[slim] Re: UK Heads UP
I set up my new toy last night so thought I'd share some first impressions. I'll start with the niggle first; I'm not entirely in love with the platinum case. The finish (to me) is a bit flat (it looks too much like a plastic box painted flat silver, which is what it is I suppose) and it seems to emphasise the 'radio alarm' look of the housing. I contrast this with my recollection of opening the packaging of my SB1 a year ago and being very impressed by the black textured finish. The black casing also 'disappeared' into the cabinet which houses my AV gear, making the display seem to 'float' in mid-air, where now the SB2 stands out and it looks like someone's put a radio alarm in there. I suspect I may end up swapping the SB1 and SB2 boxes over. Are there any differences internally to prevent me from doing this? I'm sure there would be a market for a slightly more expensive model with a classier housing, but I appreciate that small companies are limited in what their design teams can take on. Maybe an aftermarket opportunity for someone? Anyway, considering the capabilities of the SB2 and the price, I do feel mean being so picky about the case. If I were to buy again though, I'd definitely go for the black. Set-up was painless and easy. I downloaded and installed the latest nightly, changed my wireless network security from WEP to WPA, plugged in the SB2 and off she went. There was a minor hiccup when the Squeezebox couldn't find the DHCP server, but allocating a manual IP address and entering the addresses for the various network components did the trick. I did regret choosing a longer than minimum shared key as entering it via the numeric pads is a bit of a kerfuffle, but hopefully I'll only do it once. The positives: the display is superb, I'm really impressed. If this was the only improvement over the SB1, I'd consider it worth upgrading. Clear, readable, fast and aesthetically very pleasing. I love it. I really like the little touches, like being able to have a news ticker screen saver when the box is off. I haven't had a serious listening session yet and I chose to plug the SB2 in as a direct replacement for my SB1 (which means I'm using an external DAC so cannot comment on the sound of the Burr-Browns), but there does appear to be a significant improvement in (the already excellent) sound quality over the SB1. It seems cleaner and clearer, with more attack and punch. I'll listen to this a lot over the next few weeks before forming fixed opinions, but I've already got a good feeling about this model. Add in the other improvements (802.11g, WPA, wireless bridge, Squeezenetwork, UI improvements) and this equates to a significantly improved product which could easily have sold at a premium over the SB1. It's nice that the price has been kept the same. In sum, a massive improvement to an already impressive piece of technology. I just wish I'd bought black. Maybe the platinum will grow on me ... -- Fifer ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: UK Heads UP
If the platinum doesn't grow on you, you could always send it back and get a full refund or probably an exchange from SlimDevices. That's what the 30 day returns policy is there for after all. I'd be interested to see how this works in the UK, though. Max Fifer Wrote: I set up my new toy last night so thought I'd share some first impressions. I'll start with the niggle first; I'm not entirely in love with the platinum case. The finish (to me) is a bit flat (it looks too much like a plastic box painted flat silver, which is what it is I suppose) and it seems to emphasise the 'radio alarm' look of the housing. I contrast this with my recollection of opening the packaging of my SB1 a year ago and being very impressed by the black textured finish. The black casing also 'disappeared' into the cabinet which houses my AV gear, making the display seem to 'float' in mid-air, where now the SB2 stands out and it looks like someone's put a radio alarm in there. I suspect I may end up swapping the SB1 and SB2 boxes over.[...] In sum, a massive improvement to an already impressive piece of technology. I just wish I'd bought black. Maybe the platinum will grow on me ... -- max.spicer The wild things roared their terrible roars and gnashed their terrible teeth and rolled their terrible eyes and showed their terrible claws but Max stepped into his private boat and waved good-bye ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: UK Heads UP
max.spicer Wrote: If the platinum doesn't grow on you, you could always send it back and get a full refund or probably an exchange from SlimDevices. That's what the 30 day returns policy is there for after all. I'd be interested to see how this works in the UK, though. Max Your closing point here was exactly my thoughts - anyone had a go at this from the UK? Would dread to think about US shipping and return with all the time it takes!! Plus more chance to get the replacement damaged Nic -- DrNic ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Re: UK Heads UP
DrNic wrote: max.spicer Wrote: If the platinum doesn't grow on you, you could always send it back and get a full refund or probably an exchange from SlimDevices. That's what the 30 day returns policy is there for after all. I'd be interested to see how this works in the UK, though. Max Your closing point here was exactly my thoughts - anyone had a go at this from the UK? Would dread to think about US shipping and return with all the time it takes!! Plus more chance to get the replacement damaged Hi, I believe that the 30 day return policy only applies to purchases direct from the Slim Devices web site. In the UK, under the Distance Selling laws (I think) you have a few days (7?) within which you are entitled to return your purchase for a full refund. R. ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
RE: [slim] Re: UK Heads UP
