Apple TV

[amazement]

Can I stream from my nas to the hi fi using apple tv or is it just to stream my i tunes library?

Or what other device can I use as a streamer from a nas, not too expensive and apart from squeezebox?

 

[hotshot]

If you have an earlier 1st or 2nd Gen Apple TV then I can highly recommend this http://firecore.com/atvflash-black . It turns the Apple TV into a nice little multimedia hub especially if you also install the very nice Plex clien - http://www.plexapp.com/

 

[amazement]

Hotshot, so will not work with a new apple tv? I am thinking of buying one to stream from a nas.

 

[hotshot]

aTV Flash only works with the first two generation Apple Tv's. However if you plan on getting the latest model then I would suggest still using Plex as the multimedia client and install this on the Apple TV using plexconnect - http://elan.plexapp.com/2013/06/04/introducing-plexconnect-an-appletv-client-which-thinks-different/

Hope this helps.

 

[amazement]

Cheers

 

[vacdac]

Can I stream from my nas to the hi fi using apple tv or is it just to stream my i tunes library?Or what other device can I use as a streamer from a nas, not too expensive and apart from squeezebox?

Cambridge Audios NP30 Streamer could fit the bill & is good fer 'High Rez' too @ up to 24bit/96khz IIRC. I've recently bought its bigger Bro' the SM6 & have been very impressed. The SQ is simply superb & its a good deal better than my previous SBT + MF M1 Dac. The NP30 should have the potential to be at least this good with a future Dac upgrade & straight outta the box I'd have thought it would have a fair chance of being even better than an SBT sans Dac, as C.A. have far more know-how re implementing Hi-Fi quality analogue output stages + a good deal more experience with digital audio too than Logitech.

C.A.'s NP30 is currently on @ £250 from Richer Sounds which is VGFM as before the SM6 replaced it it was over £400. Another Option worth mulling on is a NAS upgrade instead......mad as that may sound......bear with me. Synology NAS enclosures can output 'Bit-Perfect file based audio @ up to 24bit/96khz using their Audio Station S/W + be controlled from a smart-phone/tablet & will also give you access to internet radio etc. They're really quiet so not at all intrusive & you could easily just repopulate one of these with your existing drive/s.

I've discussed this in a couple of recent threads.....Food fer thought?? I actually think the little lash up I discuss in the thread sounds even better than my previous SBT in the bedroom setup.....all you'd need would be a suitable USB Dac that works with native/pre-installed Linux USB Audio drivers & you'd be up & running with a neat solution that does a lot more besides. The Synology DS213J would be likely more than good enough & costs around £170.

See this thread fer more details>>> http://www.hifiwigwam.com/showthread.php?88255-Upgrading-to-a-better-Nas-with-more-storage

Of course upgrading to one of these NAS's would also give you some interesting multi room opportunities if you got a streamer as well. One caveat I'd add is dependent on which NAS you're currently running is that C.A.'s NP30 does run on UPnP/DLNA for streaming & my old Netgear ReadyNas Duo wasn't very good running this as I've since discovered that UPnP servers need a lot more processing power to work well, whereas SBT running off LMS really doesn't & will work superbly with relatively low powered NAS's.

Sooo if this is the case for you, but you still fancy t' NP30 I'd consider streaming from your full fat pooter/lappy instead.....at least as a stopgap. Also if considering this & wanting to do it in a couple of steps i.e NP30 first then NAS then the full fat DS213 could be a better bet than the 213J due to considerably more powerful processor. TBH I'm not really sure at which point the increased demands of running UPnP/DLNA is met in terms of processing power.....So perhaps some research on t' Synology Forum or I know there are a couple of NP30 users here too as well as the SM6 so someone should know.

 

[amazement]

wow a lot to take in there vacdac. At the moment I am using a naim unitiserve but keep having a few issues with it and it's power supply, so I have bought a my book live nas to back it up to. My intention is to ditch the naim, should fetch a few quid and get something to stream from my nas, something like the ca np30 or similar.

