WSAL23898 – Audio Driver HAT/en

Documentation notice: This technical documentation was independently rewritten from an archived supplier source. Check technical details and commands against the product version and manufacturer documentation before use.

Summary

The Audio Driver HAT is an audio module for the Sunrise X3 PI. It uses the ES7210 four-channel codec and the ES8156 stereo decoder, is controlled via I2C, and transfers audio over I2S. The board includes a 3.5 mm headphone jack and four corner-mounted MEMS microphones for stereo recording.

Related products at JW Tech

WSAL23898 – Audio Driver Board for RDK X3 Development Board, Supports Audio Playback And Recording, Stereo Encoding / Decoding, Onboard Headphone Jack And 4-Ch Microphones

Technical overview

Supply voltage: 3.3 V
Control interface: I2C; audio interface: I2S
ADC SNR: 102 dB; DAC SNR: 110 dB
V2 version compatible with RDK X3 V1.2/V2.1, RDK X3 MD, and RDK X5
Configuration via `sudo srpi-config` under Interface Options -> I5 Audio
Driver configuration removal through the same path by selecting UNSET
Recording with tinycap (e.g., 4 channels, 16-bit, 48 kHz)
Playback only supports 2-channel audio via tinyplay; direct playback of 4-channel recordings is not supported
For S100: DIP switches must be set correctly (40PIN left, PCM right), otherwise recording/playback will not work
S100 drivers are loaded dynamically as kernel objects

Commands and examples – verify before use:

sudo srpi-config
sudo tinycap ./4chn_test.wav -D 0 -d 0 -c 4 -b 16 -r 48000 -p 512 -n 4 -t 5
sudo tinycap ./2chn_test.wav -D 0 -d 0 -c 2 -b 16 -r 48000 -p 512 -n 4 -t 5
sudo tinyplay ./2chn_test.wav -D 0 -d 1
sudo i2cdetect -r -y 0
sudo modprobe es7210
sudo modprobe es8156
sudo modprobe hobot-i2s-dma
sudo modprobe hobot-cpudai
sudo modprobe hobot-snd-7210 snd_card=5
ls /dev/snd
arecord -Dhw:0,0 -c 2 -r 16000 -f S16_LE -t wav -d 5 test.wav
aplay -Dhw:0,1 test.wav
sudo modprobe hobot_cpudai_super
sudo modprobe snd-soc-es8156
sudo modprobe snd-soc-es7210
sudo modprobe hobot_snd_s100_ac_fdx_host
cat /proc/asound/cards
ls -l /dev/snd
sudo rmmod es8156

Notes and version constraints

Compatibility with specific RDK revisions should be verified before purchase or installation
For older V1 versions, multiple drivers must be loaded manually; if loading fails, check device nodes under /dev/snd
Correct DIP switch positioning on the S100 is critical; incorrect settings prevent normal recording and playback
The smart voice environment requires TogetherROS; errors or warnings during startup may appear and should be ignored
Direct playback of 4-channel recordings is explicitly not supported
Version-specific steps (such as miniboot updates on newer systems) may require manual confirmation by a technician

Source and revision record

Audio Driver HAT - Waveshare Wiki
Source revision: 110806
Captured: 2026-09-04T03:34:05+00:00
SHA-256: 391e724dd5ef3aa2807b9530205d98138dd77abf6bca60cee2449eba2e80ec4f