Squeezebox Touch; If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. Squeezebox Touch Squeezebox Touch connects directly to your stereo or powered speakers, so you can listen to the music that you want on the system you love. To select a menu option on your Squeezebox, you can use the touchscreen directly or use the remote control. Page 21: Remote Control.
A friend of mine is a serious audiophile and told me to get the Sonos. I then learned of the Squeezebox, compared the two on paper, and bought the Squeezebox. I wanted to load my music collection onto an external hard drive, and listen from the hard drive through my stereo (without a computer required once the music is ripped).Required Equipment:
Sonos: You need the Bridge plus the Zone Player. That'll set you back $400. Plus you need the controller, unless you have an iPad or iPhone. The controller is the interface into the system. That'll set you back another $350. Additionally, the Sonos only works with a Network Attached Storage (NAS), where the Squeezebox will work with a regular external USB drive. A Western Digital 2TB NAS is $150 ($50 more than the regular 2TB USB hard drive). So, the Sonos solution is $550 if you have an iPad or iPhone, or $900 if you don't (because you also need the Sonos controller).
Squeezebox: You only need the Squeezebox at $250, plus a USB hard drive ($90 for the Western Digital 2TB drive), for a total of about $340. You also can use a NAS if you want, so there's more options with the Squeezebox.
Technical Support:
Sonos: Technical support responds very quickly. They are highly professional support folks who know their product. Wow.
Squeezebox: You probably won't be able to reach a customer service person from Logitech. If you do, they're ok at best.
Menu & USB Interface:
Sonos: I haven't used it extensively, because I didn't want to spend $900. However, my buddy swears by his Sonos and the fact it's intuitive and easy to use. I had the opportunity to use the Sonos and the Sonos controller at a store, and the menu on the controller is beautiful and easier to use than the Squeezebox.
Squeezebox: A bit clunky, but I'm getting used to it. The interface can be a bit slow initially reading the file structure on the USB hard drive, which is my least favorite thing about the Squeezebox. It's a bit of a pain, since I disconnect the USB fairly regularly to update my music. Also, I often need to connect the USB drive, disconnect it, and then reconnected it, in order for the Squeezebox to recognize music that's been added to a subfolder on the drive - up to four or five times. However, this is not enough to stop me from enjoying it, but is enough to warrant only 3 stars. Once the Squeezebox reads the file structure from the USB hard drive, it plays the music generally without any buffering issues. Large 24 bit FLAC files experience buffering issues only once in a while, limited to throughput over 1,000Kbps, and generally only when first starting music on the Squeezebox. However, lately, it's been dropping the USB drive for no reason, and it's getting very close to a 2 star rating. This appears to have stabilized after I reinstalled the firmware.
Playback:
Sonos: Sonos is not able to play 24-bit music files. Most Studio Master files are in 24-bit, and many artists and record labels are now selling 24-bit downloads. In contrast, normal CDs are burned in 16-bit files and lower sampling. This means that a lot of information (tones, etc) on the original studio recordings are lost in order to make the music fit onto the CD. If you haven't already, do a search and download some free FLAC files to listen to CDs and 24-bit Studio Masters side-by-side. The difference will amaze you and make you want a system that can have the ability to play 24-bit.
Squeezebox: The Squeezebox Touch will play 24-bit files.
Misc:
Set up of wireless on the Squeezebox was relatively easy. Keep in mind that Squeezebox does not support N routers, only G. This probably won't be an issue for most N routers, since they can also transmit in G.
So in the battle between Sonos and Squeezebox, I don't think there's a clear winner once you calculate prices vs. quality. It will depend on your needs and price range.
Note: For ripping CDs to my hard drive, I'm using Monkey Media's free product and using the uncompressed flac format. Also, in order to get the most out of any digital music device, such as the Squeezebox, you will need a DAC, a Digital to Analog Converter. The DAC will give you true CD quality and above conversion of your music on the Squeezebox (assuming that you are playing files that are of CD quality and not the lesser quality downloaded from iTunes). A good DAC will run $450 - $1500.
