Squeezebox Touch

I am pretty much all Mac at this point, but I pulled out an old Dell running Windows XP to do power ripping. I added an extra drive to rip two discs at a time and paid for the full version of DBPoweramp. If you don't have a lot of CDs - or can rip them within 30 days before the trial expires - you should give it a shot. It downloads all the artwork and the metadata for many CDs. When you pull up some of the tracks in iTunes, a lot of other credits are also filled in beyond just the basic track and artist info.

 

That site looks pretty cool. I've pulled most down automatically through DBPoweramp, but it's nice to have a better source than Google Images.

 

How does one do any tag editing for these things (I still don't have a unit yet)? Slim Server initially picked up my lossy library, but I decided to take a stab at my lossless files and while it picks them up, I can't figure out how to edit them. I am tempted to convert it all to Apple Lossless (I switched to FLAC around letter C or D) simply so I can tweak tags and artwork in iTunes. I am currently running a Mac, but ripping on an old PC.

 

As of right now, if you want to run the Squeezebox Touch with a USB drive and no pc, you're music files have to be in a native format the Touch can decode. Its processor isnt powerful enough to transcode from one format to another.

 

Squeezebox Touch will play Apple Lossless and I'm connecting my external drive to my router.

 

It will play Apple Lossless but the computer has to do the transcoding as the Squeezebox can only play mp3, FLAC, and WAV natively. Squeezeserver transcodes ALAC files to FLAC to play lossless.

 

I don't have a squeezebox but have been thinking about getting a transporter closely? Out of curiosity, how can you connect a USB drive without going through a computer? I ask because I have several USB drives with a mac and most of my files are in flac which itunes won't play without my converting first.

 

According to the Touch specs:

Audio formats
* MP3, FLAC, WAV, AIFF, WMA, Ogg Vorbis, AAC, Apple Lossless
* WMA Lossless, APE, MPC and WavPack supported through transcoding
* Some formats may require additional software installation

According to posts on the SB Touch message board, it is intended to be native at launch, but there are some issues:

http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=69512&highlight=Apple+lossless&page=2

 

If you have a transporter, you have to have a computer running the server software. I believe the Touch will be the first and only device that doesn't require a PC.

 

So a model such as the transporter would require an actual computer to be employed?

 

Not always, I run the software on a NAS.

 

A NAS is a low-powered computer, in this context, as is the SB Touch.

 

Check this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UPnP_AV_MediaServers

 

Thanks, that's good info

 

You're going to have to store your music somewhere for all these network music players, the Touch is a little different in that you don't need a place for the server software to reside.

NAS prices and hard-drive prices continue to drop. If you're going for a Transporter you'll need either a computer or a UPnP NAS. Many use a Mac Mini, some here use a Netgear Ready NAS NV+ and some use an older computer. There may be other solutions I haven't mentioned.

 

That is a neat feature of the Touch - however one disadvantage to having it tethered to a hard drive is hard drives make noise (unless they're solid state). I like having my server in another room behind closed doors when I listen!

I eagerly await its release. I plan on getting it solely for its ability to do 24/96 as I have no intention of controlling it with my fingers.

 

This may be the wrong forum to bring this up, but a mac mini would require purchase of a seperate monitor, is that correct? Also, since one would presumably need a seperate hard drive, one would have to have that seperate connection?

 

Are there any performance or sound quality issues from transcoding?

I strongly considered a Mac Mini for my set up. With an Ipod Touch, it would work well. The only problem is there is no screen (unless you connect one or connect it a TV), so any software updates or even library updates will be a pain in the neck.

 

I don't think there are any sound quality issues, just convenience issues. Those of us who use iTunes probably already have their collections ripped in ALAC. I dont think the processor and memory in the Touch itself is powerful enough to do the transcoding on the fly. I'm just thinking about having to batch convert to FLAC again.

 

My problem is that doing minor tag editing seems like a nightmare, which is why I'd like to stick with ALAC. I tried using Tag for the Mac on some of my FLAC files, which seems OK, but - for example - two songs pop up under the letter D that has no info, but I have no idea what tracks they are. Can't fix them if I don't know what songs they are.

DBPoweramp is great software (for the PC), but it does pull down almost too much metadata info. If you have a song that features a guest singer or musician, sometimes the data it uses will list the song under both artists or as a separate artist(s) altogether, such as Tom Jones/Stereophonics, instead of just Tom Jones with "Stereophonics" featured in the track title or somewhere else. It's a bit annoying, but the additional detail it pulls, including songwriting info, etc., makes it a good choice.

 

I wouldn't rely on the Touch for transcoding lossless formats. Just because the device 'can do something' does not mean that it can 'do something well'. I may be wrong, but it is difficult to conceive that the processing power in the Touch is up to the task without issues.

Honestly, it is so simple and cheap to set up an old computer as a server. For $200, you can have a computer capable of doing just what the doctor ordered. Put it in a closet somewhere and you have a perfect solution. I like the idea of directly connecting a USB drive but I'd worry about the noise.

 

FWIW, if you are interested in the Touch purely for the graphical screen and album art, you might want to think again. The advice upthread about the iphone/ipod touch and iPeng software is an excellent one. I tried it over the weekend and was MIGHTY impressed! $200 for an iPod touch is a bargain if you already own a SB2 or SB3. The iPeng software gives you album art, multiple search modes, playlists, internet radio - everything that the Squeezecenter software provides.

Since I already own two SB2 units, I will be using this solution rather than replacing the units with 'Touch' units. I'll still be getting a Touch for my daughter as she really could use the on-screen interface.

 

I just don't want a computer constantly running, but I guess that is an option. There are some tiny PCs out there that could handle the load if that's all it's needed for. My current plan is to set up a drive to my Airport Extreme's USB input and run it that way. That is why I was concerned with doing any transcoding as, even though it is going to be hardwired, it may have some bandwidth and sound quality issues.

And I did just recently purchase an iPod Touch and planned on using iPeng as well.

 

So far I've stayed away from the ipod and iphone for a variety of reasons. I may consider getting one for just this reason. Would it make more sense to get the phone than the plain ipod?

I doubt I'd use it for the phone itself as I prefer an older styled phone which I find easier to use. I could use it for the web connect aspect, but I think the ipod can connect to the web as well.

Any suggestions? The difference in cost is not much of an issue if there are any other compelling reasons to go with the iphone. Then again, I'm not thrilled about incurring additional monthly charges.

I already have two cell phones from Sprint and I've got an unbeatable deal due to a concession they made to me to make up for horrid service. One is a simple phone and the other is a windows based phone I can use as a modem for my laptop (no limit on bandwidth) and to view TV through my slingboxes.

 

Skip the phone and just get the iPod Touch. It can easily be connected to your WiFi network and essentially functions like a small computer. Most of the apps work as well, except any that need the "phone" features or at least the microphone. And any that need the microphone (like Shazam) can be utilize a plug in mic if needed.

I personally wanted large capacity, so I went with the 64GB (I held out for the longest time for an increase). If you just want to use this as a remote for your system and a few other things, the 8GB should be fine. And many retailers are pushing the 8GB with extra incentives etc. (they attach extra stuff as they can't drop the price). I believe Best Buy has something running this week actually.