New home stereo options
February 6, 2010 6:40 AM Subscribe
I need help getting up to speed on new home stereo options. I'd like to listen to digital files (mostly .mp3 and .flac) without having to fire up my desktop.
I have 100s of Gbs of music on my desktop computer and listen to most of my music there, but I also have an old stereo downstairs that I no longer use much because I don't listen to CDs anymore. It has an aux in, which I sometimes use to plug in whatever .mp3 player I'm using, but I'm looking for a new system that was designed to play digital files while giving great sound. What solutions are people using these days?
I would be open to creating a home theater, integrating a dvd player and HDTV into the mix, but for now my main objective is to be able to listen to all my digital music without having to turn on a computer.
I have 100s of Gbs of music on my desktop computer and listen to most of my music there, but I also have an old stereo downstairs that I no longer use much because I don't listen to CDs anymore. It has an aux in, which I sometimes use to plug in whatever .mp3 player I'm using, but I'm looking for a new system that was designed to play digital files while giving great sound. What solutions are people using these days?
I would be open to creating a home theater, integrating a dvd player and HDTV into the mix, but for now my main objective is to be able to listen to all my digital music without having to turn on a computer.
Roku Soundbridge
Logitech Squeezebox
... and similar. Both can access your music store on your desktop computer, over the network.
You could also take the leap to a separate storage device, i.e. the NAS mentioned above, but that should be seen as a separate issue.
posted by intermod at 8:35 AM on February 6, 2010
Logitech Squeezebox
... and similar. Both can access your music store on your desktop computer, over the network.
You could also take the leap to a separate storage device, i.e. the NAS mentioned above, but that should be seen as a separate issue.
posted by intermod at 8:35 AM on February 6, 2010
How much are you looking to spend and how much work do you want to do? Those are the critical components to your question.
If you want to go (extremely) high end Olive makes some incredible players.
Cheaper than that would be a nettop (the eeebox comes to mind) with an external hdd (or an NAS) for additional storage. A used netbook would be a cheap way to get started as well.
You could also consider an Apple TV running XBMC. Actually any of these options (except the Olive) would likely be best with XBMC.
If you want expandability, you need something with HDMI out that can do 1080p video. A 1080p capable nettop running XBMC would likely be your best bet in that instance. The nettop wins over the Apple TV because the Apple TV is limited to 720p.
Personally I use a Popcornhour A-110 (recently replaced by the A-200), but I mainly use it for video playback. It plays everything with no issues (and I mean everything), but the library/playlist functionality for audio files leaves a lot to be desired.
posted by thekiltedwonder at 8:42 AM on February 6, 2010
If you want to go (extremely) high end Olive makes some incredible players.
Cheaper than that would be a nettop (the eeebox comes to mind) with an external hdd (or an NAS) for additional storage. A used netbook would be a cheap way to get started as well.
You could also consider an Apple TV running XBMC. Actually any of these options (except the Olive) would likely be best with XBMC.
If you want expandability, you need something with HDMI out that can do 1080p video. A 1080p capable nettop running XBMC would likely be your best bet in that instance. The nettop wins over the Apple TV because the Apple TV is limited to 720p.
Personally I use a Popcornhour A-110 (recently replaced by the A-200), but I mainly use it for video playback. It plays everything with no issues (and I mean everything), but the library/playlist functionality for audio files leaves a lot to be desired.
posted by thekiltedwonder at 8:42 AM on February 6, 2010
2nding the Logitech Squeezebox. Plays FLAC out of the box, and has a great DAC.
posted by wongcorgi at 10:11 AM on February 6, 2010
posted by wongcorgi at 10:11 AM on February 6, 2010
Response by poster: Thanks for the suggestions so far. I'm pretty much a novice at all of this so I'm struggling to understand the options you've presented.
Is the NAS storage device simply an external hard drive with some kind of media playing software added? That might work. Can it be easily attached to a 10 year old stereo system? How does one control the tracks?
The squeezebox looks interesting. So I would attach that to an external storage device to access the songs and then to my current stereo to produce the music?
If anybody wants to walk me through this, I'd be appreciative.
What I have: many GBs of digital music on my desktop and an older stereo.
What I want: A way to listen to that music in my living room downstairs without having to use my computer upstairs (my internet wifi connection does not work well in my house --only upstairs, downstairs has crappy connectivity, if that matters).
I like the idea of transferring my library to some kind of external hard drive and plugging it into my old stereo if that's possible. I'd be willing to spend around €500 to make that happen. I also very much like the idea of later being to fill that hard drive with .avi and hi-def .mkv files and connect it also to a HDTV (that I have yet to buy). Streaming would be cool if that's easy to set up, but I'm not adverse to having everything plugged in.
posted by sic at 10:37 AM on February 6, 2010
Is the NAS storage device simply an external hard drive with some kind of media playing software added? That might work. Can it be easily attached to a 10 year old stereo system? How does one control the tracks?
