Re: [slim] Where to begin with multi room design
I suspect that if the original post had read 'I'm about to renovate an old house and am considering running speaker wire ...' (rather than 'I recently renovated an old house and ran in-wall speaker cables...'), the consensus view would have been 'don't bother running the speaker wire.' So maybe it dependes on how much you are determined to use the speaker wire now that you've run it? Said another way if the design question was: I'm about to renovate a house and want to have music avalable in a number of rooms/zones and I don't want to have traditional stereo components visible in each room/zone, how should I do it? Then the likely (or at least my) answer would be something like: You get the most flexibility (ie, can play different music in every room/zone) by putting a SB (of some sort) in each room along with amplification (of some sort) and speakers. Given the reasonably high quality of 'powered' speakers (many threads on this topic) and tiny footprint of the SBR you you can accomplish unobtrusiveness pretty well in any room/zone where that matters. On the other hand, if you are absolutely committed to the basement audio closet there's no reason why you can't have either a 6-zone amp and then one or some SBs (that would be one or some 'audio-in' components to that amp OR as many SB+Amp combos as you want to have separate and simultaneous music playing somewhere in the house. Just be clear if you want to play different music simultaneously in different zones you need as manay SBs as you want different music streams: one SB will let you play one music stream in one, some or all zones; but if you want to play 6 different music streams simultaneously you'll need 6 SBs somewhere in the equation. I've got both situations. In my regular house I've got a bunch of SBs with a bunch of amplification/speakers combinations. I also have a weekend house that happened to come with a built-in multi-zone system with in-ceiling speakers and in-wall control units running back to a central closet with a 6-zone amp. I have 2 SBs connected as 'audio-in' devices which allows any zone to play one of the two SBs; that is I have a max of two music streams, though either stream can be played any one, some or all zones at a given time. That setup is a little goofy and I certainly wouldn't have done it if the built-in stuff wasn't already there but it works ok. (fwiw, the built-in system was orders of magnitude more expensive than a 6-zone with 6 SBs setup would have been; it's also a bit more complicated since one has to turn on the zone using the in-wall control pad and then select music using a SBC--like I said, a little goofy). -- cshaida boom sbd + Rockit5s (powered) speakers sb3 + AudioEngine 2s (powered) speakers sb2 + Sony receiver + klipsch bookshelf speakers sb3 + Sonic TAmp + Cambridge SW speakers sb3 + m:Audios (powered) speakers (decommissioned auditron w/ late, lamented 'knob') cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=58724 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Where to begin with multi room design
I suspect that if the original post had read 'I'm about to renovate an old house and am considering running speaker wire ...' (rather than 'I recently renovated an old house and ran in-wall speaker cables...'), the consensus view would have been 'don't bother running the speaker wire.' So maybe it depndes on how much you are determined to use the speaker wire now that you've run it? Said another way if the design question was: I'm about to renovate a house and want to have music avalable in a number of rooms/zones and I don't want to have traditional stereo components visible in each room/zone, how should I do it? Then the likely (or at least my) answer would be something like: You get the most flexibility (ie, can play different music in every room/zone) by putting a SB (of some sort) in each room along with amplification (of some sort) and speakers. Given the reasonably high quality of 'powered' speakers (many threads on this topic) and tiny footprint of the SBR you you can accomplish unobtrusiveness pretty well in any room/zone where that matters. On the other hand, if you are absolutely committed to the basement audio closet there's no reason why you can't have either a 6-zone amp and then one or some SBs (that would be one or some 'audio-in' components to that amp OR as many SB+Amp combos as you want to have separate and simultaneous music playing somewhere in the house. Just be clear if you want to play different music simultaneously in different zones you need as manay SBs as you want different music streams: one SB will let you play one music stream in one, some or all zones; but if you want to play 6 different music streams simultaneously you'll need 6 SBs somewhere in the equation. I've got both situations. In my regular house I've got a bunch of SBs with a bunch of amplification/speakers combinations. I also have a weekend house that happened to come with a built-in multi-zone system with in-ceiling speakers and in-wall control units running back to a central closet with a 6-zone amp. I have 2 SBs connected as 'audio-in' devices which allows any zone to play one of the two SBs; that is I have a max of two music streams, though either stream can be played any on, some or all zones at a given time. That setup is a little goofy and I certainly wouldn't have done it if the built-in stuff wasn't already there but it works ok. (fwiw, the built-in system was orders of magnitude more expensive than a 6-zone with 6 SBs setup would have been; it's also a bit more complicated zince one has to turn on the zone using the in-wall control pad and then select music using a SBC). -- cshaida boom sbd + Rockit5s (powered) speakers sb3 + AudioEngine 2s (powered) speakers sb2 + Sony receiver + klipsch bookshelf speakers sb3 + Sonic TAmp + Cambridge SW speakers sb3 + m:Audios (powered) speakers (decommissioned auditron w/ late, lamented 'knob') cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=58724 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Can multiple controllers control single receiver?
