Streaming music - Need guidance :)

cloud_dog

Hi

Hopefully some more knowledgeable posters can help me out here.

For years (many) I have been running LMS on my old Netgear ReadyNAS via a Squeezebox and my hifi (compact unit).  And working with the old ReadyNAS is now getting hard, so I have decided to migrate everything across to my Synology DS918+ (DSM 7.1).

The problem I have is that Synology/DSM from 7.0 no longer supports LMS; well in theory it might, running under 'Docker' but I have read numerous people experiencing issues going down this route.  My challenge is how do I replace my LMS / SB set up, do I try to retain what I know and like LMS / SB (like) or simply move on to something else (Plex etc).

I've read a lot about HiFiBerry (for example) and possibly running both LMS and SqueezeLite on the Pi with an additional DAC.  I've never played with Pi before, but I'm sure I can figure it out, but I'm looking for some guidance, some experience from others who have travelled this route, simply because some of the DAC options can (not unreasonable) increase the price of the overall solution (dabbling with Pi is fine but making a mistake with the right/wrong HAT is something my skill set is low in, e.g. do I use DAC, should I go SPDIF, etc.... would I really notice a difference?  Is it worth trying to go with Allo Digione Signaure (due to the potential electrical noise associated with the simplistic Pi architecture?

I think I am at the point where I would prefer to be able to simply buy the ready made product rather than constructing it myself.... after describing all the above self build options

Views, thoughts, experiences very much welcomed. 

[Deleted User]

I use Plex for all my music, I find it the most flexible, the dedicated PlexAmp app for music only is brilliant, great interface.

I can basically play music on any phone / tablet / computer / TV / car device and any network or Bluetooth connected audio device without any effort - not just at home, anywhere in the world.

Setting it up is really easy compared to your other suggestions and much cheaper. I can listen to CD quality music from my FLAC collection when I want to enjoy music at its best.

And it doesn't tie me into an ecosystem like Sonos does so I can use almost any digital audio devices at home or away.

cloud_dog

I can run Plex on the Synology, but I then need a replacement for the SB (player), e.g. Rasp Pi as the player to feed it through my HiFi unit (prefer listening to my music through the HiFi).

There are lots of options around for running a replacement SB, e.g. SqueezeLite on a Pi but I am not knowledgeable enough to know what I should run on Pi if I go down the Plex route.  But, the same 'indecision' remains if I go down the Pi route (DAC, SPDIF, etc)?

I'll need to google around a bit.

[Deleted User]

If your current hifi unit doesn't have Bluetooth / network capabilities then just adding a Bluetooth DAC is the easiest option and stream to your hifi from your phone / tablet / laptop etc.

All a lot less complicated than bringing a Pi into the equation.

cloud_dog

Hi ...thanks for your comments but I don't think I want to stream via my phone.  The tablet, laptop would be replacements to my commented on Pi option.

k_man

If this is just for the client end (assuming you can run Plex server on your NAS), you could try an Echo device (low cost) via line-in to your hi-fi, or Fire TV stick for the graphical interface of the Plex client.

https://support.plex.tv/articles/115000320808-getting-started-with-alexa-voice-control/

Note:does require external access to the Plex server.
Amazon devices won't have the best DACs, but whether you can tell is a different matter, and no worse than a Bluetooth option. And depending on the quality of your hifi (compact unit) and speakers, any thing higher end may be overkill anyway.

Unless you actually do want the fun of building a complicated system of course, which us often as much a part as the listening!

cloud_dog

Thanks for the info and link, I'll do some further reading.

k_man

For completeness, I went through a similar process a few years ago, and after trying LMS, Twonky, uPNP, DLNA, and bluetooth (not sure if Plex was a thing at the time), all to ensure I had a system that would allow streaming from local music files and CDs.
In the end I went with Sonos, and added online music streaming.

I think I only played local music 2 or 3 times in the first few days, and haven't looked back.

I have since added a few Echos more recently too, as a low power usage (compared to amp. and Sonos) for background music option.

NAS is only turned on to do backups or access archived files.

cloud_dog

If I'd had gone Sonos back in the day when I decided on Squeezebox/LMS I would be relatively ok still, but there is a reasonable start-up cost with Sonos.  It is a thought though, perhaps I'll review what the overall cost would be in simply migrating to Sonos.

k_man

While I do like to tinker, the ease of use for Sonos (especially for other users) was the main driver, along with working multiroom.

But as you say, not a cheap option, especially if you want to integrate with existing hi-fi.

And if only one room, then probably overkill. But one room leads to 2..... 😁. They do breed!

Right now, if starting for a single room and existing hi-fi (if that didn't already gave Spotify connect support) I would go with a single streamer box (e.g Echo flex @ £9.99), and use the line in to hi-fi. But as stated previously, I don't use local music anymore.

If that doesn't work as expected, the outlay it minimal, and you have a voice activated kitchen timer at the end of it.