MP3 on the Home Stereo - what's the best way?

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Hoping someone in Axiomland can shed some light on this, or at least share success/failure stories.

I'm currently searching for the best (balance of cost vs. quality vs. ease of use) way to make my 6,000+ track MP3 collection accessible from my home theater. I've done this before in two different manners. Once via Tivo and another time via a dedicated HTPC. The HTPC was clunky and I lack a HDTV so it was difficult to use. I don't have a Tivo anymore (satellite DVR), but it was simple and worked well but couldn't do playlists or protected AAC files.

The caveat is that I want to be able to navigate my collection from the theater room and pick songs or playlists with a nice display of Track+Artist. I had thought that the iPod AV dock did this. Apple in their infinite wisdom does not display the iPod menu through the Video out - just actual Video files. Neither I nor my wife really want the iPod in a dock sitting next to the listening positions with cables running 30 feet away to my AV rack. I want it docked by the rack, accessed via a remote and viewed on my TV.

I was excited about the AppleTV device. At least until I learned that a HD TV is required. Another excuse to trade in my current set, I suppose.

I'd sort of prefer a stand-alone solution that doesn't require my PC to be on all the time, but I realize that may not be possible. Since I have a couple of iPods, I'm thinking that there should be a way to use them to hold the music. I've looked at this by DLO - the concept looks great, but the reviews are pretty much dismal. To be fair, it appears they have a new version coming out soon that might address other people's complaints. I've also looked at this , but haven't read any reviews.

Expanding my search into the "I-need-your-PC-to-be-on" camp, I'm looking at the Roku Soundbridge , which looks lovely but doesn't support protected AAC files of which I do have a few. I could go through the process of burning+ripping them to non protected files, of course, but that's kind of a pain. I've also thought about the Logitech DJ, but it's fairly pricey and I've read some not-so-stellar reviews about its software.

So do any other axiomites have a solution in place that's working well for them?

Have you heard of Squeezebox ?

No, I had not. Very sleek device - I like the look of it. But $300? Why is this $100 more than the Roku and $50 more than the Logitech DJ? I see that the Squeezebox page discusses sound quality, which is obviously important. Seems this one has more connectors and uses higher quality components?

What kind of receiver do you have? Several modern ones (H/K, Denon, Onkyo to name a few) do have add-on iPod docks that will at least display the tracklist, etc on the receiver display.

I've never tried it; I've got the iPod in an IR dock and just listen to stuff on random, skipping what I don't like.

Hands down, the Squeezebox is the best! (okay, I'm a homer. I haven't used other alternatives). But, I have it and I love it. It has top quality DACs and handles lossless audio formats like FLAC, Apple Lossless, and WMA lossless, so you get CD quality sound. It runs off an open-source server program installed on your computer. The remote is very easy to use to navigate through your music files and build a playlist while listening. The display can be very large and very bright if you're sitting far away, but the defaults are very readable. Because it's open source, there are a bunch of geeks (used in the most endearing sense of the word) writing little programs like a simulated dual VU meter that displays while your music is playing, or a three line display of weather forecasts and sports scores.

Like I said, I haven't used the alternatives, like the Roku, but I've seen one in person and I much prefer the look of the Squeezebox. Go to the Slimdevices.com forum and ask one of them to give you a comparison, I'm sure they'll jump on it (if there aren't already a thousand posts on the same question).

Quote:

Have you heard of Squeezebox ?

And it's got great taste in music too! Pink Martini!

Peter
How much do you want to spend and how complex a solution do you want?

I think the challenge is the AAC part, you pretty much have to stick w/ Apple-related equipment.

1) Apple TV. Possible solution but you need component or HDMI input on your TV. It needs your PC/Mac to be on but the ease of use is there w/ iTunes and AAC support. $300 or so.

2) Squeezebox and Roku are also good but I believe those also need a PC running.