I have a vacation house that happened to come with a whole-house audio system (Russound). I would never have done it that way but since it was already there I added a sbr that essentially functions as another audio-in (it sits in the cabinet along with a bunch of ridiculously over-priced components--the 6-zone amp, cd changer (never used), tuner (never-used), power conditioner). The controller works just fine. It is a bit counter-intuitive though since the controller can't control (no fault of the controller!) the on/off, audio-in or individual volume of each zone; there are proprietary in-wall units that do that. In actual practice what happens is that the in-wall units are all set to the squeezeebox as the default audio-in. People will turn on the music in a given room/zone using the wall unit and then use the controller to select music. Seems to work, quests think its cool. (I should note that I was already an sb devotee and have internalized all of the sb quirks. It was/is great to be able to get my rhapsody library, pandora stations, access to mp3 tunes locker in the second house. It's also mildly amusing to be able to change music remotely when guests are staying at the house!) -- cshaida boom sb3 + Rockit5s (powered) speakers sb3 + AudioEngine 2s (powered) speakers sb2 + Sony receiver + klipsch bookshelf speakers sb3 + Sonic TAmp + Cambridge SW speakers sb3 + m:Audios (powered) speakers (decommissioned auditron w/ late, lamented 'knob') cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=58449 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] 7.1/7.2 fails to remember previous menu position from Now Playing screen?
Well, I've learned something today so that's good, right? Thanks to all of this I now understand the underlying logic to what I had thought was just erratic behavior. Also a longtime SB supporter (5 and counting), but add my vote/voice to modelcitizen's in finding some way to get 'back' to the prior menu even from 'now playing' (and not just from 'now playing (screensaver)'). -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=51051 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Good speakers that I can connect directly?
Do a search in this forum on powered speakers, you'll find a lot of great information. There are a number of fans of the audioengine 2 and 5. -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=47261 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Duet vs. sonos
One more wack at helping out cybersus: - IF having multi-room, synced, internet-sourced music capability that works flawlessly right now is essential AND IF the extra money is not crucial then it's pretty clear that Sonos is the way to go or - or IF you want a system that sets up more like a TV than a PC (that is if you would find any amount of fiddling or tinkering to be deeply frustrating) AND IF the extra money is not crucial then you probably end up with Sonos but - IF sound quality at each individual zone is the most important thing AND IF syncing is occasional rather than normal use AND IF money matters somewhat then you need to look carefully at both or - IF you actual enjoy a bit of tinkering and like knowing that you are getting exactly what you pay for in each component AND IF you like the idea that you are NOT making a major commitment to a whole system then you probably end up with the Duet At the end of the day--unless you do have the internet-sourced syncing requirement mentioned first above--you probably just need to actually see both systems. The form factors are quite different--many of us in SD world are just thrilled with the new SB Controller and think it justifies our having bought into the whole 'slim', open, high level of community interaction thing that characterizes the SD world--we like the one-hand, looks-like-a-remote, fits-with-the-mp3player-gestalt, replaceable batteries, extra-as-yet-not-activated-hardware-goodies-'hidden'-inside (headphone jack, dac, motion sensor, full processor, etc.). Similarly in the Sonos world, the current owners seem to really like the existing Sonos controller (solid, 'beer-proof', like a small PC, etc.). I bet that if you had one of each for an hour or a day you'd have a pretty clear sense of which you prefer (rather than one being 'better'). btw, BOTH SD and Sonos advocates should be absolutely thrilled they haven't been saddled with a RUSSOUND system! Talk about what can go WRONG when you are in the money-is-no-object, proprietary, bling-over-function world. I've got one of these in a vacation house I bought out west. Absolutely ridiculous. Low-function, high cost six-zone system where, get this, each in-wall 'controller' costs $1,200 and the optional 'remote' weighs more than a pound and has to a LAN cable attached (not kidding!). So just for the controllers and upstairs and downstairs remotes you're into the thing for 10 grand BEFORE even accounting for the 6-zone amp, speakers, etc.!!! In comparison, BOTH SD and Sonos looks like relative models of delightful functionality and frugality! ah well... -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=47145 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Duet vs. sonos
I looked at both when I needed to replace my audiotrons (a now-defunct
precursor product). I ended up going the squeezebox route and am quite
happy (I now have 5 of them around the house with a variety of
amps+speakers and powered speakers). I continue to hear good things
though about Sonos so you probably wouldn't go all wrong if you ended
up there (but you might take a look at olive audio if the sleekness
factor is high on your list of criteria).
