The Raspberry Pi 3 board is a great SBC board that has everything you need to be used as a computer, but there is always room for improvement and the developers and users of this board know this. This margin of improvement is what allows there to be accessories such as heat sinks, robotics projects that exist or this peculiar project with a hybrid tube that improves the sound of the plate.
Although many after seeing the images will think that it really is appearance, that the tubes do not work, the truth is that the hybrid tube works, it has a true vacuum tube that significantly improves the sound, as was the case with old speakers. The digital converter of this board also known as 503HTA is 192 Khz. The board has a 3,5mm headphone output and connects to the Raspberry Pi board via the GPIO port making this hybrid tube board a perfect extension for lovers of sound and music Hardware Libre.
Hybrid tube is a good but expensive solution for good sound
Unfortunately the 503HTA board cannot be purchased yet, it is in the crowdfunding phase, that is, a phase where developers are looking for financing to be able to put the board on sale in a massive way. As can be seen in Campaign, the plate in question is missing $ 2.000 and there are still 32 days to finish the campaign, which indicates that the device will be on the street with ease. But the price of this board will not be less than the Raspberry Pi 3 or even approximate.
Taking into account the information of the campaign, the price of the plate will be 129 dollars, quite a high price for a Raspberry Pi extension but interesting for those who work with sound. But if you do not have this money, do not worry since there are cheaper solutions to improve the sound of your Raspberry Pi, but they are not as free as the hybrid tube. Personally I find this plate interesting, at least peculiar and original. However I recognize that the price of the board is high and it will be a great inconvenience for the use of this extension.Do not you think?