Mp3 Players for Home Stereo

January 31, 2005 12:54 PM

Looking for recommendations on networked mp3 players for a home stereo. [+]

I've been browsing around, and there are an awful lot of them available. The Netgear MP101, the SliMP3 Squeezebox, the TurtleBeach AudioTron, and a whole lot more.

Features I'm lookg for are:
- wireless ethernet
- no local storage - all mp3's will reside on my server, not on the mp3 device
- RCA output
- simple to control from the front panel/remote control. I don't want to have to pre-load it with playlists, or go to my PC to choose what songs to stream to it
- My mp3s are scattered in a few locations, so the device will need to be able to "mount" several network paths at once
- Price is important, but I will pay more if it's worth it.
- I don't really care if it plays other formats besides your standard mp3.

posted by skwm to technology (7 comments total)

There's always TiVo with the Home Media Option (HMO is now free for TiVo subscribers).
posted by achmorrison at 1:31 PM on January 31, 2005

I don't have cable, and I don't watch TV, so that would somewhat overkill for me... I'm looking for mp3/audio only, no video.
posted by skwm at 1:43 PM on January 31, 2005

I'm pretty sure this has been asked about a billion times. I say SqueezeBox.
posted by Jairus at 2:03 PM on January 31, 2005

I went through all the research a year back and found out all i really needed was the Lyra Wireless Transmitter Basically it uses radio waves to transmit your music from your computer to your stereo. It plugs into your USB port on your computer and via an RCA jack on your stereo. If you want the storage device to be your computer, this is the device for you.
posted by tirebouchon at 2:13 PM on January 31, 2005

Don't go for the Netgear. I had it for a while and it really didn't offer anything. Ugly... and other than WMA support I'm not sure it really boasted any features that the others don't have.

Squeezebox/ Slimp3 is really fantastic. The open source community around it develops all sorts of fun toys, it looks cute and is pretty reliable.

However, if I was buying something NOW I would carefully look at something more like a small computer like the Mac Mini, a tablet PC or a PDA with one of these new remote music streaming apps. None of these remote devices is quite as responsive or direct as a computer type interface.
posted by skylar at 2:42 PM on January 31, 2005

Maybe a cheap (outdated) PC and a remote control device would do what you want? Tuck the box out of sight, set it up to run whatever programs you like on startup, and it might be just what you're after. I use one of these for remote control of my PC, turning it into a rather useful home stereo system.
posted by tomble at 6:35 PM on January 31, 2005

I have a Roku SoundBridge and it's quite nice. Zero configuration -- it sees your iTunes shared libraries on any machine on the network. (Also works with Windows Media Center basically the same way, I understand.) If you would prefer more control, you can also use the Squeezebox software with it.

I also just ordered an El Gato EyeHome. This is a streaming audio/video box that works with Macs only. It's actually cheaper than the Roku -- I ordered a refurb for $150. The Roku's display is tough to see across the living room, so I'm moving it to the bedroom. Also, I had trouble getting my Harmony remote to work right with the Roku.
posted by kindall at 3:57 PM on February 1, 2005