Playing music throughout the house..?

bledd

bledd

bledd

Don
Joined
21 Oct 2002
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Requirements:

3 floors

Would like the option of same music on all floors

With the addition of having separate music playing on each floor

Lets say ~30GB of music in mp3 format

Possibly touch screen?

Controllable either by a laptop or android


What are my options gents?

Doesn't have to be amazing quality, but good enough
 
Agreed, Either a Squeezebox or a Sonos set up is what you're after. They'll both do what you want.

Sonos is a little more expensive but gets great reviews although i've not head it personally as i've got a squeezebox.

Do you have any existing HiFi you want to integrate it into or do you want standalone players?
 
No hifi, at the moment, all I have is my PC and HD595 headphones :D

Can either the squeezebox or sonos play music from a windows share?

IE..

\\serverpc\music , I've got wireless N with full signal throughout the house. I know it would only need about 50KB/s for an MP3, but still :)
 
If you have no other system to play the music through i.e amp + speakers the Squeezebox Radio + battery pack may be the best option as can power from the mains but also the ability to easily move it to a temp possition in a room/floor/garden.

As for seeing the music I have the squeezebox server app runninig on my synology NAS but I believe you can install the squeezebox server software onto your pc which will then index the music you point it to as well as any net radio stations/pod casts and the server is then seen by the Squeezebox to list your music.
 
^Thanks for the info

I don't listen to the radio, so wouldn't miss that feature if I didn't have it. The Sonos systems, do they have wireless connectivity? or are they ethernet only?

Can I control them via a netbook/pc if my phone is unavailable?
What if I turn my phone off, do they keep playing?
 
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For the Squeezebox route, my preference would be to start with an SB touch with a USB HD (mains powered) containing music connected to it. This way you don’t need to have your laptop/pc on whenever you want to listen to music. To this I’d connect some Active speakers and then use this in your main room.

Then I’d use the SB Radio (around £115) in all other rooms you want to listen to music as sypher mentioned. The sound is pretty good for it's size and the interface matched the SB touch (as opposed to the Boom which is the older generation). Don’t let the name put you off, it's much more than a radio.

The SB Radios would then connect to your music through the Squeezebox software running on the SB touch. Which can be controlled by Squeezecommander on your android phone.

Also, yes you'll be able to use your laptop to control the music when your phone isn't to hand. This is done through a web GUI although i'm not sure how easy it is to pair multiple players together with the web GUI and recommend mainly using the android app.
 
I've got a low powered server that is on 24/7, I don't want to be connecting up a separate hard drive to it. I want it to be an all in one unit, taking up as little space as possible, making it easy to move around.
 
bledd. said:
I've got a low powered server that is on 24/7, I don't want to be connecting up a separate hard drive to it. I want it to be an all in one unit, taking up as little space as possible, making it easy to move around.
Click to expand...

If you already have the server I think the SB Radio is probably the smallest and easiest option as long as your server is on the network all you would need to do is install the SB server software onto your server, which the SB Radio will then just pick up via your wireless network and list your mp3's.

This can then be controlled via a phone app or you can get a remote for it.
 
Oh yes, if you already have a server with the music on then just install Squeezebox server on it and use the little SB Radios.

If you want to try out the software you can download and install SB server for free. And then get an app for your phone (couple quid) to see if you like the interface before buying any actual devices.
 
I do love my Sonos, but for 3 different players (S5s, you're talking in the region of about 900 pounds). You could use the Sonos S3? things (or whatever they're called) or the things you attach to a separate pair of speakers, or amp & speakers. But I love the portability of the S5s.... Expensive, but awesome.
 
Yup love my Sonos gear too. Has no problem playing music from shares. I access all my music from my Synology nas. I would say have one S5 for portability then look at other options for the other rooms. I have 1 S5 in the kitchen which I take outside in the summer, 2 Connects (formerly ZP90s) connected to hifi/amps and a Connect:Amp (formerly the ZP120) connected to bookshelf speakers and a sub in the dining room.

Great equipment, great support but no direct control of the units (other than volume +/- and mute) as it is all done from either controllers, iPads/Android tablets or iPhones/Android phones.
 
Cool, I'm liking the look of these Sonos units, the 'bridge' unit looks like a bit of a rip off at £30, why can't this feature be built in?.. Setup once via ethernet and then good to go would be a better option.

Will probably get a Play 3 and bridge unit for ~£300. Not for a few months yet, I'll make a thread once I've got it :)
 
If you buy an S5 you get a free bridge with it at the moment :)
I would have a listen to both the S5 and S3 if you can before you buy. The S5 has a bigger speaker in it than the S3 can handle (due to its size) - I've never heard an S3 so don't really feel I can comment, but you might lose some bass.
 
Heh, it's only my brother that lives next door, but loud speakers would annoy the whole street.

I wonder if any high street stores sell the S3 and S5 for a test?
 
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