Why I made Skjold
I needed an amplifier for my desk that worked with my smart home, and I wanted less clutter around the PC. I couldn’t find anyone who had solved it, so I built one myself.
The first version was a printed case with a Raspberry Pi and a TPA3116 amplifier board. Along the way I added a USB switch, so the PC and the amplifier can share the keyboard, mouse and anything else on the desk.
When I showed it to people, several of them turned out to have the same problem. That turned a simple 3D-printing and soldering project into something I wanted to do properly. Since then it has gained a display, a folded aluminium enclosure and its own circuit board, and it is now close to a finished product.
The goal is a well-made amplifier and streamer that works with what people already have, such as Lyrion, Home Assistant and Homey. The software is open source and the drawings are published, so you can build your own.
How it developed
- 01
Desk amplifier
The first version had a printed case, a Raspberry Pi and a TPA3116 amplifier board. It sat on my desk.
- 02
USB switch and display
Version 2 got a built-in USB switch for the PC and a display behind smoked acrylic, either OLED or TFT.
- 03
From plastic to metal
I drew the enclosure for both CNC milling and sheet metal, and settled on folded aluminium with R9 corners and the seams underneath.
- 04
The name Skjold
The product got a name and a logo. The logo is five bars, like a simple level meter.
- 05
Skjold OS
The software got menus for radio, AirPlay and Bluetooth, a per-source equaliser, standby clocks, an app and a web interface.
- 06
Skjold Node
A small printed player for rooms that don’t need an amplifier, with the same software.
- 07
Into production
The first two aluminium enclosures, SKJ-S1-0001 and 0002, have been ordered from PCBWay and JLC.
