Do Androids stream my electric beeps?

June 22, 2010 12:11 PM

[Yet another Android app question] Android music app choices look to be slim. Looking for recommendations for playback, streaming and recording apps.

I'm seriously considering ditching AT&T (cursed lame data plans, ugh!) and picking up a Sprint EVO 4G. I'm a smartphone power user (WM, Symbian, iPhone, you name it) and I've been spoiled by the great app selection on other platforms, especially the iPhone.

Android looks to be sorely lacking in the multimedia arena. For instance, I'm having a hard time finding any decent audio recording apps. Yes, there are several voice note recorders, but there don't appear to be any multi-track recorders (there is an abundance for the iPhone). Similarly, digital music sequencers are few and look pretty awful.

However, since I don't yet have an Android phone it's possible there is more out there than I'm realizing. So I'm looking for suggestions for the following:

- Best local music/multimedia playback apps (DoubleTwist seems to be the rage right now, but is there anything better?)
- Best streaming audio apps (any comments on Rhapsody? What's the best webradio app between Pandora/last.fm/Slacker/etc?)
- Best music recording apps (multitrack recording would be phenomenal - this was one of my favorite capabilities on the iPhone. Bonus points for other good musician-related apps besides gStrings)
- Any good music creation apps, such as electronic sequencers or trackers?
- Is there a good reliable DLNA player (I have a Netgear ReadyNAS acting as a DLNA server; can I stream these tracks easily and reliably to an Android via WiFi?)
- Any good "remote control" apps to control playback of a music player on a PC, DLNA or otherwise?
- Decent XBMC remote/integration?

Anything else you want to share with a prospective Android user would be appreciated as well (I've done plenty of reading, but user comments - especially power users' - are helpful).

Thanks!

posted by sprocket87 to technology (8 answers total)

I have a Nexus One on T-Mobile. I also have both Pandora and Last.fm installed. Last.fm gives me a better selection of music. But Pandora seems to run a lot smoother, and has better music playback quality to boot.
posted by spinifex23 at 12:14 PM on June 22, 2010

I have Rhapsody and Pandora on my Droid. So far Pandora is much more reliable -- Rhapsody has had some irritating interruptions to ask me if I want to buy music, not a question you feel like stopping and answering during a run.
posted by bearwife at 12:29 PM on June 22, 2010

I stream somafm.com often using the AOnlineRadio app. Works once you manage to find the channel you want which is a pain. (sent from my Droid :P)
posted by slow graffiti at 12:41 PM on June 22, 2010

check out tunewiki for music playback, it also support last.fm and a few other radio options in addtion to local playback, youtube video and lyrics.

the best single track recorder I've found is Virtual Recorder, it doesn't do multitrack, but has digital preamp and can pitch bend and reverse records. There is a $5 multitrack app called Track Factory, but I have no experience with it. Comments in the market indicate it's a bit of a toy. Also look at Droid DJ.
posted by jrishel at 1:09 PM on June 22, 2010

The best subscription option will probably be Rdio, whenever it comes out.
posted by rxrfrx at 2:08 PM on June 22, 2010

If you're a Sirius/XM subscriber, they currently have a beta app that works quite well for streaming most of their channels.
posted by BrianJ at 2:16 PM on June 22, 2010

Thanks for the tips so far. Any comments on some of my other requests?

Looks like it will be awhile before Android is a serious multimedia contender. Oy.
posted by sprocket87 at 7:20 AM on June 23, 2010

The onboard music player does fine by me for playing music, but not so hot with syncing to a PC's library. If you want to have a tool to help with that, doubletwist or songbird can work. If you use smart playlists in itunes, I don't think either of these work out. I use isyncr (which was $3) to sync my play count, and skip counts with itunes for my smart playlists.
posted by garlic at 1:20 PM on June 23, 2010