If you search you'll find a fair amount of info comparing sonos and SB
on this forum. Some data points:
- audio quality - nobody seriously claims that the actual audio quality
from sonos is better. Take a gander at he audiophile forum attached
hereto for more on this.
- plug and play - this is where sonos has an advantage. For those who
are not willing to tinker at all sonos is probably the safer route. I
am not a programmer but I kind of like to know how things work so I get
some pleasure out of fiddling a bit with the whole thing.
- proprietary - this cuts both ways. For Sonos this allows them to
provide a 'complete' out of the box solution. It also means that they
are completely responsible for every piece of the puzzle--good from a
support perspective, maybe not so good from an innovation and product
development perspective. THE SB approach is to just do what they do
and rely on all the other extent stuff (PC, LAN, routers, amps, etc.)
to get a working system. This can make troubleshooting more difficult
with the SB for someone who doesn't understand much about their PC or
their router or their LAN etc. It also makes it possible to really
advance one piece of the puzzle dramatically as per the new
controller.
- remote - the Sonos remote is no longer 'better' than the SB
controller. It may be the case that as a matter of taste some might
prefer one over the other but there is no longer any way for Sons to
claim 'better' on a fact basis. As a matter of my taste I think the
form factor of the SB controller is MUCH better--to me the sonos remote
now seems clunky and old fashioned--you need to use two hands, it
doesn't really fit in your pocket, etc. There's also a number of
hardware elements of the controller that are not yet in use. A good
bet that it will keep getting snazzier over the next 6-12 months.
- Multi-room - This another area where it appears that there really is
a difference between SB and Sono--but it is only in one particular
subset of use which may or may not matter to you. There are two layers
to a multi-room system: synced or independent. Functioning
independently (playing different music in different rooms from a single
source) the SBs work great. Syncing (playing the same music in more
than one room) also works well with the SBs as long as you are playing
music from a music source on your LAN. So the material difference
comes if you want to sync music from internet sources (internet radio,
pandora, rhapsody, etc.)--here it appears that Sonos works better.
Again, I've got a 5 room system working now and if functions splendidly
for me because the only time I want to sync all 5 rooms is when I'm
having a party and then I don't want to rely on internet connectivity
anyway so will play playlists from my server anyway (which works fine).
If this is important to you check out another thread on this specific
topic.
Overall, I do not agree with the 'sonos is better but it's also more
expensive' Money wasn't particularly an issue for me when I made my
decision. I like the SB approach better ('just do what we do and do it
really well'), I get a charge out of the community that exists around
the product, I like a number of the plugins developed by the community
and I think the controller is now way better (again, for my taste) than
the sonos remote.
--
cshaida
cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981
View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=47145
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Re: [slim] best stand-alone seakers to connect a SB3 to?
I've got audioengine 5's, a pair of m:audios and, most recently a pair of rokit5s. I am NOT an audiophile and I haven't gotten around to systematically trying each pair in each location (and the audiophiles here seem to be saying that speaker position/room location matters a LOT) but...I like the rokit 5s the best. They used to be more expensive as well but evidently can now be had for $99/piece http://www.zzounds.com/item--KRKRP5. The yellow cone may not be everybody's cup of tea! -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=46115 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Newbie said I dont Get it... is JIve...