The squeezebox looks interesting. So I would attach that to an external storage device to access the songs and then to my current stereo to produce the music?
If anybody wants to walk me through this, I'd be appreciative.
What I have: many GBs of digital music on my desktop and an older stereo.
What I want: A way to listen to that music in my living room downstairs without having to use my computer upstairs (my internet wifi connection does not work well in my house --only upstairs, downstairs has crappy connectivity, if that matters).
I like the idea of transferring my library to some kind of external hard drive and plugging it into my old stereo if that's possible. I'd be willing to spend around €500 to make that happen. I also very much like the idea of later being to fill that hard drive with .avi and hi-def .mkv files and connect it also to a HDTV (that I have yet to buy). Streaming would be cool if that's easy to set up, but I'm not adverse to having everything plugged in.
posted by sic at 10:37 AM on February 6, 2010
NAS is network attached storage. It will serve your music files over the network. It is not a necessary component as you can run many media servers on your own PC.
The frontend component- either networked audio player or networked video player, requires a network connection (wifi and/or wired eithernet), and connects to a media server component over that connection. It does not require an internet connection.
If you don't want to install a media server, or don't have the network connection available, there are stand alone devices that you just plug hard drives into, such as the WD TV Live HD and earlier mentioned Popcorn hour devices. (Some also can stream over the network as well). You just have to do your research on what features you want.
posted by wongcorgi at 10:45 AM on February 6, 2010
The frontend component- either networked audio player or networked video player, requires a network connection (wifi and/or wired eithernet), and connects to a media server component over that connection. It does not require an internet connection.
If you don't want to install a media server, or don't have the network connection available, there are stand alone devices that you just plug hard drives into, such as the WD TV Live HD and earlier mentioned Popcorn hour devices. (Some also can stream over the network as well). You just have to do your research on what features you want.
posted by wongcorgi at 10:45 AM on February 6, 2010
A NAS is basically a hard drive that connects to the network to share files with other computers/devices on the network. Some NAS devices come with media streaming software built-in that can stream music/video data over the network to another device like the Squeezebox, which would be attached to your home stereo. (I think the Squeezebox requires this kind of setup; you can't hook up a hard drive to a Squeezebox directly.)
You don't need a connection to the internet to make this work, you just need a wifi or wired connection between the NAS and your Squeezebox. It sounds like the wireless connection doesn't work well in your house, so this option is probably not for you. You could just create a network that only connects the NAS to the Squeezebox, though.
The WD TV live HD is probably your best bet if you don't want to mess with setting up a network and want an all-in-one solution. LaCie also makes some similar ones. However, these devices require a TV to
Given your budget I think you might also want to check out stuff from Sonos or get a PS3, which makes a great standalone media center. You can attach an external drive to the PS3 or replace the internal drive with a larger one (easy to do).
Personally I would look into trying to get your network connection between your upstairs and downstairs working so you can stream music from your PC - you might also want to do other stuff like stream Pandora to your stereo.
posted by kenliu at 1:33 PM on February 6, 2010
You don't need a connection to the internet to make this work, you just need a wifi or wired connection between the NAS and your Squeezebox. It sounds like the wireless connection doesn't work well in your house, so this option is probably not for you. You could just create a network that only connects the NAS to the Squeezebox, though.
The WD TV live HD is probably your best bet if you don't want to mess with setting up a network and want an all-in-one solution. LaCie also makes some similar ones. However, these devices require a TV to
Given your budget I think you might also want to check out stuff from Sonos or get a PS3, which makes a great standalone media center. You can attach an external drive to the PS3 or replace the internal drive with a larger one (easy to do).
Personally I would look into trying to get your network connection between your upstairs and downstairs working so you can stream music from your PC - you might also want to do other stuff like stream Pandora to your stereo.
posted by kenliu at 1:33 PM on February 6, 2010
...However, these devices require a TV to navigate and control playback.
posted by kenliu at 1:34 PM on February 6, 2010
posted by kenliu at 1:34 PM on February 6, 2010
Oops, you can actually hook up a USB drive directly to the Squeezebox Touch. Probably your best bet, if you aren't interested in Video.
Also, it turns out the PS3 doesn't support FLAC.
posted by kenliu at 1:41 PM on February 6, 2010
Also, it turns out the PS3 doesn't support FLAC.
posted by kenliu at 1:41 PM on February 6, 2010
Response by poster: Thanks Kenilu. Let's assume that I was interested in video as well, would one of the other squeezebox's become relevant or is strictly for audio?
posted by sic at 3:49 PM on February 6, 2010
posted by sic at 3:49 PM on February 6, 2010
The new Squeezebox Touch looks really nice. It probably won't do for video because it doesn't appear to have an HDMI out.... or any video out for that matter. If you want to wait on video capability, that looks like a great bet.
