I've never had a squeezebox before, but couldn't resist circuit city's closeout prices, and I wanted a new alarm clock. I've added some token music to my readynas but haven't added it all yet so I can't comment on performance.

Some nice details:

• Readable VFD that reminds me of my favorite mp3 player.
• The VFD auto dims to match the ambient light
• The buttons are backlit, and the power button remains backlit when it's off
• The remote has magnets in it so it sticks to the top, or anything else metal
• Purpose built wall mounting bracket available
• Set alarm to anything you want - playlist, streaming radio, pandora
• Polished web interface

I'm tempted to pick up a duet for the living room. It's interesting to see what the empeg software could easily have done with a few more years of development.

Matthew

If you're considering a Duet, look into the various iPod controller applications for Slim Center. You might find them better or more suitable than the dedicated controller and opt to get only the receiver. You might save a few bucks there too since the controller is rather pricy.

I wasn't aware of the Boom. It looks like a nice device. They should have built in a CD player and maybe even a cassette tape player, though. I can't imagine it would have cost much more, and it would be nice to have a device that would do it all.

I'm trying to get my wife to switch over to using digital media, but she can be obstinate to the point of luddishness. I've been trying to get her to use the Squeezebox instead of CDs and an MP3 player instead of cassette tapes, but it's slow going at best.

Yes, I'm still kicking myself for not picking up a duet or two for $160. The controller gets mixed reviews, and one thing I like about the Boom as that so far it has worked without any issues what so ever.


It's 13"W x 5"H x 3.1"D, so a CD player would add over two inches to the depth, and would probably be wasted on 90% of the userbase. It does have an aux jack, so you could could hook up a portable.


Have you considered a Central? My mother successfully uses hers on a daily basis once we got over over a rough start that involved a dead hard drive followed by a colony of ants trying to build a colony next to the nice warm replacement drive. The real downside is a lack of interconectivity with the modern mp3 playing world.

Matthew

Maybe even a what-did-you-say player? I long ago put all my cassette tapes away at the back of the cupboard, and would probably have binned them altogether if not for a vague idea of one day recreating with my little niece and nephew the fascination I have when my dad drags his reel-to-reel player out of the back of his cupboards...

Peter

PS. A Grundig TK35, or similar -- before Boxer says anything.

Yes, I've got my audio cassette tapes and all my VHS tapes in a garden shed - just to divert attention from the fact that I'm listening to my wonderful Revox at the moment!

Yeah, yeah. You trying getting that mule to move.

She actually uses the cassette tapes regularly, as mix tapes. I've been trying to convince her that she really needs to go to MP3s, but, again, immovable object.

I was hoping for a transitional device for her.

Interestingly, BestBuy apparently sells a total of seven devices that can play cassette tapes, all but one of them is a Sony, and the other, a JVC component, is sold out.

Bitt, your problem is an easy one to fix.

Cassette tape players can be fixed with a grilled cheese sandwich. CD players can be fixed with a round sanding disc from a random orbit sander.

When there are no tape players in the house and no CD players (don't tell her you can play CDs on the DVD player) then they'll move quickly to the MP3s.

Does your wife have an iPod? Get her an iPod Nano or a Touch if she doesn't already. Connect up her car so she can just plug it in without thinking about it.

My wife still uses CDs in the car, but that's mainly because the iPod adapter I installed last year is on the fritz and I haven't fixed it yet. She also has to wait for me to rip CDs for her. I don't know if it's because she's lazy or unwilling to press a couple of buttons in iTunes.

At home I don't have a tape player at all and the only dedicated CD player is sitting on a shelf in the basement. The DVD player isn't even hooked up right now.

Peter did have some interesting points however and I think I'm going to pick up an old cassette deck with an integrated speaker. I have a few tapes and showing my kids that stuff in the future might be neat. I also still have a bunch of LPs and a turntable (also in the basement).

Let's hope your shed isn't too damp.

Yea, and an 8 track too

On a serious note, I don't like my Duet much. I prefer to use the web interface. I like the idea, but having another box that doesn't do anything apart from control Slimserver is a bit rubbish.

Cheers

Cris.

Fans of Monty Python will be pleased to know that I don't only have two sheds, I have five - Garden Shed, Booze Shed, log shed, bits and pieces and leads that no longer do anything plus tapes shed and tool shed.
UK question here, did anybody see the BBC4 repeat of "a to b", the one about sales reps. whose car was the most important incentive?
It pointed out to me that only 10 years ago, you expected to get a cassette player in the dashboard (You might get a CD autochanger in the boot on a luxury model), and yet, as we celebrated this summer, that was when the Empeg was born.
Empegers can be smug, but even the cheapest model cars seems to have an MP3 or better an ipod connection these days - technology has come far fast..

King 4 track continuous.
Telefunken 2.0 ips cassette
Garrard 1/4" tape, Cassette Deck
Sony 1/4" tape, hi-fi cassette
The PYE recordable 45 rpm record.