There is another thread on the exact topic of the sbc vs nokia etc. just do a search. In the meantime, my two cents... I have both the n770 and the new controller (and I spent a day using an itouch for this purpose). I think the new controller is much better. But to be fair I should qualify that by saying: I'm a gadget guy (which, actually, is why I got the nokia in the first place); I tend to be in the one-device-for-one-function camp rather than in the all-functions-on-one-device camp; I am not very good at watching my pennies (see gadget guy above) and tend to want the new, new thing and don't get too worked up about getting my money's worth. So if you had the budget for just one gadget and you really wanted a hand-held device that could control squeezeboxen AND browse the internet then you should explore the nokia or iphone. If you want a better remote for your squeezeboxen then get the controller. One other thing, I've had the nokia for over a year and neither my kids or my wife ever used it. Within hours of setting up the controller both kids and the wife picked it up and made it work --of course, this may be a reason NOT to get it for some:) -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=44802 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Duet ETA?
FYI, same for me as above. Received my order confirmation on Feb 6. But no email(s) since. -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=43658 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Duet vs Sonos
I think if you were to search and replace on the above summary and replace 'multi-room' with 'synchronous multi-room' it seems about right. I happen to have 4 SBs so have a fully functioning 'multi-room' system. I hardly ever want to have all of these 'synched' so for me the SBs 'multi-room' capability is quite good--and you'd have a hard time convincing me that (again since for me sync is not part of my multi-room requirement) Sonos is better-except-just-a-bit-more-expensive (since I did look at it quite and was quite willing to spend the extra money but I thought--for me--it just wasn't as good. I could explain but it included a variety of factors that are likely not to be generally interesting (anybody want to guess why wire lath and plaster is a MUCH bigger problem for Sonos than SB? for instance). Given that the originator of this thread made it clear that for him synching was a BIG part of his multi-room requirement the summary probably works well for him. -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=43155 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Duet vs Sonos
When I ask my friends in the know they all say Sonos if you have the money and if not, Squeezebox. Im trying to understand the differences in a 4 room setup. It seems like Duets and powered speakers are quite a bit cheaper than a Sonos 4 room setup with speakers. I would amend that a bit and say 'if you have the money AND IF you aren't willing to do any fiddling at all' Sonos biggest claim to fame is that it has been built as a consumer appliance (it just works out of the box). I don't think anybody really claims that Sonos has better audio quality and not many people claim it has additional features (other than the remote which the new sb remote becomes competitive). While there are a whole bunch of people (myself included) who think that SBs have better audio and more features -- as long as you are willing to fiddle. Since you appear to be already over the 'fiddling' hump (since you got your SB to work and seem to be happy with it) I don't really see the reason for switching to Sonos? Can my kids play their music in the playroom while my wife and I listen to something different in the family room? Yes When we have a party can we make a Rhapsody playlist and play it in all 4 rooms at the same time? Not sure but I can test that tonight (I've got 4 squeezeboxen at home) but somebody else will probably answer this before then. If we are going to sleep and the kids are being too loud, can I turn down their music from my Duet in the bedroom? Yes Can I lock them out of turning it back up? Don't know I have a tax refund coming and I want to spend it before someone gets a better idea. Thanks -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=43155 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Duet vs Sonos
Sorry, I misunderstood and thought you already had one SB. re 'fiddling' I think it's quite possible that you could get the duet, take it out of the box and have it working in a few minutes. You'll find some testimonials elsewhere here to that effect. It's not that there is some necessary difficult process to go through. And in fact if all you want to do is run Rhapsody you aren't likely to have to do much or any 'fiddling.' It's also possible that it doesn't just 'work' (maybe you're network is not set up right? etc.). You'll also find threads here to that effect as well though if you follow them through many of them have to do either with other issues outside the SB world (network, router, etc.) a number of them have to do with Slimserver (now SqueezeCenter) and setting up a PC-based musicc server. In any case, I am most definitely NOT