If the video potential is important to you, I think I'd lean towards an Apple TV running XBMC. Here in the states, they are $230 new and XBMC is considered to be king of usability. You could skip on XBMC and just run the standard OS, but XBMC is a nice improvement, particularly because it plays far more types of files.
That would limit you to 720p for your video, but if you aren't planning to upgrade your tv for a while that will be fine. The Apple TV will work fine, if not optimally, for whatever tv you end up getting, so you wouldn't have to replace it immediately when you upgrade your tv, unlike the squeezebox. When you do replace it the options will be much more robust. In just the past year since I bought my PopcornHour the products have gotten exponentially better. Plus, as with most Apple products, it will maintain its resale value very well.
posted by thekiltedwonder at 4:59 PM on February 6, 2010
If the video potential is important to you, I think I'd lean towards an Apple TV running XBMC. Here in the states, they are $230 new and XBMC is considered to be king of usability. You could skip on XBMC and just run the standard OS, but XBMC is a nice improvement, particularly because it plays far more types of files.
That would limit you to 720p for your video, but if you aren't planning to upgrade your tv for a while that will be fine. The Apple TV will work fine, if not optimally, for whatever tv you end up getting, so you wouldn't have to replace it immediately when you upgrade your tv, unlike the squeezebox. When you do replace it the options will be much more robust. In just the past year since I bought my PopcornHour the products have gotten exponentially better. Plus, as with most Apple products, it will maintain its resale value very well.
posted by thekiltedwonder at 4:59 PM on February 6, 2010
Response by poster: Thanks thekiltedwonder!
I think the reason that I haven't spent much time researching this particular market is because the technology is changing so fast, I keep thinking if I wait a little longer some amazingly simple product will appear that automagically makes all of my digital media appear where I want it at the press of a button for like €50.
When you say "that looks like a great bet" are you referring to the squeezebox touch eventually incorporating video capability?
I definitely like the Touch for music, but your earlier link to XMBC has me interested in looking at Apple TV or some netbooks. I'm not a stickler for video quality, I generally watch 720p on my computer and think it looks awesome, but on the other hand, if I'm going to go out of my way to set up a system I might as well go all in for 1080p....
Still, maybe it's smarter to think that I'll eventually be upgrading anyway, as this technology is changing by the day.
posted by sic at 5:57 PM on February 6, 2010
I think the reason that I haven't spent much time researching this particular market is because the technology is changing so fast, I keep thinking if I wait a little longer some amazingly simple product will appear that automagically makes all of my digital media appear where I want it at the press of a button for like €50.
When you say "that looks like a great bet" are you referring to the squeezebox touch eventually incorporating video capability?
I definitely like the Touch for music, but your earlier link to XMBC has me interested in looking at Apple TV or some netbooks. I'm not a stickler for video quality, I generally watch 720p on my computer and think it looks awesome, but on the other hand, if I'm going to go out of my way to set up a system I might as well go all in for 1080p....
Still, maybe it's smarter to think that I'll eventually be upgrading anyway, as this technology is changing by the day.
posted by sic at 5:57 PM on February 6, 2010
Sorry for the confusion. I meant that the Squeezebox looks like a great product for audio only. You'll need to use something else instead of it if you want video.
The general rule for TVs is that smaller than 32 inches 720p is fine, larger than that there is a noticeable difference between 1080p and 720p.
One other thing to consider is a remote. A netbook won't have an IR remote standard, while some nettops do (like the eeebox b204 & b205) and the Apple TV does.
The simplest solution is to get something that comes standard with an IR remote. That way you can integrate it into a universal remote (I can't recommend the Logitech Harmony series highly enough, and if you keep an eye out you can find them for ~$40) if you want to.
posted by thekiltedwonder at 6:30 AM on February 7, 2010
The general rule for TVs is that smaller than 32 inches 720p is fine, larger than that there is a noticeable difference between 1080p and 720p.
One other thing to consider is a remote. A netbook won't have an IR remote standard, while some nettops do (like the eeebox b204 & b205) and the Apple TV does.
The simplest solution is to get something that comes standard with an IR remote. That way you can integrate it into a universal remote (I can't recommend the Logitech Harmony series highly enough, and if you keep an eye out you can find them for ~$40) if you want to.
posted by thekiltedwonder at 6:30 AM on February 7, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
Then you need a streaming device (media player) - hooked to any kind of stereo.
The streaming device could be; Xbox 360, Playstation 3 or some other hardware solution:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/HomeElectronics(ME)/DVDMediaPlayers(ME)/Default.aspx
Frankly - the stereo is the least of your worries. Honestly, I used to run a 35-year old Sansui that sounded better with MP3's than my current "digital" Harmon-Kardon (I got sick of it being in the shop every 6 months to replace some burned out component)
posted by jkaczor at 7:48 AM on February 6, 2010