Editor's Note: As of 8/31/2012, Logitech has discontinued the Squeezebox Touch in favor of the new Ultimate Ears platform, but the company says it will continue to support the product and provide updates.
While hi-fi manufacturers such as Pioneer and Marantz have started getting on the digital-streaming bandwagon, companies like Sonos and Logitech (nee Slim Devices) were there from the beginning. While Sonos' products are the more usable and popular option, I personally prefer the Logitech Squeezebox due to its high versatility and audiophile-friendly appointments. Think of Squeezebox as Android to Sonos' iOS.
The Squeezebox Touch was released in December 2009 but the product has changed quite a bit since then, morphing from a grown-up MP3 player to a sophisticated music streamer. Logitech has subsequently released Android and iOS control apps, as well as support for most of the popular streaming services. While it's a little antiquated compared with the likes of Roku's products in that it still needs a PC or a Netgear NAS to run the system, it still holds up well among more modern systems.
At $250 online, the Squeezebox Touch costs more than multimedia players like Roku boxes and Apple TV, but half as much as dedicated audio players like Pioneer's N-30. While it doesn't look 'all that,' it's small enough that you can hide it away if you want and control it solely via any number of apps. While I wouldn't recommended it for people who want a plug-and-play music system -- Sonos products are so much better for that -- this is a highly tweakable system that really delivers sonically. I have personally been on a mission for a standalone music player, and I think I have found what I was looking for.
Design
The player consists of a main unit with a 4.3-inch touch screen with a stable metal base that prevents it from sliding around when you use it. Despite a brushed-metal stripe across the bottom, the device looks a bit plasticky and the touch-screen overlay means the screen isn't as vibrant as an iPad's, for example. This screen is a little small to read from across the room, where its touchability becomes useless anyway.
The device ships with a chunky black remote that feels decent in the palm and enables most of the functionality you'd expect. However, I'd imagine most people would just use their phones or tablets instead.
Features
The Logitech Squeezebox Touch is a music streamer and Internet radio component that features wide format support and 24-bit/96KHz playback with support for up to 192KHz. If you're interested in getting higher quality and support for USB DACs you can try this 3rd party 192kHz Squeezebox plugin The fact that, in this way, the Touch is able to play back almost any file differentiates it from the otherwise-excellent Sonos systems, which only support CD quality and no higher -- important for music enthusiasts.
Until recently, the only file type the Squeezebox didn't support was Windows Lossless, but an update at the end of 2011 means all major formats are now playable. Unless you invented your own file type just a little while ago, odds are your library is supported.
Though a few features have been added since the device first appeared, arguably the most high-profile one is Spotify support. But it's not the only online music-streaming service covered; the Squeezebox works with dozens, including Pandora, MOG, Sirius, Last.FM, and Rhapsody. The device also supports Flickr for music slideshows and Facebook, though sadly it lacks Spotify/Facebook integration. If you're interested in a full list you can find it here.
So you have the player, how do you connect it up to stuff? First you'll need the Logitech Media Server software, which is available for PC or Mac and Netgear NAS. That's right, you'll need to leave a server of some kind on to use the Squeezebox if you want to use your own music. On the other hand, streaming-music services like Pandora and Spotify don't require a NAS or computer, since they stream directly from the Web. Logitech provides a Web-based interface (mysqueezebox.com) for juggling all the various log-ins, which may looks a little 'techie,' but it's right up the alley of digital audio tweakers.
As we mentioned, the device can be controlled, though not served by, iOS and Android devices, and tablets of both OSes enjoy a double-wide control scheme with 'big' cover art. The app interface is a little 'daggy,' to use an Australian word (meaning: lovably out of fashion), but it's still easy to use.
Squeezebox Touch Coupon
With that sorted though, connectivity is provided by digital coaxial and optical, stereo RCA, an Ethernet port, 802.11g wireless, USB, an SD card slot, and a headphone jack. Serious audiophiles will want to connect the digital output to the outboard equipment of their choice, but the onboard DAC isn't too bad: according to the Hi-Fi Vision forum the device uses the budget AKM AK4420 DAC capable of 24-bit/192KHz conversion.