Squeezebox - Roku Soundbridge - AlienBBC - confused!!!

[kiwijock]

Hi

We are moving to NZ in a few months and looking into getting an internet radio.

Saw Squeezebox mentioned on here so was nearly set to buy one then saw good review in relation to itunes purchased music with the Roku Soundbridge so was then set on that; but then we also want to be able to listen to BBC - is the only option for this AlienBBC? and if this is the case is this only available through the squeezebox?

I am very confused and hoping some helpful people who understand all this technology on here are able to help me work out which is the best way to go - am thinking it is probably squeezebox with AlienBBC??????

Many Thanks

Anne

[Milliemoo]

Sorry, not very techy, but a word of warning.....

We have a squeezebox and loved listening to the BBC. Unfortunately the BBC have changed some sort of format and it really restricts what you can listen to. We can't get Jonathan Ross or any of the drive time shows etc anymore.

I'm sure someone with a bit more techy knowledge might be able to explain better.

Milliemoo

[Milliemoo]

Scrap that. OH has fixed the problem and now works it through some iplayer plugin thingy.

Milliemoo

[kiwijock]

Scrap that. OH has fixed the problem and now works it through some iplayer plugin thingy.

Milliemoo

Thanks

All this technology is great but understanding it is another thing!!!! Your knowledge sounds similar to mine but my prob is I know more about it than OH!!!

It seems a squeezebox will be the way to go

[Milliemoo]

If you need to ask anything techy, just shout and I'll fling the lap top over to the OH who is most definitely techy

Milliemoo

[willsken]

OK' I'm interested in hearing more...... how does it work? If I buy one here in NZ plug it in and plug something into my computer I have wireless Internet radio? I can listen to BBC radio? Sounds good.

[Milliemoo]

I've asked the other half to give me a step by step guide to all things squeezebox

I'll post it, when he does it.

Please bare in mind though that although I've said "treat it as if the guide was for me" ie: totally untechy, he is at the end of the day an IT bod, and IT bods live in their own little techy world So gawd knows if t'll make any sense. lol

Milliemoo

[willsken]

Thanks very much, I look forward to it. That will take care of OH's Christmas present. He misses Talk Sport a lot! (I miss the BBC)

[Questor]

OK - another gadget geek here

We have a Squeezebox (actually we have 2, but that's not important ) and we absolutely love it.
For those who don't know, a Squeezebox is a wireless (if you get the v3 and above) streaming music player that connects to speakers or your home stereo (the one in the living room is connected to our home theatre amp). You can use it to listen to all your music MP3s or listen to internet radio, or podcasts and heaps of other stuff too.
It's not a standalone thing however. In order for it to work, you need to be running the server programme which is called Slimserver (actually now I think about it it's called Squeezecenter in the new version but again, that's not important). For most people with a Squeezebox they use an old PC with a big hard drive to store all the music to run the server. This isn't the only option however.
I use what's called a NAS (Network Attached Storage) drive and run a slightly hacked (but almost officially supported) version of the server programme. This is basically an external Hard Drive that plugs into our home network that stores all the music, and means I don't have to run a PC 24/7. It only uses 19W of power at full capacity, and on standby only about 6W
Listening to the BBC stations is really easy thanks to AlienBBC which is a plugin for the server programme. All it does is takes the BBC streams and converts them into a format that the player can output. We use it ALL the time.

There's SO much more a Squeezebox can do, and if you want any more info feel free to PM me, I don't want to get any more techy on the forum and risk scaring people away!

If you do get one, I STRONGLY recommend the guys at Ripcaster ( http://www.ripcaster.co.uk ) Jon there was really quick at answering my questions, and they did me a great deal including delivery out here for the SB and NAS drive combo

Jon (not the Ripcaster one!)

[Milliemoo]

OK - another gadget geek here

I use what's called a NAS (Network Attached Storage) drive and run a slightly hacked (but almost officially supported) version of the server programme. This is basically an external Hard Drive that plugs into our home network that stores all the music, and means I don't have to run a PC 24/7. It only uses 19W of power at full capacity, and on standby only about 6W

If you do get one, I STRONGLY recommend the guys at Ripcaster ( http://www.ripcaster.co.uk ) Jon there was really quick at answering my questions, and they did me a great deal including delivery out here for the SB and NAS drive combo

Jon (not the Ripcaster one!)

LOL My OH just ordered a 'Tranquil PC' from Ripcaster before we went back to the UK and we brought it back in hand luggage.

Now I don't have to turn the old PC on to listen to stuff and it runs on less juice than a light bulb!

Milliemoo