I think there are a number of options available all with various pros and cons.

The 2 major factors for me are sound quality and ease of use.

On the sound quality side the audio will be coming either directly from the Raspberry Pi or from the Remote (iPod Touch).

Sound from the Pi is a bit of a mixed bag right now. Some users are having good luck with some added DAC hardware others are not. The 3.5mm audio jack on the Pi right now seems to be giving everyone some cracking noise, so that option is out until there is a fix.

Output from the iPod for me is decent. I’m not an audiophile, but for music on the road it is good enough.

Remote Option 1: XMBC. The Pi will run XBMC and the iPod will use an XBMC remote client. This option I believe will have the audio coming from the Pi, so additional hardware will be needed. There are some remote options that are free, so there will be room to experiment.

Remote Option 2: Music Player Daemon. This will also have the server running on the Pi and the iPod will be the remote. I think this might also work well for a minimal hardware option through the GPIO connectors. Audio output will also be from the Pi.

Remote Option 3: iTunes. Running the DAAP server on the Pi and allowing the iPod to connect and control the music through iTunes. The audio would then be coming from the iPod in this option. I think I could also use Option 2 at the same time, since the client could be from a different iPod/iPad/Computer. The one major plus for me using this option would be the ability to use the Genius function in iTunes. Selecting a song and letting the software make a playlist on the go is probably going to push me to use this option.

One of the main things I want to do with the Raspberry Pi is be able take all of my music with me.

I’ve been an iTunes user since the beginning, first on a Mac then on a PC. I have an iPod Touch and an iPad1. My iPod Touch is only an 8gig model so there is almost no storage for music and the iPad is just a little to large for me to use as a portable music player.

Now I realize that carrying around a Raspberry Pi, external HD, and all the power and cables needed to connect it all will wind up being much larger than an iPad. But, once the Raspberry Pi is plugged in and turned on, I won’t need to do anything else with it, in theory.

Here is what I mainly want to accomplish without to much hassle. Play my music collection.

I have various formats that will need to be played. MP3, SHN, FLAC, OGG and any other stuff that may be laying around on the drive. It should be able to play them with out any problems and the sound quality should be as good as the files themselves.

I’m thinking there is going to be software running on the Raspberry Pi and either another piece of hardware the plugs directly into the Pi as a remote. Or using Wifi to connect to the Pi and using the iPod as a remote. The one thing I don’t like about the iPod Touch as a remote is using the screen to control things isn’t something you can do without looking at it. Which is a huge problem for me if this is something that I’ll be using while driving.

I really want to try to use the Raspberry Pi as a Portable NAS/Media file server.

I think this is one type of device that could be of use to just about anyone these days. With iPads, iPod Touches and even iPhones having a fixed amount of storage, having all your stuff with you could be a real handy thing to have.

This I believe will be the do-it-all device that I’ve been looking for.

Here are some of the hardware requirements that the Pi will need:

• Raspberry Pi
• Large Hard Drive, I’m thinking around 1.5-2 TB
• Wifi dongle

Now that should be the bare minimum you would need for a Portable NAS.

I have think I have a real need to carry all my stuff with me, so I have it “Just in case.” I mostly want to be able to have all my music with me, so I can listen to what I want, when I want.

I really enjoy seeing live music and have what I think is a decent collection of concert recordings.  I enjoy re-listening to shows that I’ve been to, but I can’t find all of them. Really I can only find a small number of them, mostly Dave Matthews Band.

I think the Raspberry Pi will make a very nice, high quality, portable, versatile Field/Concert recording device.

I think a small audio adapter with another usb adapter will the the input taken care of.

I thought I saw a USB to Compact Flash adapter on Amazon, but I can’t seem to locate it. That should be a low power and fast storage option for the software to write to.

Adding a battery pack that’s enough to last about 3-4 hours and I should be all set.

Other than figuring out the microphone choices, which there are plenty. I’ll probably go cheap first, because I’m a cheap ass.