GreenFrog
17 answers
41 thumbs up

Streaming audio to amplifier over WiFi

I'm looking for a hardware solution for accepting an audio feed over WiFi and sending it into an analog amplifier. It can either decode a stream or access files, I don't care (as long as it's an open protocol I can tweak).


I don't need any fancy buttons and display for content selection (that's all done on the server). So all it takes is an WiFi card, MP3 decoder and D2A chip. But I want it simple, easy, cheap and compact. Any suggestions?

Would you like to answer or comment?

Sign up for a free account, or sign in (if you're already a member).
Answer this question
Share Send to a friend Watch Report
 

Best Answer

 
sdfjkl
27 answers
59 thumbs up

Apple's

Airport Express deserves mention here. It's the size of a small laptop power supply, can plug directly into a power outlet and streams Audio via AirTunes (iTunes supports this out of the box). Not an open protocol I think, but there are ways to access it via other applications anyways. It also happens to be configurable as a WLAN router (complete with DHCP server, NAT, etc.) or access point and has a USB port which makes it work as a print server when hooked up to a USB printer. Currently it's priced at 129 US$. Or, if you're more of a hacker type you could use any mini-PC or old thinclient with WiFi and audio capabilities, pop some free unix/linux distribution on it and set it up to receive streaming audio from an Icecast server on your network (or any internet radio station). Keep in mind that any solution that works over WiFi brings notable playback delay with it, so it's fine for listening to music, but if you want to play games or watch videos where video/audio must be sychronized, this is not the way to go.
Posted 2 years ago ( permalink )
In reply to GreenFrog's question
sdfjkl was invited by Yedda to answer this question.

Rated as
Best Answer
0
2
  Report Abuse  

Helpful?

line
line
line


 

All Answers

Order by
 
GreenFrog
17 answers
41 thumbs up

Hmm. Just found the Linksys WMB54G "Wireless-G Music Bridge" ($80), which would be the perfect solution for my needs if it didn't use a proprietary Windows-only protocol (with broken drivers). Ironic, for a device that runs Linux firmware.

There's also the Slim Devices Squeezebox, which sports a nice fluorescent display and remote control and seems ideal in all ways except price ($300).

Posted 2 years ago ( permalink )
In reply to GreenFrog's question
Rated as
#3 out of 5
0
0
  Report Abuse  

Helpful?

line
line
line



 
Roki
50 answers
98 thumbs up

You can do it with a PSP, it isn't so cheap, but it can do other fun stuff.

Posted 2 years ago ( permalink )
In reply to GreenFrog's question
Rated as
#2 out of 5
0
1
  Report Abuse  

Helpful?

line
line
line



 
Yaniv
191 answers
338 thumbs up

Rejected slogan #235:

Yedda - a brain the size of a planet.
Posted 2 years ago ( permalink )
In reply to GreenFrog's question
Yaniv was invited by Yedda to answer this question.

Rated as
#-2147483648 out of 5
0
0
  Report Abuse  

Helpful?

line
line
line



 
RattleHead
116 answers
189 thumbs up
Posted 2 years ago ( permalink )
In reply to GreenFrog's question
RattleHead was invited by Yedda to answer this question.

Rated as
#-2147483648 out of 5
0
0
  Report Abuse  

Helpful?

line