Airport express....

mantis

Whats up all,
I just for the hell of it picked up a Airport Express. Right now I'm connected to the Internet with it on my lap top. I turned off Wireless and tried out the ability of the Airport . It works great. I'm not going to use it this way but for the sheer hell of it, it works like a gaming adapter but it can do o so much more.

Next up was the theater system. Since I have a Iphone, I can control my all my Itunes on all my computers with it. Badass by way. The Airport can stream Itunes music and send it out Via Optical(converted cable) or standard 1/8 jack to stereo rca outs. With my Iphone I connected to the basement Imac with tons of music in loseless and streamed it Via the Airport and man it works great. Full control with the Iphone and Streaming music. All done while I still have my lap top connected using the Internet. Killer. So to top the damn thing off, Usb out to my printer. **** people I with this one device can print on my printer Via Usb, Surf the Internet with a computer and at the same time steam music to anything I connect the outputs 2.

I don't know about you guys but thats badass. Apple once again Impresses me. I use a Apple Extreme gigabit Router which is the best Router I have ever used. It never drops out or has to be rebooted.

Excellent products. The Air Express is only 99.99 and can join any wireless or wired network. You can call into it and use it as a range extender if your house is large and can't get wireless coverage from just your router. Thats badass. You can add them all over your house and build a stupid strong wireless network to computers, game systems, blu ray players, hell anything that needs Ip. Allday people Allday.

Dan:D:D

polkatese

Dan,

I bought the airport express to extend my linksys AND running airtunes from MacBookPro's iTunes to the main system. Just ordered the mini Toslink to regular toslink so that I can hook it up to the B&K REF50. I tested it out using a headphone, and it sounds pretty decent. Can't wait for the toslink (ordered it from monoprice.com) to come...

mutelight

Are you using the mini-TOSLINK output to connect to your system? The analog performance isn't all the great on them but obviously the digital is bit perfect as long as your audio is 16-bit and 48khz and below.

I have a very similar setup to yours with exception to my printer since it has built-in wireless but it is great when I have company over because I can hand around my phone and they can choose music and it is the same price as I would have paid for a cheapo WiFi adapter for my 360.

Kris Siegel

polkatese wrote: »

I bought the airport express to extend my linksys AND running airtunes from MacBookPro's iTunes to the main system.

Have you tested this configuration yet? When I worked for Apple's support the AirPort Express only supported third party routers in two modes: 1 way you could use it as a wireless access point and use your "router" as a switch or the other way was hooking it up to your network as a client for your speakers. Both ways did not extend the signal of a third party router... unless, of course, this has changed or there are hacks for it?

polkatese

Kris,

I configured the AX to join the existing Linksys network (it popped up on the list, as soon as I ran Airport Utility, and having the AX hooked up via ethernet cable to my MacBook). Configured airTunes (showed up on the iTunes). In reality, I cared more about its ability to play iTunes wirelessly to my system. But, you brought up a good point, how do I tested the "extending" the wireless coverage feature? The manual shows one of the config options as what I did, to do both. Btw, the SQ is pretty good, connected to the system via Toslink (got the cable this morning and hooked em up).

phuz

I use one for each rig at home with my Linksys router. Ditto on the Remote app on the iPhone, it's pretty freakin cool. I love being able to control my itunes and which rig it plays on right from my iphone.

Poor man's Sonos is what it's been called...

bigaudiofanatic

You have to love apple they know what they are doing. I am planing on getting an airport and also an ipod touch or an iphone depends on how good the service is "i had cingualr before and they stunk" But I am hooked on apple and will probably not go back to windows. But for my job ....we use windows.

mantis

I have to get the mini optical cable. I only have analog. And it doesn't sound bad at all. I use it for mutiroom. I have 2 of them. One in the theater rig and one on the mutilroom audio rig. I got polk inwall /inceiling/outdoor speakers all over the house and I stream my Itunes library anywhere I want it. All controlled with my Iphone. That is so badass.

bigaudiofanatic,
once you go Apple you don't go back.

Dan

mutelight

Here you go:
http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10229&cs_id=1022902&p_id=1557&seq=1&format=2

Let your receiver handle the the DAC. The DAC in the express is decent but get that bit perfect representation from it and let your receiver handle the translation.

izafar

Stereophile tested the airport express using the toslink cable and external DACs and they highly recommended this, specially if you are streaming lossless audio(it was even product of the year for a couple of years). The only issue sop far have been accessing the library that is on your computer. With remote control app on iPod touch and iPhone, this issue is solved. I am also planning to pickup airport express, so far I am hesitant if it will work with my Linksys router.

mutelight

izafar wrote: »

I am also planning to pickup airport express, so far I am hesitant if it will work with my Linksys router.

