The AM Forum

I recently got an Intel NUC "mini pc" in my office at work and, as usual in a corporate environment, there's no audio device installed. I'd like to stream audio from an online SDR receiver but getting IT to let me have audio is probably a no-go and the NUC is very much locked-out by IT to the local user. All it lets me do is connect to the corporate server (where my files are), and from there, to the vast expanse of the Internet so I can order parts to keep the place running.

Is there a USB DAC that will work here? The NUC probably won't allow a driver to be installed to support a peripheral, but I'm not sure.

Has anyone been down this road? Would it work? Any hardware suggestions?


Don

Being someone on the IT end that locks down client computers I can tell you that it is possible that unused USB ports might be locked down to stop (slow) people from stealing corporate data. They may be open on the NUC though to allow proper operation of peripherals - keyboard, mouse, etc.

There are several very inexpensive USB audio devices on Amazon. I've used these and others with various Raspberry Pi projects and had good luck. Often times these just plug and play the drivers on a Windows machine.

One example:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N905VOY


- Rob

Thanks, Rob. For ten bucks it's worth a try. The USB ports seem to be open — I've connected a wireless mouse and keyboard to it.

If the DAC works, then maybe two-way remote may be possible too. ;)

Don

Audio will probably work. On our PCs you can attach a headset which is a special audio device. Drivers install automatically without need for admin rights. We only lock down usb storage.

What is more important is that you are not violating any company policy on non business use of the computer. You will be using the browser to navigate to the SDR site. Many companies track usage of high traffic web sites. Streaming audio could be  red flag.

Better to see if you can do this on your smart phone, and stream it to some bluetooth ear phones or a desk speaker. That is what I do to listen to talk radio on my break and it is allowed on our guest wifi.

Not wanting to hijack your topic here, but a comment about the intel NUC...
Its USB ports are terrible with RF.  I have one in my shack (it was free/jobsite leftover) and I need both hands and a foot to count the ferrites on the cables leading to it, yet, on a couple bands that don’t tune well (read as more rf in shack) it still goes apes**t at power over 35 watts... So it might work well for you at work operating remotely, but don’t be tempted by it’s small size to get your own...

Ed

Uh oh. These instructions are given to setup that USB DAC...

````````````````````````````````````````````````
Configuration Instructions
Windows:
* Right-click on the sound icon in the taskbar;
* Select Playback or Recording devices;
* Adjust the volume on the computer and in the application.
````````````````````````````````````````````````
With no audio device enabled there's probably no volume to adjust. Hmm.


As far as violating company policy...
Well, I don't know what their policy is. If I ask, and they say no, then I'd have a problem if I did it. If I don't ask, and go ahead, they'd probably just tell me to stop if it was a problem. So that's the quandary.

I guess I'll start with a shortwave receiver in the office and an antenna stealthily strung through the warehouse. If that works, and there's not a lot of industrial noise, it will at least keep me from running afoul of our IT department.


Don

One of the nice things about being retired is that I can give advice on topics like this without having to worry about who knows. You have several options:

• See if your company machine will boot from a Linux disk
• Hide an access point in the ceiling, and set the SSID to <name and address of company next door> (Nobody ever checks. It amazed me, too.)
• Use a keystroke recorder, and invite one of the IT guys to check your pc for bugs

... and maybe a dozen others that I'll tell you if you buy me enough beers. ;-)

W4EWH

If they have the local sound devices disabled, then you won't have a volume control icon.  (audio mixer)

If you add the USB stick audio device, you should get the icon back.

If I disable the on board audio on my quad core desktop, I have no volume control icon, as it should be.  With no device, why would Windows have the control present?

For ten bucks, It's worth a try.  My kid uses one of the 5 dollar USB audio devices for his mic input.  His keyboard has midi, but the sound card mic jack (built in) doesn't work.  It was worth spending 5 bucks on, as that's cheaper than my time in just getting the damn case apart!

I'd say go for it. 

--Shane
KD6VXI

I had no idea that being retired could be so liberating — I thought it simply came with age. Looks like I should have saved more for a retirement.

I use one on my Flex - absolutely nomRF problems.