As I am not too pc savy at the moment I am still getting to grips with the nas. As a get me going thing I was thinking of using my ps3 or apple tv as a temporary measure to use to stream from my nas when I get it going. Hope this makes sense. I have also been looking at the pioneer streamer.

 

[vacdac]

Yeah I wuz just trying ter give you some BNIB options with full warranties etc......re your question of alternatives to SBT. :^ Richers do a super 5yr warranty for 10% of purchase price.

Its kinda hard to make reco's without discussing the ins/outs with pooter audio type kit....much more so than with other 2ch kit. The NP30 will dry up at that price sooner or later as it's effectively been replaced by the SM6......I wonder whether the NP30 is actually still being manufactured & think it likely that Richers may be selling off their remaining stock?? :? Still its been on fer that price at least around 4 months & Richers haven't flagged it up as last remaining stocks.....as yet.....could be worth keepin' an eye on to see whether prices drop even further.

Re t' Pioneer you mention.....I'm pretty sure this streamer also runs off a UPnP/DLNA server.....so all the caveats re needing a NAS with decent processing power & well implemented S/W package prolly still apply. It does look decent enough on specs tho'.

Which NAS are you running at the moment?? Lol I've spent enough time checking specs etc recently that I should have a fair idea if its up to running UPnP well. Like I say tho' there's no reason to not simply use your pooter to stream. Personally I prefer a NAS due to not needing to have a pooter up & running & its great to have instant 24/7 access. The energy consumption + fit & forget nature is a real bonus too as is how quiet it is the ReadyNas Duo was really clanky in comparison.

 

[amazement]

I have a my book live nas, seems to be ok quiet etc. Do you have any thoughts on the my book live nas? Does the NP30 do gapless playback?

 

[vacdac]

Hi,

I've had a good search but as yet haven't managed ter find the Processor/RAM spec of either flavor of W.D's current My Book Live range.....is it the single drive you have?? W.D's server seems to be down at t' mo. My instinct would be that it may not have the power that is needed to provide a smooth?glitch free user experience with a music streamer running UPnP....I guess this will depend on t' size of the file based library too....Mine is currently not huge @ around 1500 albums/19,000+ tracks & around 600GB & like I say in use the SM6 was a little buggy & it just wasn't nearly as slick/stable nice to use as the SBT I was running from the same NAS but using LMS server S/W. Upgrading to the Synology DS213 removed all these minor annoyances at a stroke & I'm now finding the SM6 much nicer to use than t' SBT.

C.A have gapless playback in t' pipeline apparently.....sooo this year I'd hope:? couldn't say when.

 

[amazement]

My book live is a single 3gb/2tb version. I haven't had chance to set it up fully yet as my naim unitiserve is awaiting a new power supply. I have streamed my itunes content to my playstation 3. I will have more time tonight to assess how it sounds as a temp fix.

I have around 400 cd's on my naim server all wav files, so I would have this and my itunes mostly as wav content running from the nas. Most likely not use the itunes, on the nas more as a backup.

 

[vacdac]

Just a hunch TBH.....but I think there's a fair chance with a library of that size you may not encounter the issues I was having running UPnP so much. I can't help but think that the size of my library may have been tripping it up. Also UPnP is a little more fussy than LMS re your library folders being nice & neat/well organised/correctly tagged etc, whereas LMS allows a fair bit of latitude re sloppy file structure & will make a good stab at organising fairly messy libraries quite well. Of course best practice is to get this right at the start...but you kinda learn all this as you go along & Like many I've probably re-ripped large bits of my library as I've migrated to better ripping S/W & learned how to get the best from it.

I have done a little bit of housekeeping re Library structure & sorting out the odd errant album tagging just prior to upgrading the Nas. This did improve things a little but the ReadyNas was still struggling to keep up with demands & I was getting lots of annoying little glitches. I have over 550 albums that are 24bit too & wonder if this could also cause a lower powered NAS ter struggle running UPnP. :?