Few programs evoke as much nostalgia as Winamp. The people behind its latest version clearly decided to take a different route, but the classic edition not only works perfectly, it also serves as a source of inspiration for various projects. One of these is Raspinamp, a creation by AudioWanderer on YouTube. This player uses Qmmp to recreate an experience similar to the original Winamp, and the hardware is based on a Raspberry Pi 3 B with a touchscreen LCD.
Unfortunately, the modern Winamp is an online player with irrelevant details (such as NFTs) that does absolutely nothing for us. However, within its settings we find download links for version 5.9.2, the 'classic' one with support for alternative skins and plugins. Now, how hard would it be to turn that Winamp into an 'external' and dedicated player? AudioWanderer on YouTube decided to find out, and his solution is Raspinamp.
Raspinamp: Winamp + Raspberry Pi = ❤️
Obviously, since it relies on a Raspberry Pi and its official distro, it's not possible to use Winamp directly, but the Linux universe has a fantastic clone in the form of Qmmp. The key is to download a copy of the 2.9x skin from the Winamp Skin Museum, and manually add it to Qmmp's list. The Raspberry Pi also needs additional configuration, starting with enabling audio output, expanding the partition, and enabling SSH for remote uploading of MP3s.
The second step is to install the drivers so the touchscreen works. Of course, this depends on the model available, but the instructions are quite clear: clone the repository on GitHub, enable all permissions in the folder, and run the specific command for the screen. The whole process only takes a few minutes, and with the '270' modifier, the desktop will have the correct orientation. By forcing a lower resolution on the panel (272 x 432 in this case), the player will be centered and ready to use.
I just want to mention two details: on one hand, it's not a bad idea to experiment with Qmmp's bitmap fonts feature, or directly test different fonts so the text looks better. And on the other hand, I imagine Raspberry Pi OS isn't the optimal base for building a Raspinamp. I think it would be better to start from the Lite edition, and install a lightweight environment later (for example, Openbox). Anyway, it looks great, and if you have a spare Raspberry Pi at home, here's a fantastic project.
AudioWanderer on YouTube: Click here
Source: Hackaday