a programmer and the total amount of 'fiddling' for me over the past several years has been quite minimal (I went through all sorts of hijinks unrelated to SB when ripping my extension CD collection. But that's another story altogether...). Money was not an issue for me. I did look carefuly at Sonos (having been an early adopter with the late Audiotron) and just thought the SB approach was better. As long as your willing to do a miminal bit of problem-solving and willing to avail yourself of the tremendous resources through this forum you should end up a happy camper. (btw, if you do go down this path you'll find a wealth of information elsewhere in this forum on powered speakers and other multi-room ideas with the SB) -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=43155 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Rhapsody + Squeezebox = Endless Frustration
I've got 4 sqzbxes and now use rhapsody as my primary source of music--maybe 80% of the aggregate time (the other 20 being with mp3tunes locker--I've got all my cds digitized and sitting on an external hard disk but rarely use slimserver anymore (!) but that's a whole 'nother story.). It works fine (though maybe I've re-set the bar because of my fondness for the whole digital music thing?). More specifically, I do occassionally have problems getting it to search or start but I play whole albums or sequences of albums without issue most of the time. Just a data point... -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=42501 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Nokia 770 Skin and song scanning
I have rescued my 770 and am using it again for web browsing and a bit of sb controlling. Recommendations on the 770 OS I should be using? and likewise the slimserver version? (I use my sbs all the time but as they work fine as-is I haven't been fiddling with ss versions and whatnot.) -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=40693 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Nokia 770 Skin and song scanning
Thanks Ben. I looked at the wiki entry. Look forward to the new features. (btw, apropos of the wiki screenshots, have you heard antony's cover of leonard cohen's 'if it be your will'. one of the greatest covers ever, right up there with cp's satisfaction...) -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=40693 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] PC + SB3 + Wireless Speakers - possible?
Well, it depends on what you really want to be able to do. If you ever want to be able to play different music simultaneously in different rooms you need multplie SBs. Many of us have more than one. (I've got 4 in different parts of the house connected in various ways--through an 'old stereo', to powered speakers, one connected to a $20 amp which is connected to speakers). But if all you really wanted to do was play the same music to speakers in a different room you could connect an a/b switch from your amp to the other speakers (wired or wirelessly). But as the previous poster says, that doesn't really have anything to do with the SB--that would all happen between the amp and the speakers. -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=32379 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] PC + SB3 + Wireless Speakers - possible?
Well again this is all happening between the amp and speakers rather than with the SB but you are either buying 'wireless speakers' or I think there is even a device that can make any speaker 'wireless' (http://www.x10.com/products/x10_vk59a.htm). In either case you would connect the amp to some sort of transmitter that would transmit to the speaker. No idea how well this works practically--ie, whether cordless phones, wireless networks, cell phones, microwaves interfere with the 'wireless' transmission? Again though, none of that would let you play different music in different rooms. Your single SB is still only sending a single music stream to the amp. If it helps at all you can get pretty decent quality powered speakers (speakers that have an amplifier built into them) for around $200/pair. SO...if you did actually want to be able to play different music simultaneously in different parts of the house you could accomplish that for less than $500/room (powered speakers+add'l SB). Not sure you needed all that info but... -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=32379 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] PC + SB3 + Wireless Speakers - possible?
perhaps you will be the one to pioneer this as a solution(!) No reason why what you want to do won't work. There may be some logistical issues (I think wireless speakers generally need to be plugged in--but maybe there are battery powered ones out there) and there are very likely to be sound quality issues (but maybe that isn't that important?). You do touch on what has been a widespread interest for a long time around here which is a SB 'boombox'. There are a number of threads that will get you up to speed on the (as yet unfulfilled) wish... -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=32379 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Nokia 770 - comments please?
