Best cheap network music player with FLAC support?

echoofformless
echoofformless Posts: 28
edited December 2010 in Electronics
I have a hard drive almost full of flac files now...and I'm sick of using my computer's HDMI out as the means to play them through my system. My Seagate Theater (that I bought only to stream Netflix) will access and play the files through the network but it's clumsy, slow and most annoyingly it leaves gaps between tracks. It also requires the TV to be on for me to see what's happening and offers no album art or visuals to make it interesting. (Plus I have a plasma and I'm not a fan of image retention and screen burn.)

I'm new to this network music player thing so the only name that I know is Squeezebox, but it's a little on the expensive side for me right now after having just upgraded all of my speakers and my receiver. Are there other viable options that are less expensive, or should I just hold out until I can afford to spend more?

What are some of the other players?
Is the gap between tracks thing a common issue with them? It's really annoying when listening to stuff like Dark Side Of The Moon!
Post edited by echoofformless on
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  • PrazVT
    PrazVT Posts: 1,607
    edited December 2010
    I would say just wait and save up for a Squeezebox Classic - those tend to cost less. Plus if you have an iPhone/Ipod Touch or Android phone, you can use that to control it and it's easier to get to your songs that way. The Classic has a remote, but no touch screen like the Touch - but I feel like the Touch is a bit buggy in comparison.

    I haven't noticed gaps b/t tracks in albums (like you mentioned, DSOT) ..but I can check on that tonight. I know there are crossfading options, but I'm guessing there is probably a gapless playback plugin as well (I haven't looked yet).

    So yeah..I'd say save up. You'll be happier in the long run. The other caveat is that you'll need a computer or NAS running the squeezebox server software.
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  • rdb2001
    rdb2001 Posts: 791
    edited December 2010
    echoofformless wrote: »
    I have a hard drive almost full of flac files now...and I'm sick of using my computer's HDMI out as the means to play them through my system. My Seagate Theater (that I bought only to stream Netflix) will access and play the files through the network but it's clumsy, slow and most annoyingly it leaves gaps between tracks. It also requires the TV to be on for me to see what's happening and offers no album art or visuals to make it interesting. (Plus I have a plasma and I'm not a fan of image retention and screen burn.)

    I'm new to this network music player thing so the only name that I know is Squeezebox, but it's a little on the expensive side for me right now after having just upgraded all of my speakers and my receiver. Are there other viable options that are less expensive, or should I just hold out until I can afford to spend more?

    What are some of the other players?
    Is the gap between tracks thing a common issue with them? It's really annoying when listening to stuff like Dark Side Of The Moon!

    How much are you wanting to spend.
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  • echoofformless
    echoofformless Posts: 28
    edited December 2010
    I was hoping to get away with under three hundred US dollars, and even better if fewer. But I think the save up route is starting to look really good.

    Now is there any way to run it without a computer having to be on - like if I hooked up my hard drive to the network?
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  • rdb2001
    rdb2001 Posts: 791
    edited December 2010
    I read your post and my suggestions you would need to use a tv, but they do have screen savers,
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  • rdb2001
    rdb2001 Posts: 791
    edited December 2010
    anonymouse wrote: »
    Why would he need a TV?

    I said my suggestions he would need a TV.
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  • rdb2001
    rdb2001 Posts: 791
    edited December 2010
    anonymouse wrote: »
    I have no idea why you would make that suggestion. Would you care to elaborate? There are plenty of network music players that have functional displays to select the album and track you want. Squeezebox, Roku etc.

    Why is it bothering you that I said my suggestions required a tv. I posted that before I read the last part of his post. but to answer your question, Give me an apple tv or a wd live for less than half the prices of a squeezebox and I am good. They all do the same thing.
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  • rdb2001
    rdb2001 Posts: 791
    edited December 2010
    anonymouse wrote: »
    Not bothering me. Peace. Just personally think its a brain dead idea unless the location he wants to use the player already has a TV. But to each his own I guess.

    Well he says he already uses the tv for his current network streaming device but does not like it because it has no album art. Thats why I was suggesting things that required a tv and included album art. They both have great interfaces and he can get a refurb 160gb apple tv that has analog, digital, and hdmi connections for 129 from the apple store. Link is below. They also have screen savers that you can set to kick on as you want it so he does not have to worry about burn in on his plasma. You can't beat it.

    http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/specialdeals/ipod/apple_tv?mco=MTkyMTc2MjM
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  • Terra S
    Terra S Posts: 74
    edited December 2010
    PrazVT wrote: »
    The Classic has a remote, but no touch screen like the Touch - but I feel like the Touch is a bit buggy in comparison.