the platinum case. The finish (to me) is a bit flat (it looks too much like a plastic box painted flat silver, which is what it is I suppose) and it seems to emphasise the 'radio alarm' look of the housing. Looks like I made the right decision then. I got the black one as I had a suspicion that the platinum might make the SB look even more like an early eighties radio alarm. On the other hand my black case did degrade quickly with the coating flaking off in bits. I suspect I may end up swapping the SB1 and SB2 boxes over. Are there any differences internally to prevent me from doing this? On my original SB I had to cut the plastic casing away from the digital out (coax) socket so my cable could slide far enough onto the socket to make secure connection. I was relieved to see that on the SB2 the digital out coax socket stuck much further out of the casing, enabling the cable connector to fit correctly without having to butcher the case. I'm sure there would be a market for a slightly more expensive model with a classier housing, but I appreciate that small companies are limited in what their design teams can take on. Yes. I too would very much like a case that fitted in with the look of my Naim gear a little more. I've been very impressed with a few of the DIY jobs detailed on this list/forum. Set-up was painless and easy. My wasn't painless but I succeeded in the end (with help from KDF and Viddur, all hail them), even though it meant loosing my original installation of AlienBBC :-( The sound is definitely better, more punch it seems to me (infact I may stop using my Perpetual Technologies DAC as I can't immediately tell the difference in sound quality), the display is better, the news screen saver is great (although I would like to be able to click to read the full article, but minor concern really) and so far I have not noticed any drop outs (even when using BitTorrent, the microwave or the wireless phone). I've yet to be convinced that SS 6.*** is any better than 5.4.1 though, as using the remote to browse music seems to stall the audio (which didn't happen with 5.4.1) and I can't really see any improvement in speed of use (or speed of scanning) so far (but I guess it's early days?). Oh, I use XP and flac files. Simon Turner Barcombe UK ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: UK Heads UP
Paul Webster Wrote: I did the same ... 2nd one ... wife on holiday ;) I think I saw that we get a free LAN card as well - not that it will help me much ... maybe I can find a PC with 10Mb card and replace it. Arrived today at a convenient time for a short break ... now up and running. Low profile 100mb D-Link LAN card was in the package for free as hoped. Paul -- Paul Webster Paul Webster ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: UK Heads UP
Me too. Just got home 10 minutes ago to find both waiting. I won't plug it in till tomorrow evening, when I can spend some time listening to it. -- Fifer ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: UK Heads UP
I did the same ... 2nd one ... wife on holiday ;) I think I saw that we get a free LAN card as well - not that it will help me much ... maybe I can find a PC with 10Mb card and replace it. -- Paul Webster Paul Webster ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Re: UK Heads UP
Paul Webster wrote: I did the same ... 2nd one ... wife on holiday ;) I think I saw that we get a free LAN card as well - not that it will help me much ... maybe I can find a PC with 10Mb card and replace it. Free LAN card? Where did you see that? R. ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: UK Heads UP
Top of the /todayonly page. Free gift with any order over £149 (ex VAT Delivery) - Dlink DFE-530TX+ 10/100 PCI NIC. I'm seriously tempted (I don't need a NIC but I want an SB2). Which colour though? -- Fifer ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
RE: [slim] Re: UK Heads UP
Right up at the top, free on all orders over £149. Looks like a slip line PCI card too, could come in handy -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Robin Bowes Sent: 09 July 2005 11:50 To: discuss@lists.slimdevices.com Subject: Re: [slim] Re: UK Heads UP Paul Webster wrote: I did the same ... 2nd one ... wife on holiday ;) I think I saw that we get a free LAN card as well - not that it will help me much ... maybe I can find a PC with 10Mb card and replace it. Free LAN card? Where did you see that? R. ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
Re: [slim] Re: UK Heads UP
Fifer wrote: Top of the /todayonly page. Free gift with any order over £149 (ex VAT Delivery) - Dlink DFE-530TX+ 10/100 PCI NIC. I'm seriously tempted (I don't need a NIC but I want an SB2). Which colour though? Ah, got it. I dare say I'll be able to use that somewhere. I had the same dilemma regarding colour. I went for the platinum one so I can easily tell my SB1 and SB2 apart. (I'm not one who bothers about all my kit matching!) R. ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: UK Heads UP
I like that reasoning so I'll probably go for platinum. I suppose we can always swap cases to ring the changes (or are SB1 and SB2 cases different? Anyone?). -- Fifer ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: UK Heads UP
I'm afraid that the free lan card is for orders above £149 ex Vat, I suppose you could buy 2 though ;) Craig -- Craig ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: UK Heads UP
Yes and the wireless SB2 is £154.99 so it should come with the free NIC. No matter, I don't need one anyway, I just want the SB2 at a good price. I just ordered the Platinum wireless. EDIT: Robin beat me to it ... -- Fifer ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: UK Heads UP
Good point, I only looked at the wired one, that's my excuse anyway ;-) Craig -- Craig ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
[slim] Re: UK Heads UP
I think they just started to stock it. It's only £4 off their normal price, but they seem to be the cheapest anyway. They have black and platinum in stock for £190.33 delivered until Monday morning. -- Fifer ___ Discuss mailing list Discuss@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