As sb remote: I've had a 770 since last march and use ben's skin on the 770 (obviously) and on my pcs. After an initial period where I used the 770-as-sb-remote a lot, I now use the pc more than the 770 (other than at parties, where it's still the cats meow!). I think this has more to do with my perhaps peculiar rhythm in selecting music than with the device per se; I tend to que up 4 or 5 'albums' (I still prefer listening to tracks in the order they came on the original album/cd) or a pandora radio station so there's not a lot of moment-by-moment interaction and the always-on laptop or the actual sb remote tend to be a bit easier since I generally already know what I want to play. As a browser: I use the 770 as a lying-around-on-the-couch browsing device quite a lot. You'll see on these forums a vibrant pov re 'why not just use a laptop' and that makes sense UNLESS you're like me and find that somehow a laptop is just a bit too awkward and a bit too hot (literally) to have anywhere near your actual lap for an extended period of time. If that's the case for you AND your browsing doesn't require a lot of typing (a pretty big stack of 'ifs' I know) then the 770 is quite remarkable as a browsing device and in a whole different league from other pdas since most websites work as-is on the 770 and most definitely do not on other pdas (because of the 'full' screen size of the 770). fyi, I read a fair number of blogs everyday and the 770 is really great for that; I also read but do not reply to email on the 770. I own a Dell Axim as well as a drawer full of blackberry, treo, q phone devices that supposedly have internet accesss but I've never in my life willingly accessed an internet site on them unless I was miles a way from a pc/laptop. I will use the 770 instead of a laptop if I'm 20 feet away from the laptop. One man's experience... -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=29699 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Nokia 770 Skin
A poll associated with this post was created, to vote and see the results, please visit http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=19369 Question: Do you have a 770? - Got it - Want it - Need it - Forget it my apologies in advance if this has already been answered (I HAVE looked through the thread and it seems to be implied but...) is it now safe to use the current 6.5 release? (I was marching along with periodic refreshes from march until sometime in april or may when ben advised to hold off. I've been incredibly stable since and am technically challenged so while I'm curious to check out all the new incremental improvements I'm hesitant without a push to risk the stability. Contrarily (a word?), I'm easily pushed aroung, cf I started using firefox because ben implied ie users were pussys (or something)...) -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=19369 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Mass Album Art update suggestions
I appreciate the advice. I've now gone through one by one (using album art aggregator) each album and downloaded an image as close to 300 x300 as was available. In a few cases the the art doesn't show up in slimserver. I've done a complete rescan and they still don't show up. On further investigation the ones missing from slimserver are also missing from a basic windows 'thumbnail' directory view (so I don't think this problem has anything to do with slimserver). I've poked around a bit and the 'missing' albums DO have the 'cover.jpg' file in the directory. Does anybody have any troubleshooting advice that I might use to figure out why some (maybe 5%) of the album art isn't showing up? -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=25971 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Hi-fi separate form factor
So you're an audiotron user, huh. Search these forums for sporadic but energetic 'discussions' of the late, lamented 'knob'. Read them and weep. Maybe you're the one to take up the mantle and move forward...? -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=24972 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: What handheld to use as a remote?
I've got an Axim AND a 770. I much prefer the 770 but I think it comes down to personal preference. Independent of its use as a sb remote I like the 770 better (since I can actually browse websites on it) so perhaps my preference isn't 'pure'? 'Slowness' in my experience is a matter of habit and perception. There is a certain amount of 'slowness' that comes from the wireless/sb/slimserver setup itself from time to time and those of us who love the sb just internalize that 'speed'--much for me like with tivo where certain things just take some time (ie, even when using the supplied remote there are times when it takes a while to process commands on one of my sbs). I don't perceive the 770 to ADD slowness to that equation. It seems to me that generally it works as 'fast' as the browser version. (btw, I know I'm not exactly making a sales pitch for the axim above but if despite that you end up being interested in the axim I've got one w gps, extra memory cards, etc. that I'd be happy to unload!?) -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=24841 ___ discuss mailing list discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Nokia 770 Skin
A poll associated with this post was created, to vote and see the results, please visit http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=19369 Question: Do you have a 770? - Got it - Want it - Need it - Forget it fwiw, with the 4-15 build I'm having the same/similar issue with the 'missing' playlist icons. I do have the gif files as indicated above. -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=19369 ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: What's the difference between the different versions of the Squeezebox?
Heh, maybe you can get one of the knobs to work somehow (see many threads around about the place for more on 'the knob')? I've got an sb2 you might be able to pry from my hands... -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=22086 ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Help with organizing files
You might give us some more information about the nature of the problem
but in the meantime some things that I found useful:
- cleaning up the mp3 tags. If you haven't done this it can make a big
difference. You can do this in a lot of different ways. There is a
bunch of freeware out there. I use a package musiclibrary from
wensoftware. ( I think it's about $20). It's got a lot of wildcarding
functionality and is faster than the freeware that I tried. But I did
NOT do any kind of exhaustive comparison; I just tried two of the
freeware tools, was dissatisfied, read about musiclibrary somewhere,
tried it and it worked well. If it's helpful I probably spent about 8
hours over a week or so doing cleanup. Once you get the hang of it
it's kind of enjoyable and it does make browsing much more effective
(you get rid of three or four different versions of an artist name
('Tom Waits' vs 'Waits, Tom' vs 'T Waits' vs 'T. Waits')
- using the Browse by Directory function. One of the great things
about slimserver for me is the Browse by Directory feature. I've tried
keeping the 'genre' field in the tag updated and consistent but using
directories is much easier for me. I've got 5 'main' and somewhat
idiosyncratically defined categories/genres as directories under 'my
music'. I can then just move whole chunks of stuff around using normal
wxp drag/drop without having to mess with the mp3 genre tags.
