Vinyl Streamer Box for Music Assistant & Sonos

# Vinyl Streamer Case – Behringer UCA202 + Raspberry Pi Zero W

A compact 3D-printed enclosure that holds a Behringer UCA202 USB audio interface and a Raspberry Pi Zero W together in one tidy box. Plug in your turntable, and stream your records over Wi-Fi to Sonos speakers via Music Assistant in Home Assistant.

## What it does

Turntable → UCA202 (analog to USB) → Raspberry Pi Zero W → Icecast2 stream → Music Assistant → Sonos speakers

The Pi runs Icecast2 and DarkIce and publishes the live audio as an HTTP stream. Add that stream URL as a radio station / URL source in Music Assistant, and you can play your vinyl on any speaker or group in the house.

## Which Raspberry Pi?

I built this with a Pi Zero W, but a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W would be the best choice: it has a quad-core CPU, so encoding the live stream is much less demanding. The footprint is the same, so the case fits both.

## Parts

4 printed parts, plus 2 printed washers:

- Case (with honeycomb pattern on the side)

- Back plate (holes for the RCA connectors and the USB-C power socket)

- Color insert (plain plate that sits inside the case behind the honeycomb pattern)

- Pi holder (plate with two standoffs)

- 2 × washers

## What you need

- Behringer UCA202

- Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W (recommended) or Zero W

- microSD card with Raspberry Pi OS

- Turntable with a built-in phono preamp, or an external phono preamp (the UCA202 expects line level)

- Home Assistant with the Music Assistant integration

- Sonos speakers (or any player supported by Music Assistant)

- M2.5 screws: 2 × 5 mm (Raspberry Pi), 2 × 6 mm (Pi holder to the UCA202), 2 × 10 mm (closing the case)

- 2 × M2.5 nuts (for fastening the Raspberry Pi to the holder)

- Panel-mount USB-C female socket with wire leads (red/black), 12 mm diameter (fits the round hole in the back plate)

- Micro USB male plug (or a cut-off micro USB cable) to solder the socket's wires to

- 4 × small self-adhesive rubber feet, 8 mm diameter (optional, the case has recesses for them on the underside)

- Soldering equipment, wire, and some basic soldering skills (see "Modifications" below)

## Modifications (soldering required)

To make everything fit in a compact box, I made two small modifications:

1. UCA202 without its original casing: I removed the UCA202's own plastic shell and soldered a micro USB cable directly to the board, which plugs straight into the Pi's USB data port. No bulky USB cable or OTG adapter needed.

2. Power input: I soldered the red and black wires from a panel-mount USB-C female socket to a micro USB male plug (red to +5 V, black to GND), which plugs into the Pi's PWR IN port. This gives the box a USB-C power input on the back plate. The socket only carries power, so it doesn't need any data lines.

Note: Opening the UCA202 and soldering on it is done at your own risk and will most likely void the warranty. If you don't want to modify it, the design can be adapted, but it's not tested without these modifications.

## Software setup

I followed this excellent guide by Ricardo Molendijk for installing Icecast2 and DarkIce on the Pi:

https://ricardomolendijk.com/posts/sonos/

The only difference: instead of adding the stream in the Sonos/TuneIn app, I add the stream URL (http://<pi-ip>:8000/stream) in Music Assistant. Tip: give the Pi a static IP.

## Print settings

- Printer: Bambu Lab P1S

- Material: PLA (PETG also works)

- Layer height: 0.2 mm

- Infill: 10 %

- Supports: none needed

- Orientation: print every part in the orientation it has in the file

## Assembly

1. Remove the UCA202's original casing and solder a micro USB cable to the board (see Modifications).

2. Place the Raspberry Pi on the Pi holder and fasten it at two points with the 2 × 5 mm screws, the printed washers and the M2.5 nuts on the underside.

3. Mount the holder on the UCA202 board with the 2 × 6 mm screws, through the board's mounting holes and into the standoffs.

4. Plug the micro USB cable from the UCA202 into the Pi's USB data port, and the USB-C power cable into the PWR IN port.

5. Press the USB-C socket into the large hole in the back plate.

6. Place the color insert inside the case, behind the honeycomb pattern.

7. Slide the assembly into the case, with the RCA connectors lining up with the holes in the back plate.

8. Secure the back plate with the 2 × 10 mm screws.

9. (Optional) Stick the four 8 mm rubber feet into the recesses on the underside of the case.

## Notes

- The color insert is a separate part, so you can print it in a contrasting color and let it show through the honeycomb pattern for a little color pop.

- The underside of the case has four recesses for 8 mm rubber feet. They're optional, but they keep the case from sliding around and protect your furniture from scratches.

- I've used a similar design for a long time without any heat issues.

- Printed in PLA on a Bambu Lab P1S.

- Designed for the Pi Zero W / Zero 2 W footprint and the UCA202 board.