Help me outfit my internet-free home with music!
April 6, 2019 1:37 PM Subscribe
What kind of stereo system and speakers should I buy? A simplistic but quality set up.
Hi Metafilter,
I'm looking for suggestions or recommendations for what kind of speaker/stereo/set up I can use in my home. I used to get all of my entertainment through my laptop, with a little wireless bluetooth speaker for music.
I got rid of internet at home, which has been a relevationary experience, and means I need a new way to listen to music. Most up-to-date questions and advice about what to buy though is all geared at people who want to involve the internet (wifi, streaming, etc). So I'm looking for some advice!
I'm ready to invest a bit of money with getting myself set up with a stereo/speakers but am totally lost with where to start - I've never owned anything more than a crappy boombox. I live in an apartment so don't have a huge area to cover.
Things I'd like it to have:
- CD player
- Tape player
- Maybe record player at some point
- AM/FM radio
- Aux input
- Maybe bluetooth
Ultimately I'm a minimalist and would rather get something that looks good, will last well for a long time and that I really love. Ideally not too many parts or extras but I'm okay with parts if it means getting the best set up, or something that is versatile and will continue to be useful - for this I wonder about a component system over an all in one.
Hoping to spend around 500$ but willing to spend a bit more if really needed/worth it. I really know nothing about good brands or set ups or any of this - like the need for an amplifier etc...bit clueless about it all.
(As a bonus question, also looking for a way to play DVDs - I have a portable DVD player that has RCA audio and visual output, so wondering if I could just get a second hand TV with RCA input and hook it up to that?)
Thanks so much!
Hi Metafilter,
I'm looking for suggestions or recommendations for what kind of speaker/stereo/set up I can use in my home. I used to get all of my entertainment through my laptop, with a little wireless bluetooth speaker for music.
I got rid of internet at home, which has been a relevationary experience, and means I need a new way to listen to music. Most up-to-date questions and advice about what to buy though is all geared at people who want to involve the internet (wifi, streaming, etc). So I'm looking for some advice!
I'm ready to invest a bit of money with getting myself set up with a stereo/speakers but am totally lost with where to start - I've never owned anything more than a crappy boombox. I live in an apartment so don't have a huge area to cover.
Things I'd like it to have:
- CD player
- Tape player
- Maybe record player at some point
- AM/FM radio
- Aux input
- Maybe bluetooth
Ultimately I'm a minimalist and would rather get something that looks good, will last well for a long time and that I really love. Ideally not too many parts or extras but I'm okay with parts if it means getting the best set up, or something that is versatile and will continue to be useful - for this I wonder about a component system over an all in one.
Hoping to spend around 500$ but willing to spend a bit more if really needed/worth it. I really know nothing about good brands or set ups or any of this - like the need for an amplifier etc...bit clueless about it all.
(As a bonus question, also looking for a way to play DVDs - I have a portable DVD player that has RCA audio and visual output, so wondering if I could just get a second hand TV with RCA input and hook it up to that?)
Thanks so much!
I have relied on The Wirecutter’s recs for this and am happy so far. I have a pair of these Pioneer bookshelf speakers and this lovely Onkyo stereo receiver and this Audio Technics turntable. I’m no audiophile, but my small living room is now filled with warm, clear sound.
posted by minervous at 3:26 PM on April 6, 2019
posted by minervous at 3:26 PM on April 6, 2019
You can have wifi without internet. An in-home internal wifi network opens all sorts of doors to device streaming, as long as they can cope without connection to their cloud-based motherships. It would just be your home devices talking to one another.
My Plex media server running on a desktop PC, serves music to all my devices through the local network: video and audio sent to Plex clients running on tablets, phones, the desktop, a laptop, and my TV's fire stick. The only exception is that my Amazon Echo Dot can't do anything without doing it through Amazon, but that's something I could live without. Plex is free in general; the tablet/phone apps cost money; I think I'm into Plex for about $6.