--
cshaida
cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981
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[slim] Re: Handheld controller like Sonos?
Search the Wiki using 'nokia 770' and you'll get a detailed description of how the 770 works with slimserver and the squeezebox --complete with screen shots, snazzy album art, etc. Search the General Forum using 'nokia 770' and you'll get a ton of information from us actual users. The skin developed specifically for the 770 is fabulous. I've never owned a sonos system but I did look at them seriously when I was replacing my auditotrons and I think now that the 770 is here with Ben's skin the sqzbox+770 combination is pretty great. -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=21999 ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Nokia 770 Skin
A poll associated with this post was created, to vote and see the results, please visit http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=19369 Question: Do you have a 770? - Got it - Want it - Need it - Forget it Michael Haan Wrote: Fair enough - so, how does the 770 stack-up against a PPC for power consumption, and for response time? Have had the 770 for several weeks. Batteries: If you're using it mostly as sb remote the batteries last for days (if you're doing a lot of web browsing they still seem to last longer than you would want to be browsing during the course of a day--I've not yet had the batteries run out during use (as happened often with me for a laptop) and I've been using it a lot as a browser.). Response time: if you haven't been using it for hours or days the screen is 'on' instantly but there is 5-10 second delay to get the wifi re-connected (shuts off automatically to save battery power). Once wifi is connected response time from page to page etc. is virtually the same as on one of the computers connected to the same network (that is to say for practical purposes very fast). (if it's useful my points of comparison are (a) a blackberry which I love for email but nothing else (b) a dell axim v50 which worked ok as a sb remote except boot time was too long and it was too unstable(c) wxp laptops which I used and still use, based on where I happen to be at the moment, to control various sbs and (d) the audiotron, whose remote was just as bad as the sb remote but which had the late, lamented 'knob'... but that's a whole 'nother story) -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=19369 ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: The Audiotron Knob, Wheel Mice etc
mherger Wrote: I really like to show off this over and over again :-) ) As well you should, it really is quite lovely. It's tantalizing in a concept car sort of way. If you build one that somehow works directly with the sb, I'll buy 3(!) The issue for me is not so much the 'remote-ness' (770+ben's skin pretty much 'solves' that problem for me) as it is the need for a control mechanism/device when I'm standing right in front of one of the sbs. It's a pretty common experience for me to be right at a sb and want to turn it on/off, change volume, or just search for new album and...have to look around and then walk somewhere to get the remote to do so. Oddly frustrating. -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=21736 ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Nokia 770 Skin
A poll associated with this post was created, to vote and see the results, please visit http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=19369 Question: Do you have a 770? - Got it - Want it - Need it - Forget it don't think you need the text, just wasn't sure since you had it on the right and since this is all new what the intention was. thx -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=19369 ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Some questions on Nokia 770
appears to the admittedly non-technical eye to be pretty stable. more data if it helps-- I've got 3 sb3s, all operating wirelessly. a moderately size library (~700 cds). run wxp. use the sb remotes and the nokia770 with ben's skin. play radioparadise, kcrw and for the past several days pandora at some point most days in addition to stored music. have been running 6.5 for two weeks. haven't had a problem with it yet. in practice as stable as the official version I was using. -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=21715 ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Nokia 770 Skin
A poll associated with this post was created, to vote and see the results, please visit http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=19369 Question: Do you have a 770? - Got it - Want it - Need it - Forget it ok, so I am looking at this on a PC (w aforementioned firefox 1.5)and on the now playing page I don't have a light blue anything. I'm assuming the 'progress bar is the horizontal bar below the album art and above the pause, stop etc. buttons? right now it is outlined with a thin black line, is white inside the outline and has the track time on the far right. The track number shown as 'playing' is behind by one, btw--at the moment it is showing track 2 but it is actually playing track 3 (as shown correctly on the sb display AND correctly on the playlist within the skin). Does that help? -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=19369 ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Nokia 770 Skin