3) Sonos is nice but a little pricey IMHO. Easy to use, wireless and lots of function though.

4) HTPC can still be useable w/o an HDTV. If you set up with a VNC client, you can use another computer, like a laptop to control it w/o actually have a screen connected. I use a Mac Mini in my HT to serve up iTunes/music and I control it this way with Apple Remote Desktop. I almost never use the plasma which it is connected to. This is doable on PC's too.

5) Yeah, Tivo is also a good solution. I have a Series 2 and 3 and it's cool to serve music and photos. Granted you have to pay for tivo service too. Here's a thought, maybe you can get a used S2 and hack it w/ PTVNet to enable the music serving but not use it for Tivo, which you then wouldn't have to pay for? But it doesn't solve the AAC problem.

6) I think you're best bet is to go w/ a simple iPod dock like this:

iPod AV Dock

This can connect to any receiver, so you don't need to upgrade to an iPod-specific one. Any of your iPods can connect to it (and charge) and if you have video, it'll work for that too. Also, it comes w/ a remote. If you're so inclined, you could even set it up to work w/ a universal remote like a Harmony or Home Theatre Master.

Thank you for the reply, oldskool. Very good suggestions!

I have explored most of them, except the hacked Tivo (I even have an old S2 in the basement, somewhere...).

I've seen a Sonos (and Escient Fireball) system in action and they're very slick but I don't really feel the need to drop a grand just to hear my MP3's in the den!

Both the Squeezebox and Roku (and Tivo) require a client to be running on my main music PC. That's not a big deal.

For my needs, the iPod AV dock is a waste of money (IMHO) as it offers no benefits over just plugging in a $2 Headphone-To-RCA cable from Radio Shack. That AV dock *does not* let you do on-screen picking and choosing of songs/playlists. You still have to use the iPod to pick songs. It just sends iPod video to your TV, which I don't have a big interest in (yet).

I actually really like the Mac Mini idea - though it's certainly not the cheapest solution at $600+. I could move my entire music collection over to the Mini and be done with it. I'm an IT guy, so I understand completely about using a VNC client - and that's a great idea to circumvent the non-HD set problem. But I want clean and neat - and I don't really want to require the laptop to be fired up in the HT room just to pick a song.

I am going to wait a couple of months for the new DLO Homedock to be released. Provided it works as advertised and has decent sound quality, it appears to do *exactly* what I want for $150. DLO Homedock Deluxe V2

Yes, your PC must be on to play your mp3 on a squeezebox. If you use Pandora, Rhapsody, or a multitude of other internet radio stations, the Squeezebox can play those feeds without your PC on.

I wouldn't consider Sonos until you were looking at distributing the music to multiple rooms in your house, and even then, I found the Squeezebox to have advantages over Sonos at a lower price.

As for DRM files like downloads from iTunes, they will not play on the SqueezeBox, but like you said, you can 'unprotect' them with a little effort. Other than that, the software works very well with iTunes. It scans your computer for your iTunes library, plays the music and displays the tags in whatever format you like. I was probably listening to my iTunes library on the SqueezeBox 15 minutes after I took it out of the packaging.

I have to say that it seems pretty impressive. I downloaded the SqueezeServer and SoftSqueeze at home last night. Pretty cool that you can be up and running with everything except the hardware for no cost.

Anyway, it works quite well. Hooked the laptop up to my HT system and streamed from my music PC, and the sound quality was fine even through my aging laptop. Might have to look into a Squeezebox sometime!

Thanks for the suggestion.

Quote:

Have you heard of Squeezebox ?

Squeezebox is probably the right way to go, especially for AAC DRM files.

However, for those with different priorities the Roku Soundbridge may be the right tool. Platform independent (can use any music server, including the SlimServer used by Squeezebox), and can play streaming WMA MP3 etc direct from Internet radio sites with just a wireless connection to an 802.11 access point - no PC (or iPod) required. Simple to use, even for the non-techies in the house. Infinite music: jazz, classical, rock, latin.

