This is how Linamp works, the unexpected variant of Winamp built with a minicomputer.
June 11, 2024, 12:35 p.m.
Linamp works with a Raspberry Pi 4B and a memory card to save music. (Video: Rodrigo Méndez)
In the world of software musicals, Winamp It is a celebrity, especially among users who comb some gray hair. For the unsuspecting, that was a player originally created for Windows, in the era in which MP3s circulated without too many restrictions, long before the standardization of platforms. streaming like Spotify and Apple Music.
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Two decades after Winamp’s heyday, a computer engineer of Mexican origin named Rodrigo Méndez decided to create an incredible physical version of music player. As we see in the video in which he tells of his technical prowess, his work focused on the 90s aspect of the program. Yes, a new wink for the geeks nostalgic
Thus the Linamp, the Winamp in physical format
As Méndez explained on the platform Hackaday.io, Linamp works with a minicomputer Raspberry Pi 4B. In addition, it has a 32BGB memory card to store songs. At the front, we find a 7.9-inch screen that displays the classic Winamp interface.
A conceptual design of the physical version of Winamp. (Photo: Hackaday.io/Rodmg)
In the rear section there is a 3.5 millimeter headphone port, USB-A and USB-C ports, plus an Ethernet input. For the rest, Linamp plays music found in its internal memory and is also compatible with an external CD player.
“Winamp was one of my first contacts with music on computers. Since then, I have always liked the default look that comes with Winamp and I love the equalizer with bars,” says the computer engineer, who also recognized inspiration in the Aiwa Stereo system that he had when he was a child. Méndez himself manufactured the metal casing and the software which results in this ingenuity.
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Following the site review Tom’s Hardware, it would have been much more impressive if on the front of the device we found physical buttons that emulate those of Winamp. However, the development had to conform with a touch screen because the creator of this invention did not find a hardware that meets your needs.
Méndez has said that in the future he plans to add support for Linamp to also play music from Spotify.
How much does Linamp cost, the tangible variant of the mythical Winamp?
There is bad news for those nostalgic for 90s technology who would like to take home a unit of this music player. As indicated in Xataka Home, Linamp is not for sale. Instead, it is an engineering project that, at least for now, has not been designed for commercialization.
It is worth remembering that Winamp still exists, although with a new look and adapted to the era of streaming.