A poll associated with this post was created, to vote and see the results, please visit http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=19369 Question: Do you have a 770? - Got it - Want it - Need it - Forget it don't seem to be able to get the now playing page to refresh at all (even with hard refresh at browser). it's stuck a particular track on the last album (?) playlist is fine -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=19369 ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Handheld as UI for SlimServer
Made an impulse buy this summer of an axim, although I didn't really need a 'pocket pc'--what I needed was a handheld device that would let me browse any website plus would function as an sb3 remote (hmmm, what device does that sound like?). The axim doesn't work well as a browser for me (only really works on 'pda friendly' sites); it's fine as a sb3 remote except for boot time (about a minute), which I guess wouldn't be necessary if you kept it on and in the charger all the time? Haven't turned it on since I got my 770 (?!). So if you manage to resist the foreign lure of the 770 and want to give it a try you can trade me something for it (it's got 1GB of memory and North American GPS too!) -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=20122 ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Help Me Choose / Setup SqueezeBox + Wireless Remote for Wife and Kids
I'd assume that you've been down this path and have rejected it or are still looking for alternates...but just in case you aren't fully apprised you should investigate the nokia 770 (mentioned obliquely in a post above)--very slick skin, long battery life (for this purpose), a little pricey as a remote ($350) but since you mention sonos (and it makes a handy lounge-around-the-kitchen-and-surf-the-web device as well). Again, on the odd chance you haven't already gone down this path, ben's got an extensive wiki post with screen shots and everything. Perhaps the wife +kids would be charmed by being able to not only control the music but also on the same device being able to surf the web for lyrics, bio info, etc...? -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=21200 ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Nokia 770 Slimserver- Any regrets?
to the original question: I've had my 770 for about two weeks. Like it a lot. But I get 'dual' use: as a sb3 remote and as a web browser. web browser - I've been hankering for quite a while for a handheld on which I could do basic web browsing while wandering around the house or the office. (I was foolish enough to buy a Dell Axim for this purpose. Yikes! it doesn't work for this at all--anybody out there want one?) Nothing too exotic--Amazon, Orbitz, yahoo, slim (and other) forums, and political blogs (which I spend an hour or so every day reading). Notice there is VERY limited typing involved above. As such the 770 is great. I can spend 20-30 minutes 'reading' sites on it much more conveniently then with a laptop on my lap (awkward, too hot, too big). sb3 remote - I've got 3 sbs. I love the 770 with Ben's skin as a remote, wandering around the house turning music on and off in various locals. An object of much envy at a recent dinner party. qualifications - I don't use any of the other software. I don't really need to have a lot of browser windows open at once (usually 2 or 3). And I don't need to type much for what I'm doing. I did buy a 1 GB rsmmc card for it and may try it out as an auxillary mp3 player (so I don't have to carry yet another charger). -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=20910 ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Nokia 770 skin without 6.5?
Does the 770 browser work as-is with most 'standard' websites (ie, Amazon, Orbitz, yahoo) (as contrasted with most windows handhelds that only 'work' with pda-friendly sites). If it does, that plus the 'better remote for sqb3' would be worth the price of admission. Now, if you could only stick a 'knob' on it... -- cshaida cshaida's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1981 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=20500 ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: Audiotrons?
A poll associated with this post was created, to vote and see the results, please visit http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=17641 Question: Audiotron(s) - Had one, but no longer have it. - Had more than one, but no longer have them. - Have one, have it still. - Have more than one, have them still. i'll go one futher. put a 'popcorn' button on the sb4 and i'll immediately buy them to replace my sb2s! Jess Askey Wrote: You make a 'popcorn' button on the SB4 and I will promise not to complain about it's form factor!!! ;-) seanadams wrote: A poll associated with this post was created, to vote and see the results, please visit http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=17641 Question: Audiotron(s) - Had one, but no longer have it. - Had more than one, but no longer have them. - Have one, have it still. - Have more than one, have them still. Jess Askey Wrote: Just like the new microwaves (although, I hate the single knob on the new microwaves, the AT was tops!). I have one of those and I hate it. My old microwave had a popcorn button which worked for EVERYTHING. We need a popcorn button. -- cshaida ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