The road to the cassette as we knew it was a tortuous one, and Philips had to give the patent away to get it out of the bin. They didn't do much better with the V2000 video recorder: 2 sided, a real lemon - pity, because they were first on the market in video with a format that I can't remember the name of!

That could be why they had success with the CD. Lessons learned.

LOL! Your ideas are intriguing to me and I wish to subscribe to your newsletter.


I set up Teri's computer so that when she inserts a disc, it automatically starts iTunes, and iTunes automatically starts ripping the disc, and then when it's done, it automatically ejects the disc.

Yet I can't get her to swap discs out while she's sitting there using the computer anyway.


There's a chicken-and-egg problem in that if there's nothing for it to play, she won't use it, and if she's not using anything that will support it, she won't create anything for it to play.

I got myself a Boom the other week and agree it is an excellent bit of kit. It is much smaller that you expect, but also much more solid and much better sounding.

I would second Bruno's comments about the iPhone/iPod Touch approach to remote control of Squeezeboxes rather than a Duet. I've had a Duet for six months or so now and if I was starting afresh I would have bought an iPod Touch and the excellent iPeng native app instead.

The Duet Controller still has the advantage of physical buttons for play, pause, volume etc But in just about all other areas an iPhone/Touch + iPeng has it beat.

(ok, so the Controller also has beta support for being a player and can be used on Squeeze Network, but both of those features are on their way in iPeng as well)

The iPod/iPhone with a player app can actually quite easily replace a Squeezebox. I think it would be in Slim/Logitech's best interest to beat the third parties there and start selling such a program.

Jörg is doing a good job with iPeng. Still has a lot of quirks, but I've been using it for a long time now.

Ah, yes, the wonderful ELcaset. Still miss my EL-5.
Too bad I didn't realize how historical it was when I chucked it out. Only later did I find out how bizarre it was that I got hold of mine.

To quote Wikipedia:

"…A Finnish company won the auction (by Sony international) and later sold those machines with 25 cassettes at a very low price: EL-5 + 25 cas. 795,- FIM and EL-7 + 25 cas. 1295,- FIM. It was mentioned in the ad that plain cassettes would cost normally about 1200 FIM. I think that US$ was in those days about 4,50 FIM, nowadays it's about 6 FIM. And you can believe it was a real sell-out. They sold about 2000 decks in Finland. …"

Ah yes, Elcaset, the name escaped me: It was actually a very well thought through format addressing most of the shortcomings of the compact cassette for hifi use.
I'm as capable of lemons as the next man: here's my 16th birthday present - it wasn't what I wanted, at all!

Oh, I love my Squeezebox Boom. Been wanting an all-in-one Squeezebox since forever, so when it was announced I ordered one straight away and got one from probably the first batch in the UK.

Its one of those things, just as Andy says - smaller than you expect, very high quality and sounds great. I use it every day and it does exactly what I want it to, just like another musical gadget of mine

There is a Whitepaper on the Squeezebox Boom Audio Design which is a very good read.

Well I just picked up a Duet from craigslist from a Circuit City clearance reseller on craigslist. If it doesn't work out, I'll ebay it and buy a SB3 for the living room.

Matthew

Interesting idea - but I can see that it might have proven less than perfect in actual use.

Its only saving grace was that its recording quality was infinitely superior to the cheap end of the reel to reel market(comparable to our school Ferrograph), but you had to wait an awful long time, whilst it rewound, to listen to your recording - however its real downside was that you had to cope with the derision of your peers!

Thanks for sharing your opinions about the Boombox, guys. I've been plannign to get one as a alarm clock. Now,, I really think I'll be buying one soon.

Server software seems quite good and very well supported too!

There's nothing out there that even comes close in fact.

When version 8 introduces the new database schema things are going to be even better for people with esoteric collections and requirements. It can satisfy a lot of sorting/display organizational requirements now, but the next major version should be able to satisfy absolutely everyone from a technical standpoint.

As far as playback quality is concerned, that's not even up for discussion. It's been the best for a long time.

Thanks Hybrid! Any rumor about when Squeezebox v.8 it is being released? Not that it is stopping from buying it, but I am curious.

SqueezeCenter

They have a roadmap on their site, but release dates are never really given. I'd guess it should be out sometime this year, but version 7.3 is quite excellent already.

One of the bug things for some people with v.8 will be the ability to maintain multiple databases and be able to selectively play music from any one or combinations of them. With this ability it will be possible to keep for instance a database for classical separate from al your other music. Or your music separate from your kids' or wife's etc..

I'll finally be able to make sure that Janet Jackson never gets randomized among any of my music.

And currently available at amazon.co.uk for £129 with the discount code "SQUEEZEI"

Wicked! Thanks for the info Andy.

Cheers

Cris.

Dammit, you have to have say this the week before pay day.