    Um, the Touch is a bit buggy in comparison to the Classic? :rolleyes: Not from what I've read. You have hands-on experience of this? Please elaborate.
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  • Marty913
    Marty913 Posts: 760
    edited December 2010
    I have the Seagate Theater also and admittedly the navigation and lack of album art is horrible. If you are generally happy with that type of small media server another alternative is the Netgear NTV550 due to ship around the 13th of this month (169 from Amazon).

    I mention it only because you wanted gapless playback of FLAC and cover art which the bete testers at AVS Forum confirm works.
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  • blakeh
    blakeh Posts: 491
    edited December 2010
    I can't recommend the Squeezebox Touch highly enough. It completely changed the way I listen to music and at $299 (and it can usually be found even cheaper with a coupon), it's an absolute steal!
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  • PrazVT
    PrazVT Posts: 1,607
    edited December 2010
    Um, the Touch is a bit buggy in comparison to the Classic? Not from what I've read. You have hands-on experience of this? Please elaborate.

    In my experience, the SB Classic has been rock solid - no glitches at all. Perhaps because it's not using that color GUI. The Touch is a little slow to respond...I think the GUI/OS still needs some polish. Some 3rd party plugins can cause freezing of the touch functionality ..things like that. Nothing that is a show stopper - otherwise, the only advantages I see of the Touch are the support for 24/96 files and a better DAC (if you plan on using the analog outs), and the touch screen if you don't have an iPod Touch/iPhone/Android phone to use as a remote.

    The Classic is less expensive otherwise, so that was my recommendation.
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,429
    edited December 2010
    I've owned both the Classic and I now own the Touch. Neither has had a single issue and I actually find the Touch to be a little quicker (after all the artwork thumb nails download). The Touch is amazing and well worth the extra $$$ over the Classic, but the Classic does just as well. So, IMO, either is a great choice.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Puritan Audio PSM136 Pwr Condtioner & Classic PC's | Legend L600 | Roon Nucleus 1 w/LPS - Tubes add soul!
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  • mmadden28
    mmadden28 Posts: 4,283
    edited December 2010
    heiney9 wrote: »
    I've owned both the Classic and I now own the Touch. Neither has had a single issue and I actually find the Touch to be a little quicker (after all the artwork thumb nails download). The Touch is amazing and well worth the extra $$$ over the Classic, but the Classic does just as well. So, IMO, either is a great choice.

    H9

    I was going to suggest the Squeezebox Duet since that is what I have experience with. (recently on Amazon for about $250).

    H9, I don't recall if you ever played with the Duet as well, but if you have, how would you compare the Duet with the Touch? Usability / Sound?
    I would imagine one potential usability issue with the Touch is that it's display is on the player itself so it couldn't be too far away from the seat without losing the ability to see it whilst listening right? Whereas with the Duet, the remote has the navigation screen.
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  • Fongolio
    Fongolio Posts: 3,516
    edited December 2010
    I'm using J. River media center on my PC and streaming to a Airport Express ($99) and then a very inexpensive dac. Works fantastic. The sound rivals my Rotel 855 cdp with modified tube output. They even sell a remote for J River. Handles ANY output format and can even upconvert to higher bit and sampling rates. Also has an adjustable buffer for bit perfect streaming. By the way, the DAC is a Super Pro DAC 707 which I can't express strongly enough is a total bargain at about $125. It can be bought as a kit or fully assembled. It is very small but capable of 192/24. Here's a link and by the way no association:

    http://www.obadimports.com/catalog/item/6697671/5226912.htm
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  • PrazVT
    PrazVT Posts: 1,607
    edited December 2010
    I have the Classic, Touch, Boom, and Radio - I think they are all great. If $$ was not an issue, I would probably suggest the Touch for usability. And if you're not using the DAC on the SB, SQ should be about the same I would think. I need to hook up my Classic to the DAC Magic and see. Otherwise, I wasn't really badmouthing any of them. Great damn product line for the most part. And I think w/ the Duet, you can connect headphones directly to the remote right?

    Otherwise Fongolio's PC -> DAC idea is cool too. In fact, I was going TVersity -> PS3 -> recever before I got the Squeezeboxes. I think if I had simply picked up the DAC at that time, my end result would probably have been the same. Especially now since the PS3 can output audio simultaneously on multiple outputs.
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  • Fongolio
    Fongolio Posts: 3,516
    edited December 2010
    PrazVT wrote: »
    Especially now since the PS3 can output audio simultaneously on multiple outputs.

