Spiiksi Box
Interpretation for rooms with weak internet
A Raspberry Pi takes one stream per language from Spiiksi and plays it to every phone on its own Wi-Fi. However many people listen, the venue's internet carries about 0.4 Mbps per language.
- Venue internetCable or the venue's Wi-Fi
- Spiiksi BoxRaspberry Pi + USB Wi-Fi adapter
- Listeners' phonesOn the box's Wi-Fi, no app
What you need
Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+ or newer
A Pi 4 or 5 has the most room to spare; a 3B+ is enough for a room. Older models aren't supported.
Alfa AWUS036AXM or similar
A USB Wi-Fi adapter with external antennas serves the listeners on 5 GHz and reaches the back of a hall. Similar means a MediaTek MT7921AU or MT7612U chip: many Realtek adapters can't run a Wi-Fi network on Linux.
The official power supply
The one for your Pi model, plugged straight in. On a Pi 3B+ or 4 with the adapter, a powered USB hub keeps the power steady.
A plastic case and a 32 GB microSD card
Not a metal case: it blocks the Wi-Fi.
A network cable, if you can
The most reliable connection. Without one, the Pi's own Wi-Fi joins the venue's network while the adapter serves the listeners.
Setting it up
About 20 minutes, once per box.
- 1
Write the card
In Raspberry Pi Imager, choose Raspberry Pi OS Lite (64-bit). In its settings, turn on SSH and set a user.
- 2
Install
Start the Pi with a network cable and the adapter plugged in. Sign in with SSH and run:
$ curl -fsSL https://spiiksi.fi/downloads/box/install.sh | sudo sh - 3
Choose a PIN
On a phone, join the Wi-Fi Spiiksi and open the setup page. Choose a PIN straight away: until you do, anyone on the box's Wi-Fi could.
http://10.42.0.1/setup
- 4
Connect to your account
Tap Connect to Spiiksi and approve the box on spiiksi.fi. Then choose its event, its Wi-Fi and the venue's Wi-Fi on the Spiiksi dashboard.
At the event
- 01
Plug it in
Network cable and power. The box is ready in about a minute.
- 02
Put out the QR card
Print it from the dashboard. One code joins the box's Wi-Fi, the other opens the listener page.
- 03
Listeners pick a language
They hear the interpretation and read the captions. Each phone counts as one listener toward your plan.
Good to know
- Phones stay off the internet
- Everything a listener loads comes from the box, so phones can't use up the venue's link. The speaker's laptop can be let through in setup.
- Questions and polls need the internet
- The box's listener page leaves them out.
- Lost a box?
- Remove it on the dashboard. That cuts it off from your account at once.
- Keep the adapter's own antennas
- High-gain "long range" antennas can take it past the legal transmit power.
- Updates install themselves
- Only signed releases, and only when nobody has listened for ten minutes. Never during an event.
Planning a box for your venue?
Tell us about the room, and we'll help you choose the hardware.