sunnysal Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Well I finally took the plunge. The death of my Sony carousel CD player drove me to reconsider sources. After some research (where I looked at everything form dedicated music servers from Olive, McIntosh, etc. to home grown Mac and PC based network servers) I settled in the Squeezebox Touch which seemed the right level of investment to try out this huge change in my system. I guess I figured I could use it in my weekend houses if it didn´t work in my main system. Well I needn´t have worried, I predict it will relegate my CD players forever to a closet. A few notes; Amazingly easy to set up with my home Wifi network, I am currently running it from a 128GB USB thumb drive which, upon reading all the related squeezebox forums, seemed like a bad idea because it loads the SBT with server duties, etc. but has worked amazingly well for me without a hitch so far. I have a PC running the Logitech server elsewhere in my system but frankly I have no need of it, the direct connected USB plays just fine thank you. My next issue (again based on the various forum comments I had read when researching this purchase) was whether or not to use my MSB LinkDac III or the internal DAC to feedback the rest of my system. After extensive listening tests I can tell you it´s a wash with my DAC in my system. There does seem to be a slight difference I can notice in the spatial presentation between the two, some changing of the positions of instruments in the virtual space BUT since I don´t really know exactly where the original instruments were (except by comparison to my CDs) AND in terms of fidelity I can hear no differences whatsoever it remains a toss up on those counts. Highs and lows, dynamics, etc. all the same between the two. I think I can hear just the slightest bit more airiness in the cymbals via my current DACchain (MSB director/jitter reducer => LinkDac III) but frankly at this point I might (hate to admit it) chock that up to listener bias (I paid big bucks for those items years back! they even have the upsampling module). For the moment I am leaving it hooked up to the DAC sine I have nothing else to use them for and if it is not caused by listener bias all the better. At this point all the music played is in MPEG or AAC format at rather low resolution (192 or 320 mostly) but it sounds pretty damn good I must say. I listened for a bit with some of my favorite cuts (So What - Miles Davis) from CD and then from SBT and no real differences were notable except perhaps just the slightest again in the air around the cymbals but again, it might be listener bias. In the end not enough to keep me listening to the CD version. Crazy looking at my PP 2A3 amplifier and golden age Marantz preamp sitting next to this tiny, ultra-modern music server and making such wonderful music and making the transition so painless! What a wonderful time we live in! Left to do? Well I guess I should rip all my CDs to lossless format and replace the thumb drive with a NAS but...too much work for the moment and has always been my priority I am too busy enjoying to music painlessly and conveniently. I recommend anyone who is considering making this type of move to do as I did, take the plunge. The Squeezebox Touch is a great piece of gear, capable of amazing sound and functionality. Try it, you won´t be sorry you did. Warm regards from sunny El Salvador, Tony PS those of you who know me are aware that I host shootouts here at my house with local audiophiles. Over the years we have swapped in many, many amps, preamps, DACs, etc. with interesting results, I cannot wait until we have the next shootout with this new toy in my system. I am sure it will arouse a LOT of ire from many of my audio buddies, but one thing is for sure, they won´t be able to argue about the great music this is making in my system! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JL Sargent Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Thanks for the review and general info about the unit and your setup. Sounds like it was pretty painless to get going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennie Posted July 21, 2012 Share Posted July 21, 2012 Thanks for the review Tony and keep us posted on the next "shootout". Dennie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skonopa Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 Nice! I've heard that SqueezeBox Touch is a really nice unit. There is no denying the convience of having everything stored digitally on a server that can easily be searched and then served up via a good quality streamer/network player. I know there are still plenty of old carmudgeons that think the only good audio is through tubes, on vinyl and through full-sized horns. That is all nice and good (and is fun to listen to music on such a setup), but othertimes, I really like being able to call up just about anything I want to listen to and have it instantly available. With good modern, high-end units, the sound quality can still be maintained. Granted, with all that said, I still find myself still prefering to spin CDs as well. I personally went the Pioneer Elite N-50 route for my streaming/network audio player needs (which I also just aquired yesterday as well [] ). One of the big things I liked about this unit is the fact that it can process high-res audio (192khz/24bits), plus it also serves as an outboard DAC for my CD player (I don't have a nice outboard DAC like you already have), so this was perfect for my particular needs. The DACs in this thing seem to be really good, from reading a few reviews, even from such 'snooty' audiophile sources like 6moons. I will be curious to hear more of your impressions on the SqueezeBox Touch once you get a chance to play with it some more and get things settled in with it. For me, I still have to try to setup my file server to feed this Pioneer unit my music. I have a large collection of FLAC files that I've aquired from Mindawn.com (and will continue to aquire) that I'd like to be able to play natively through this thing. I'll have to do some A/B testing between this N-50 unit, and my much more expensive, but very nice sounding, Elan Via!DJ music server that I also have in my rack. I just wish I knew what kind of DACs are in that Elan Via!DJ server, because it really does sound good. To bad there was no way that I could use it as an outboard DAC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cut-Throat Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 " I know there are still plenty of old carmudgeons that think the only good audio is through tubes, on vinyl and through full-sized horns" This Old Crumudgen thinks the only good audio is through tubes, through full-sized horns and a Squeezebox Touch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 I've been pleased with the (now discontinued) Squeezebox Duet for a couple of years. To my ears the sound quality is very good. Just gave the Touch version to my daughter and son-in-law for a wedding present. They love it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skonopa Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 " I know there are still plenty of old carmudgeons that think the only good audio is through tubes, on vinyl and through full-sized horns" This Old Crumudgen thinks the only good audio is through tubes, through full-sized horns and a Squeezebox Touch. I definitly fall into the "Music for Music's sake" club. [] I was never too anal about the quality (but I do have my limits, though). If the overall recording is good and the music is very enjoyable and of good quality, I don't care what format it is ultimatly in. I can still listen to it and very much enjoy it. Even on my solid state B&K amp and RF-7 rig. [] It is nice to have some good quality equipment behind it to get the most out my music, though (which is why I went with something really nice like that Pioneer Elite N-50 unit). