Chromecast Audio Stuttering with 24 Bitrate (ref#P499XK)

[jelle_boonekamp]

Hi! What’s not quite right with Roon?

· None of the above quite fits

None of the above quite fits

· None of these quite match

Tell us what's going on

· Hi, I am a happy roon user for some years. I have always used a chromecast audio (gen2) to create a 5ghz wifi connection and tosslink to my amplifier and speaker system.

Issue: My chromecast audio seems to be stuttering a lot with 24 bitrate audio. Though it should technically work, I think the chromecast is struggling.

Question: What can I replace my chromecast with to deliver a more stable experience? I don't need an expensive device with a DAC, just simple wifi and digital out (coax or tosslink). I am looking for a cheap solution!

Thanks,
Jelle

Tell us about your home network

· full fibre internet + ubiquiti pro access points (one near my chromecast audio)

[vadim]

Hi @jelle_boonekamp

Thanks for the detailed description.

Since the Chromecast Audio (Gen2) can struggle with higher-bitrate streams like 24-bit content, a very popular and stable alternative in the Roon community is RoPieee.

RoPieee — https://ropieee.org/
It runs on a Raspberry Pi and works great as a reliable network audio endpoint.

There’s a community thread on it here:
RoPieee - Roon Labs Community

Why RoPieee?

Runs headlessly — no display needed
Very stable Wi-Fi / Ethernet support
Works flawlessly with Roon
You can get S/PDIF (coax or TOSLINK) hats / DACs for cheap
Support RAAT.

What you’d need

• A Raspberry Pi (3/4/5 works fine)
• Optional DAC / I²S / HAT that has digital outputs (coax or optical)
• RoPieee image flashed to an SD card

[jelle_boonekamp]

Thanks, I will give this a try!