Nick, if you'll be using it with Roon, it really is pretty simple to use. I've got an Allo USBridge (Sparky instead of rPi and the USBridge hat). I use it as a Roon Bridge to a separate DAC and, well, it just works. It runs DietPi and I have updated that twice now but probably didn't need to. SQ is excellent.
It really is amazing what can be had now at this price point. Will you be able to use wired ethernet? Not sure if what shadowlight is sending you has a wifi component.