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike stehr Posted July 23, 2012 Share Posted July 23, 2012 I recently picked up a mobile phone, (first cell phone ever) so I picked up a smartphone. (Samsung Android type with ICS 4.0 OS.) I found a music player application called Poweramp, which isn't really a bad app. 10 band EQ with pre-amp slider, separate bass and treble controls, ability to defeat everything, and a volume control. It's way more tweakable and better sounding than the stock music player application that came with the phone. I've been ripping CD's on my home PC and then syncing the files lossless to the phone. The sound quality only seems limited to the quality of the recording, and you can tweak that with the tone/EQ controls. The thing sounds rather good to me, and I can hook it up to the car stereo, the home stereo, or use headphones and go to the lake. And it's a mobile phone too... I can run the phone right directly into a 150 watt Sonance Sonamp power amp with a 1/8" headphone jack to RCA jacks, connected to my Cornwalls. The music app on the phone does volume/EQ/tone control. I meant to buy a mobile phone and ended up with a glorified jukebox... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cut-Throat Posted July 23, 2012 Share Posted July 23, 2012 The best thing about the Squeezebox is the Internet Radio and Portability. I find myself listening to Pandora a lot. Also, when I travel for extended periods of time in the winter. I can take the Squeezebox and plug it into my rental house's stereo. I can also bring along a small Passport Drive, with over 3500 of my CDs on it. Also it is great for listening to my favorite radio stations when traveling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnysal Posted July 23, 2012 Author Share Posted July 23, 2012 well the USB is acting up...it is very sensitive, if the power goes out (which happens a lot where I live) or even if seemingly nothing has happened the SBT at some point stops recognizing the USB thumb drive and wants to rescan EVERYTHING, this takes a few hours each time. grrrr.....checked the thumb drive for errors but it is flawless, so as the forum over at logiectech said, the thing is quirky with the USB drive. however I have my netbook up and running with the server and all the files on its harddisk so I can always accces my library with the SBT. internet radio is a blast!!!!! one of the best reasons to buy the SBT IMHO. regards, T Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cut-Throat Posted July 23, 2012 Share Posted July 23, 2012 well the USB is acting up...it is very sensitive, if the power goes out (which happens a lot where I live) or even if seemingly nothing has happened the SBT at some point stops recognizing the USB thumb drive and wants to rescan EVERYTHING, this takes a few hours each time. grrrr.....checked the thumb drive for errors but it is flawless, so as the forum over at logiectech said, the thing is quirky with the USB drive. however I have my netbook up and running with the server and all the files on its harddisk so I can always accces my library with the SBT. internet radio is a blast!!!!! one of the best reasons to buy the SBT IMHO. regards, T The USB drive is for a kid in a Dorm Room......As you get more music on it, it becomes very, very slow. Hard Disk is the way to go as you found out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnysal Posted July 26, 2012 Author Share Posted July 26, 2012 just to clarify, the solution is not a hard disk, it is using a server (in this case an old netbook) via the ethernet. a hard disk connected to the USB has ALL the same problems. T Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cut-Throat Posted July 27, 2012 Share Posted July 27, 2012 just to clarify, the solution is not a hard disk, it is using a server (in this case an old netbook) via the ethernet. a hard disk connected to the USB has ALL the same problems. T Correct! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted July 27, 2012 Moderators Share Posted July 27, 2012 Glad to read all of this, right now my BR player streams but only Pandora for music. I thought about the Touch for other Internet radio stations but never went through with it. I wonder how far it can really operate? I plan on building a separate workshop from the house one day and it would be really nice to stream some music out there. It may work if i can put a modem outside on that corner of the house to help get the signal to the workshop which will probably be less than 100' from the house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldmako Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 I bought a touch a while back and aside from a few minor glitches I've been very happy with it. There was a software update which went unrecognised for a while which caused it to need a reboot often, but that's been fixed. I went all Apple Lossless for simplicity. It's very easy to convert recordings to lossless, and since I had about 400 Gig, I wanted easy. The Touch will read and find music files that I am unable to locate on my PC or itunes. As such, I cannot edit some of them. A minor issue, but one none the less. Othes more PC savvy probably won't find this an issue. There is also an android app which allows you to control the touch from your phone. Nice if your eyesight isn't what it used to be. My Touch is too far from the prime listenting spot to read the screen and use its remote. But using the phone hooks you right up. Nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajoker2c Posted July 28, 2012 Share Posted July 28, 2012 There is also an android app which allows you to control the touch from your phone. Nice if your eyesight isn't what it used to be. My Touch is too far from the prime listenting spot to read the screen and use its remote. But using the phone hooks you right up. Nice. The app iPeng works fantastic for my squeezebox duet on my iPad. They have an add on for that app that allows you to stream wirelessly to my iPad to my bedroom set up.....love it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnysal Posted July 28, 2012 Author Share Posted July 28, 2012 I have the official squeezebox app on my iphone and it works really well. I saw the iPeng app but so far I am satisfied with the Squeezebox version. What additional features does the iPeng have? T Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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