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Let’s Build a Raspberry Pi Retro Radio

I’ve always had a soft spot for Raspberry Pi, a tiny computer that costs less than most dinners out.

I could have bought a Sonos. That would have been easier. But that’s not nearly as interesting.

Instead, I found a Bang & Olufsen Standard U42 from 1941/42, a beautiful piece of craftsmanship from another era. The goal was simple: keep the exterior intact and modernize the inside.

The modern core runs on a Raspberry Pi 3, which includes built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. That makes it ideal for streaming and network audio.

For the software layer, I chose Volumio — a Linux-based distribution designed specifically for audio playback. It supports streaming services and can be managed through a web interface.

Replacing the original components

Even though the original radio was beautifully built, it’s still 75+ years old. Capacitors degrade. Wiring gets brittle. Speakers deteriorate.

So I decided to remove all internal components and rebuild it from scratch.

The original mono speaker had completely dried out — the membrane cracked almost immediately. Since I wanted stereo anyway, replacing it made sense.

The simplest solution was to repurpose a set of 2.1 Logitech PC speakers, including their power supply and amplification.

Initially, I connected them via the Raspberry Pi’s 3.5mm output. It worked — but the sound quality wasn’t great. The long-term solution would be something like a HiFiBerry AMP+ to improve output quality.

Cleaning the empty cabinet took longer than expected. Dust, debris — and a few very dead spiders.

Working with old hardware

I found inspiration from several Raspberry Pi retro-radio builders online. One recurring challenge is interfacing old analog controls with modern digital systems.

The original radio uses potentiometers. Converting their signal into usable digital input for the Raspberry Pi requires additional hardware and programming.

Buttons would have been easier. Potentiometers require more work.

For this version, I decided not to implement control via the original knobs. The focus was getting clean audio and a stable system first.

Setting up Volumio

Volumio is straightforward to install.

Flash the image to an SD card, boot the Pi, connect via web interface, and configure your services.

You’ll likely need a premium account for Spotify integration.

One downside compared to RuneAudio (an alternative) is that Volumio requires login during setup and doesn’t support native AirPlay in the same way.

If older but stable code doesn’t scare you, RuneAudio can still be a solid option.

No code required

The interesting part is that this entire project required zero lines of custom code.

Everything was configured through existing tools and interfaces.

With the right guides, this is absolutely doable in a weekend.

The real challenge isn’t the software.

It’s respecting the original craftsmanship while quietly upgrading what’s inside.

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