You should have no issue connecting it to your WiFi network as a bridge and using it for AirTunes. Extending your network with the Linksys router is another thing.

Shizelbs

Glad you like your computer.

polkatese

Phuz,

Do you stream airtunes using optical to your receiver/integrated/amp? did you experience digital lock issue? Based on my reading, it appears the problem of digital lock may not be borne solely due to my REF50S2 fault. Airport Express seems to have digital lock issue. Curious, thanks..

phuz

polkatese wrote: »

Phuz,

Do you stream airtunes using optical to your receiver/integrated/amp? did you experience digital lock issue? Based on my reading, it appears the problem of digital lock may not be borne solely due to my REF50S2 fault. Airport Express seems to have digital lock issue. Curious, thanks..

What do you mean by lock issues? I stream in two places via the digital outputs on two different airport express modules, and the toslink to mini optical cables.

1 to an external DAC in my office rig, and 1 to my main system in my living room (Rotel receiver). When I kick off a new album or playlist it takes about 1 second longer for the Rotel to lock than the DAC in my office. Once they lock, they both play well unless I'm doing something bandwidth intensive on my wireless network. Rarely does it ever loose it's lock, and if it does it's only for a second (and I'm almost always jacking with something when it happens).

polkatese

Thanks for getting back, Phuz. I meant your connection to your Rotel, what happened when you switch inputs and then re-select the input for your AX connection? do you experience the AX won't lock in back to your Rotel optical? Thanks.

mutelight

I cannot speak for him but I have never had that issue myself.

pablo_rodz

polkatese wrote: »

Thanks for getting back, Phuz. I meant your connection to your Rotel, what happened when you switch inputs and then re-select the input for your AX connection? do you experience the AX won't lock in back to your Rotel optical? Thanks.

I can't speak foPhuz, but on my Pio Elite, I haven't experienced any lock. I love that feature, and my wife love's it. We have two separate library's on our iMac, and you can swithch to either library form the iTouch. Gotta love apple..

noobie question here.... is the toss-link cable the same as an optical cable? i have my Airport conecthed to the Pio via optical cable..

polkatese

Thanks for the feedback, guys. That's what I suspect about optical link issue with B&K and I thought I checked to make sure I wasn't focusing on the wrong issue.

Pablo, yes, Toslink=Optical (as in Toshiba Link, who came up with the specs.)

ps: as far as sound quality, I have no complain. It sounds good as I can expected, considering it is a $99 wireless. It works when it works, as long as I don't switch inputs during play (on my B&K).

phuz

I'll test it when I get home this evening and let ya know.

My Rotel RSX-1056 has lock issues sometimes anyway. Either that, or my digital cable has issues.

mutelight

polkatese wrote: »

ps: as far as sound quality, I have no complain. It sounds good as I can expected, considering it is a $99 wireless. It works when it works, as long as I don't switch inputs during play (on my B&K).

That is because you are getting a bit perfect copy from your computer and letting your receiver or processor handle the DAC.

SolidSqual

Click Here - Awesome Toslink to Mini-Toslink cable

I love this damn thing and helps deliver a perfect bit signal to my DAC.

mutelight

SolidSqual wrote: »

Click Here - Awesome Toslink to Mini-Toslink cable

I love this damn thing and helps deliver a perfect bit signal to my DAC.

Same with my $3 cable from Monoprice. Haha

polkatese

pretty solid build, monoprice....

phuz

Meant to update sooner but, no real problems syncing/locking after switching audio sources on my receiver while the AE was streaming. Depending on what's going on on my PC at the time, it might take a few seconds more to lock, but it does still lock.

polkatese

UPDATE: well, tinkering with the B&K (and its remote) I managed to find a combination of keystrokes that will cause the optical to lock (don't ask me why it works, but I think, as far as B&K optical locking is concern, it cycle through the available optical port inputs - pure speculation). On the remote, if I select TV source first (which I don't use, since I have DTV DVR SAT box), and then select Airport Express Optical input connection, it locks in! It does take a few seconds to lock in, but it locks in.

mantis

Gotta love B&K, they have always been quarky. You should check out the new ref70 and avr707, really quarky. I have installed a few of them now and we have the ref70 on the floor in our theater room with a Krell 7 channel amp. I like it but I'm still wondering and scratching my head on some of the things they do....

polkatese

no kidding, Dan. I also follow the talk over at AVSforum on REF70. It seems it has its own set of issues. I love the sound, PLIIx for streaming iPod musics sound great to me, once I put it on shuffle play. But I am not convince I need anymore bells and whistles of the new REF70 at this point. I don't know, I am losing steam of excitements to follow the rat-race of processor upgrade, not to mention the price of admission keep creeping higher. Next stop might be an Anthem AVM-50, especially since there is no upgrade path to exchange my REF50S2 that I know of.