driver, but I need to ask Thomas if he has uploaded it somewhere. I can ask if you like – I think he does not follow the forum.

I can ask if you like – I think he does not follow the forum.

That’d be very helpful. Yes please.