    Is this only on the new PS3's or did a software update give them all that ability? I've got the older 80gig with all the usb's and sacd capability. It would be great to use it for both multichannel and two channel and dac.
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,429
    edited December 2010
    mmadden28 wrote: »
    I was going to suggest the Squeezebox Duet since that is what I have experience with. (recently on Amazon for about $250).

    H9, I don't recall if you ever played with the Duet as well, but if you have, how would you compare the Duet with the Touch? Usability / Sound?
    I would imagine one potential usability issue with the Touch is that it's display is on the player itself so it couldn't be too far away from the seat without losing the ability to see it whilst listening right? Whereas with the Duet, the remote has the navigation screen.

    I never had the Duet, but my brother did and it worked fine for him. He now has the Touch and controls it with his Droid phone.

    I control mine with an iPod Touch so having the screen across the room isn't an issue for me.
    Fongolio wrote: »
    I'm using J. River media center on my PC and streaming to a Airport Express ($99) and then a very inexpensive dac. Works fantastic. The sound rivals my Rotel 855 cdp with modified tube output. They even sell a remote for J River. Handles ANY output format and can even upconvert to higher bit and sampling rates. Also has an adjustable buffer for bit perfect streaming. By the way, the DAC is a Super Pro DAC 707 which I can't express strongly enough is a total bargain at about $125. It can be bought as a kit or fully assembled. It is very small but capable of 192/24. Here's a link and by the way no association:

    http://www.obadimports.com/catalog/item/6697671/5226912.htm

    That must be quite the combo. Even the Squeezebox Touch with the internal dac's isn't better than most low to mid level cdp's let alone a tube modified version of an already capable player.

    One area that MUST be addressed with the Squezebox units is the puny switching walwart that is stock. Your J River must have a real nice separate power supply (not switching walwart) for it to sound that good right out of the box.

    I have a Welbourne Labs external power supply hooked to my Touch and it takes it from a very capable unit into audiophile territory w/my heavily modded Adcom GDA 600.

    All in all I have about a $1K invested in the Touch, Power supply and modded DAC (not including the $300 for the iPod Touch to control) and it sounds like a $1K+ unit. But perhaps I should have just gotten a J River and cheap dac instead since it bests a very capable, modified Rotel player for about $300.

    Note a small amount of sarcasm :wink:. But I'm glad you are enjoying you J river and inexpensive dac.

    The weakest link to any streaming server like the Squeezebox products is the power supply. I was floored at the difference a high quality external power supply makes it makes even when using the digital out.

    I also used a Bolder modified ELPAC power supply for my classic sqb.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Puritan Audio PSM136 Pwr Condtioner & Classic PC's | Legend L600 | Roon Nucleus 1 w/LPS - Tubes add soul!
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  • unc2701
    unc2701 Posts: 3,587
    edited December 2010
    rdb2001 wrote: »
    Well he says he already uses the tv for his current network streaming device but does not like it because it has no album art. Thats why I was suggesting things that required a tv and included album art. They both have great interfaces and he can get a refurb 160gb apple tv that has analog, digital, and hdmi connections for 129 from the apple store. Link is below. They also have screen savers that you can set to kick on as you want it so he does not have to worry about burn in on his plasma. You can't beat it.

    http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/specialdeals/ipod/apple_tv?mco=MTkyMTc2MjM

    Wait- Apple TV does FLAC?
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  • PrazVT
    PrazVT Posts: 1,607
    edited December 2010
    The Welbourne Labs external PS is my next upgrade - I haven't forgotten our previous conversation about that. Hmm...10% off sale right now too.
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  • PrazVT
    PrazVT Posts: 1,607
    edited December 2010
    Wait- Apple TV does FLAC?

    No, but it does support Apple Lossless.
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,429
    edited December 2010
    PrazVT wrote: »
    The Welbourne Labs external PS is my next upgrade - I haven't forgotten our previous conversation about that. Hmm...10% off sale right now too.

    It really is worth it if you are looking to squeeze (pardon the pun) the maximum performance out of your set-up. Welbourne Labs doesn't have the fastest service but when you do get the product, it's well built and works well.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Puritan Audio PSM136 Pwr Condtioner & Classic PC's | Legend L600 | Roon Nucleus 1 w/LPS - Tubes add soul!
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  • PrazVT
    PrazVT Posts: 1,607
    edited December 2010
    Good point. Plus my SB is the main source of my music listening, so looks like a worthwhile investment. I have to house sit for my parents for a month though, so I'll be away from my rig until New Year's - the Boom will have to suffice for Dec.
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