I used to connect a notebook or a PDA all the time to play Internet radio (using Screamer, nice lightweight client) but have found the Soundbridge to have the edge in convenience - it even looks good on the rack, and you can read the display across the room.

Personally I prefer HTPC, it can do more than any other single device. But they do cost the most (Caddy vs Pinto) and can eat up time tweaking them out the way you want them to be.

My 2nd choice would be the Xbox 360. Hands down the best multimedia console around. Since you don't have an HDTV you could even get the $299 version. It will connect over the network to your PC and play all the media you have on it. It's even getting IPTV capabilities later this year which is really cool.

2 cents

I'm about to buy a Squeezebox. The Sonos keeps drawing me in their direction because I love the remote with the LCD built right in to pick your tunes but the price is way to high to justify the difference.

Quote:

I'm about to buy a Squeezebox. The Sonos keeps drawing me in their direction because I love the remote with the LCD built right in to pick your tunes but the price is way to high to justify the difference.

Too late for the edit button I guess, but I intended to ask a question. Does anyone know of a Canadian distributer, online preferred but not necessary.

Their web page has no suggested retailers making me think they might be an online only company like that crazy speaker company people keep talking about.

Answered my own question. Well, that is to say Google answered it.

List of Canadian Squeezebox Retailers.

I've been playing w/ Apple TV for the past day. (Nice to get demo equipment from work...)

I'm surprised to say that it is actually quite useful. I have it hooked up to our kitchen LCD. From there, I am sharing my iTunes from 2 Macs in our house. I can stream playlists and videos. The vids are from iTunes and DVDs/Tivo shows ripped to MPEG4, no xvid or divx tried yet. I haven't tried photos yet. You can also stream trailers from Apple in real time. It is a very nice option to be able to use the same playlists that are synced to my iPod.

PQ quality is fine. At work, we streamed to a 50" 1080p and the Cars trailer looked better than it does on an iPod. At home on my 4:3 LCD, it's fine. Apple TV isn't optimized for 4:3, only 16:9, so video content is a little squished. But I'm using it more for music/podcasts/books so for that, it's great. You will need to keep your PCs/Macs on to share the iTunes libraries.

As long as you're OK w/ giving in to itunes' DRM, you may be pleasantly surprised w/ Apple TV.

[quote}As long as you're OK w/ giving in to itunes' DRM, you may be pleasantly surprised w/ Apple TV.

Repeat this mantra:

Only media purchased from the iTunes Store has Apple DRM applied.
I can import non-DRM media into iTunes.
I use DRM-free media as much as possible.

I think I'll sell a sleep-hypnosis tape of the mantra until I never hear the "but all iTunes media has DRM" nugget again.

But seriously folks, I would rather that DRM be a meaningless, nonsensical acronym than a threat to user rights. On the other hand, I don't want to be limited in what I can access easily. I manage to stay away from DRM'd media 90% of the time but I do have some media like the complete series of "The Office" that I bought via the ITMS. And I couldn't help it. I'm a shameless addict as far as that series goes.

Probably worded my statement wrong.

As long as you're OK w/ using content that can be controlled by iTunes (from iTunes or your own), then you should enjoy this product fine.

The DRM war (on consumers) certainly gets teh blood pumping. There are times when everyone may have to give in, I know I have. Just try to support DRM free services too (emusic, etc). Dollar signs is all the MPAA and RIAA understand.

Quote:

The DRM war (on consumers) certainly gets teh blood pumping. There are times when everyone may have to give in, I know I have. Just try to support DRM free services too (emusic, etc). Dollar signs is all the MPAA and RIAA understand.

DRM = Do Remove Me

Yes, you do have to submit to iTunes. But after initial resistance I have become somewhat adept at using iTunes to manage my library so it wasn't a big deal. I'm still not a big fan of the iTunes interface though.