Compared to my current configuration, the only change I'd make would be to disable updating by the media server and clients; any attempt to update would fail for lack of internet and I could do without the error message that produces. I'm also unsure how the Fire Stick would run at all without connectivity, but it would be trivial to find some kind of TV plug-in gadget that would not sweat the loss of internet.
posted by Sunburnt at 3:43 PM on April 6, 2019 [2 favorites]
My Plex media server running on a desktop PC, serves music to all my devices through the local network: video and audio sent to Plex clients running on tablets, phones, the desktop, a laptop, and my TV's fire stick. The only exception is that my Amazon Echo Dot can't do anything without doing it through Amazon, but that's something I could live without. Plex is free in general; the tablet/phone apps cost money; I think I'm into Plex for about $6.
Compared to my current configuration, the only change I'd make would be to disable updating by the media server and clients; any attempt to update would fail for lack of internet and I could do without the error message that produces. I'm also unsure how the Fire Stick would run at all without connectivity, but it would be trivial to find some kind of TV plug-in gadget that would not sweat the loss of internet.
posted by Sunburnt at 3:43 PM on April 6, 2019 [2 favorites]
I should clarify that Plex plays local media: my mp3 collection, my ripped DVDs, and any other movie or TV show I happen to download. If I wanted to play a DVD, I'd rip it to hard drive and play it that way, or else play it directly on my PC and watch it there.
Losing the internet for me may mean losing a source of new things, but I'd have a lot to enjoy that's already here. However, I've never fully embraced going over to mainly streaming media, so if someone had done that, perhaps at the expense of their mp3/CD collection, then what I say may not be as useful to that person.
posted by Sunburnt at 3:48 PM on April 6, 2019 [1 favorite]
Losing the internet for me may mean losing a source of new things, but I'd have a lot to enjoy that's already here. However, I've never fully embraced going over to mainly streaming media, so if someone had done that, perhaps at the expense of their mp3/CD collection, then what I say may not be as useful to that person.
posted by Sunburnt at 3:48 PM on April 6, 2019 [1 favorite]
Might be too expensive but I'd look into the PS Audio Sprout100. It's just an amp, but it has bluetooth, is minimal, dead simple, sounds amazing, and is from a quality brand. I have one (and owned the previous model) and love it. However, I mostly listen to vinyl though sometimes bluetooth.
Depending on where you live, you might be able to get good used vintage speakers. Check Craigslist for Dynaco speakers. I own A-25s, but the smaller ones are called A-10s.
posted by dobbs at 6:50 PM on April 6, 2019 [1 favorite]
Depending on where you live, you might be able to get good used vintage speakers. Check Craigslist for Dynaco speakers. I own A-25s, but the smaller ones are called A-10s.
posted by dobbs at 6:50 PM on April 6, 2019 [1 favorite]
Denon produces a sleek, compact system with a CD player, an AM/FM tuner, Bluetooth connectivity, AND two SC-M41 bookshelf speakers for US$500. (WhatHIFI review). It's slim on inputs, but includes an RCA input for an analog device like a turntable and two digital/optical inputs for TV audio or BluRay/DVD player.
Those optical inputs are tricky, though--newer TVs usually have an optical out (such as most Vizio models, like this one). Not all BluRay/DVD players have optical out, but you could always connect a player--like one of the sub-$100 Sony BluRay/DVD players, directly to a TV with optical out which would be connected to the audio system. That Sony player also has a USB input, so you can connect to media on an external drive or PC.
posted by prinado at 11:54 PM on April 6, 2019
Those optical inputs are tricky, though--newer TVs usually have an optical out (such as most Vizio models, like this one). Not all BluRay/DVD players have optical out, but you could always connect a player--like one of the sub-$100 Sony BluRay/DVD players, directly to a TV with optical out which would be connected to the audio system. That Sony player also has a USB input, so you can connect to media on an external drive or PC.
posted by prinado at 11:54 PM on April 6, 2019
I have a somewhat old Panasonic bookshelf system, pre-Bluetooth. It plays CDs, tapes, and has an Aux input jack that I can connect to my phone. Sounds good to me. Recently, I bought a Bluetooth receiver and connected that to the Aux port, so I can play tunes on my phone and sound from the TV (which has a BT transmitter attached) without a cable. This all cost way less than $500, so you should be able to put something good together.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 4:13 AM on April 7, 2019
posted by Kirth Gerson at 4:13 AM on April 7, 2019
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posted by praemunire at 3:19 PM on April 6, 2019 [1 favorite]