We estimate that you actually already have everything you need. After all, all you need to start streaming is a phone with a data connection and an app to play music or video. Think Youtube or Spotify. Anyway: in this series, we’ll go a little further than that. Let’s see how to stream at a high level .
Source, client, controller
To get a complete streaming experience, you need three things: a source, a player and a device to control it all. We also call this in jargon: a source (source), a client (in this case the player, aka zone) and a controller (kind of remote control).
Source – Source
There are several types of sources. The best known, of course, is the Internet. Countless Internet radio stations “live” on the Internet, as well as services such as Spotify, Tidal, Qobuz, Deezer, et cetera. These are basically just server systems with a lot of storage capacity to store all those music files, and a very powerful media server to provide all connected clients with the requested music stream. This is very simplified, but you get what we mean.
However, you can also set up your own media server. This can be done on a so-called NAS (Network Attached Storage) or, for example, a separate PC or Laptop. Many NAS brands (Synology, Qnap or Netgear for example) have ready-made media server solutions. You just need to specify in the media server in which folder on the NAS you have stored the music files. If the media server is active, most streamers can see it and then connect.
Some streamers also have a media server built in. It’s going too far to list all models with media servers, but one well-known one is the Grimm MU1 that has a built-in Roon core. Aurender also has dedicated servers and also, for example, Bluesound has models with built-in hard drive.
These systems you can build in storage capacity or attach a usb drive to them to then share these files with other streamers. Note that some brands use a “proprietary ecosystem,” which means you can only stream to players of the same brand with this server. Aurender, for example, uses its own system. So does Sonos and Bluesound ditto. Here we will go into a bit more detail later.
So why should you use the built-in server? Quite simply, a complete system with built-in server is convenient for users who do not have a NAS or feel like setting up a complete media network. It removes some of the complexity of a streaming audio system.
Client / Zone – Streamer
Next, you need a player. So in jargon, we also call this a client or zone. Although in the networking world, all devices connected to the network are clients. Very confusing. But within streaming audio the streamers are usually called clients or zones. We use them interchangeably in this training.
There are several types of players. There are players that have built-in storage and thus can also act as media servers. There are zones that can only send out a digital signal (which we also call a streaming bridge: a kind of bridge between the storage and the rest of the system, usually a d/a converter). And there are players that can process the signal completely and thus also convert it to an analog signal. These are also called streamers. Again, somewhat confusing. Because many publications use the terms streaming bridge and streamer interchangeably. And opinions are also divided as to what is correct. We use the term ‘bridge’ for a player without d/a converter and the term streamer for a player with d/a converter.
Total solutions
Then there are total solutions. With or without a built-in power amplifier. These ‘all-in-ones’ are in fact (pre)amplifiers with a built-in streamer. You see this more and more, which is not strange: the demand is high. Many enthusiasts just want a total solution: one device with everything in it: analog inputs, digital inputs and a built-in streamer.
The reason is that it is often much cheaper to buy a total solution. After all, the manufacturer only needs one housing and one power supply to power all internal components. And as the customer, you need far fewer cables to connect things up. Also, the ease of operation is often much greater; everything is coordinated. Whether it is all right in terms of sound is up to the skill of the manufacturer. There are very good overall solutions and very mediocre ones.
Controller
Then you have to be able to operate the system. This is done with a controller. Now, there “used to be” separate controllers for Sonos, Sooloos, Raumfeld and probably other systems, for example. However, that has rapidly disappeared as everyone just has a tablet or smartphone. Why buy another device when a tablet or smartphone works just as well (and often even better, because of more modern hardware)?
So manufacturers anno now simply provide apps on the smartphone or tablet. Most manufacturers provide apps for both Android and Apple iOS. And in many cases they work fine, although there is a big difference in the quality of the apps. Some manufacturers have everything down to the last detail and others provide a “working system” without too much sophistication. Think advanced search functions or neat integration of online services. So pay close attention to that.
Network
The backbone of a good streaming system is the network. Without a network, no streaming audio (and video). After all: how else are all those zones supposed to pull in data?
We strongly recommend streaming via a wired connection as much as possible. This because of stability. Wireless is getting better and better; it is and remains more sensitive to interference than a cable. This is because a wireless connection (wifi) works via rf – radio frequency radiation) and this can be disturbed very easily. Moreover, it is half-duplex, which means that it can either send or receive, and with heavier loads there is quite a lot of latency. Wired connections do not suffer from this.
So how do you make a decent network? We’ll get into that in another installment. In this chapter, we explain only what you need to get started. In other chapters, we’ll work it out in detail.
Rounding out
So a complete streaming audio (and video) network, consists of three parts: a source (server), a player (client or zone) and a controller (the tablet or smartphone). The backbone of a media network is the network itself. If this is not in order, you are going to have problems, guaranteed. Always try to wire as much as possible, it will prevent an awful lot of problems!