Little Bird
Pirate Radio - Pi Zero W Project Kit
A complete internet radio project kit based on the Raspberry Pi Zero W. Includes a Pi Zero W, the pHAT BEAT DAC and stereo amplifier, a 5W speaker, and a ret...
A complete internet radio project kit based on the Raspberry Pi Zero W. Includes a Pi Zero W, the pHAT BEAT DAC and stereo amplifier, a 5W speaker, and a retro-styled blue acrylic enclosure. Assembly takes approximately 30 minutes and requires soldering.
The pHAT BEAT features dual MAX98357A I2S DAC/amplifiers (3W per channel), 16 APA102 RGB LEDs arranged as a VU meter, six edge-mounted buttons, and a DIP switch for mono/stereo mode selection. Three software projects are available: internet radio, Spotify streaming, and AirPlay speaker.
Key Features
- Pi Zero W Included – Built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, no USB dongle needed
- pHAT BEAT DAC & Amp – Dual MAX98357A I2S DAC/amplifiers, 3W per channel
- 5W Speaker – 4Ω speaker with pre-soldered wires
- RGB VU Meter – 16 APA102 LEDs in two rows of 8
- 6 Control Buttons – Edge-mounted push buttons for audio control
- Mono/Stereo Switch – DIP switch to blend channels for single-speaker mono mode
- Blue Acrylic Enclosure – Three-layer retro design with sticker sheet for customisation
- Assembled Size: 135 × 85 × 70mm
Ideal For
- Building an internet radio or streaming speaker
- Spotify Connect or AirPlay audio projects
- Learning soldering with a practical, rewarding project
Package Contents
- 1× Raspberry Pi Zero W
- 1× pHAT BEAT DAC and stereo amplifier
- 1× Male and 1× female 2×20 pin headers
- 1× 5W 4Ω speaker (pre-soldered wires)
- 1× Blue acrylic enclosure (3-layer)
- 1× 50cm USB-A to Micro-B cable
- 1× USB-A (female) to Micro-B (male) adapter
- 1× Mini HDMI to full-size HDMI adapter
- 1× Sticker sheet
Resources
Jargon buster
Plain-language definitions for the technical terms used above.
- DAC
- A digital-to-analogue converter turns numbers from the microcontroller into a real analogue voltage. It matters if you want to generate simple waveforms, audio-style signals, or variable control voltages rather than just on/off outputs.
- DIP switch
- A DIP switch is a small set of physical on/off switches used to configure hardware settings without software. It matters because changing features such as auto power-on or charging limits may require moving these tiny switches correctly.
- HDMI
- HDMI is a common digital video and audio connection used by computers, media players, and many displays. If a display kit has HDMI input, it is usually much easier to test with a single-board computer because it can act like a normal monitor.
- Headers
- Rows of metal pins used to plug a module into a breadboard or connect it with jumper wires. Pre-soldered headers make the module easier to use straight away without needing to solder the pins yourself.
- I2S
- I2S is a digital audio interface used to send sound data between chips, such as from a microcontroller to an audio amplifier or DAC. It matters if your project needs cleaner digital audio output than a basic buzzer or PWM signal can provide.
- pHAT
- A smaller add-on board format for Raspberry Pi, similar in idea to a HAT but usually not full-sized. It matters because pHAT compatibility can affect how neatly a board stacks or fits into a Raspberry Pi project.
- RGB
- Short for red, green and blue, usually referring to an LED that can mix those three colours. It matters because controlling an RGB LED teaches how separate outputs combine to create different colours.
Find this product in
Audio & Video
Brands
Raspberry Pi
Related Tutorials
Free guides on learn.littlebird.com.au
