New Salk StreamPlayer web site

ctsooner · « **Reply #60 on:** 13 May 2016, 08:44 pm »

Great answers and appreciated. What model of blue ray (or is DVD better for audio only) drive is best when ripping? I would probably need to get one. I can get one of those bulk rippers, which would be awesome if the meta data etc would just load automatically (again, not sure if I'm even saying it correctly) and then sell it for nearly what I will pay for it. Not sure if it's as good as a single drive etc...

Thoughts?

Saturn94 · « **Reply #61 on:** 13 May 2016, 10:08 pm »

Quote from: jsalk on 13 May 2016, 06:15 pm

Well, in our last home I was in the same boat, so to speak. I used a powerline ethernet adapter to link to my dedicated home theater (streaming audio and video) and never had an issue. And they don't cost much either. Just a thought...

- Jim

Quote from: toddc2 on 13 May 2016, 07:08 pm

I recently did this, I'm getting 170 Mbps in my basement listening room over the power line ethernet adaptor. Way better than the 70 Mbps I'm getting off my WiFi extender in the basement, so it's worth a try.

Quote from: PSB Guy on 13 May 2016, 07:04 pm

The new powerline networking kits that meet the newest HomePlug AV2 1200 or 2000 standard seem to have it perfected. I recently replaced my setup, and the installation was fast and easy, and has been working flawlessly for months now.

Cornelis

Thank you for the suggestions and feedback. The other issue I have is getting the signal from the player to my pre/pro, an Anthem AVM 20 purchased in 2003 (no USB, no HDMI, etc), hence my desire for an s/pdif output. I really don't want to have to purchase/install yet another device to go between the player and pre/pro. The Gen II offers this as an option, but the price point keeps me hesitating (the price point of the Mini is an easier pill to swallow

). It's also not helping we'll soon be having a new roof installed and some home repairs done (cha ching!!).

".. Dear Santa....."

PS - odd....I just went to the website and looked at the PDF doc for the Mini and it still shows s/pdif as an option.

jsalk · « **Reply #62 on:** 14 May 2016, 12:30 am »

Quote from: Saturn94 on 13 May 2016, 10:08 pm

PS - odd....I just went to the website and looked at the PDF doc for the Mini and it still shows s/pdif as an option.

Thanks. I changed it but forgot to upload the new copy to the server. It's there now.

- Jim

Saturn94 · « **Reply #63 on:** 14 May 2016, 03:17 pm »

How much is the s/pdif option on the Gen II?

jsalk · « **Reply #64 on:** 14 May 2016, 03:32 pm »

Quote from: Saturn94 on 14 May 2016, 03:17 pm

How much is the s/pdif option on the Gen II?

Optical or coax?

- Jim

Saturn94 · « **Reply #65 on:** 14 May 2016, 07:41 pm »

Quote from: jsalk on 14 May 2016, 03:32 pm

Optical or coax?

- Jim

Hmmmm....good question. How about price for each? Is there an advantage of one over the other?

jsalk · « **Reply #66 on:** 14 May 2016, 08:11 pm »

Quote from: Saturn94 on 14 May 2016, 07:41 pm

Hmmmm....good question. How about price for each? Is there an advantage of one over the other?

The difference from a built standpoint is that coax requires a motherboard with that support. And they tend to be a bit more expensive and harder to find. Most with S/PDIF options these days are optical. I would say about $50 for optical and $75 for coax.

Most DACs can handle both these days, but some only have one or the other inputs. So it depends on the DAC. USB is more universal these days for use with a streaming device.

- Jim

DigitalDude · « **Reply #67 on:** 14 May 2016, 08:35 pm »

Question, so I can fully control V3 of this unit with the Roon app alone or will I need something else? I will be moving from a Sonos Connect/NAS situation. I would like to keep all my music on the StreamPlayer and just use the NAS for backups of my music.

Saturn94 · « **Reply #68 on:** 14 May 2016, 09:35 pm »

Quote from: jsalk on 14 May 2016, 08:11 pm

The difference from a built standpoint is that coax requires a motherboard with that support. And they tend to be a bit more expensive and harder to find. Most with S/PDIF options these days are optical. I would say about $50 for optical and $75 for coax.

Most DACs can handle both these days, but some only have one or the other inputs. So it depends on the DAC. USB is more universal these days for use with a streaming device.

- Jim

Thanks for the info.

I'm still using an old Anthem pre/pro (AVM20) which I still enjoy and have no plans to replace in the forseable future. As such, my connection options are optical and coax s/pdif.

I'm exploring options to get Ethernet to the system that would be acceptable to me. I'll et you know how it goes.

Btw, what's drawn me to the Salkstream player is the reputation for high SQ, relative simplicity, and reliability (very important to me and the whole reason I'm looking to replace my Logitech Touch/LMS system that's tied to Windows...the main source of issues!).

jsalk · « **Reply #69 on:** 15 May 2016, 10:42 am »

Quote from: ctsooner on 13 May 2016, 08:44 pm

Great answers and appreciated. What model of blue ray (or is DVD better for audio only) drive is best when ripping? I would probably need to get one. I can get one of those bulk rippers, which would be awesome if the meta data etc would just load automatically (again, not sure if I'm even saying it correctly) and then sell it for nearly what I will pay for it. Not sure if it's as good as a single drive etc...

Thoughts?

Any optical drive is fine for ripping CD's. Your ripping program will be responsible for making sure you get a bit-perfect copy. Again, dbPoweramp is the best for that.

- Jim

jsalk · « **Reply #70 on:** 15 May 2016, 10:43 am »

Quote from: DigitalDude on 14 May 2016, 08:35 pm

Question, so I can fully control V3 of this unit with the Roon app alone or will I need something else? I will be moving from a Sonos Connect/NAS situation. I would like to keep all my music on the StreamPlayer and just use the NAS for backups of my music.

Yes, Roon is the only program you will need for a user interface. And it can run on just about any relatively recent device.

- Jim

toddc2 · « **Reply #71 on:** 15 May 2016, 02:20 pm »

Quote from: jsalk on 15 May 2016, 10:43 am

Yes, Roon is the only program you will need for a user interface. And it can run on just about any relatively recent device.

- Jim

Make sure your tablet can support the Roon controller if that's the device you are planning to use. The Roon website has a good list of compatible devices.

My two year old iPad Mini is not supported and I balked at buying a newer device just to run the GUI.

TomS · « **Reply #72 on:** 15 May 2016, 02:55 pm »

I had the same problem with Roon and my older iPad, which works fine for everything else. It is odd that Roon will run fine on an iPhone, but not these older iPads

jsalk · « **Reply #73 on:** 15 May 2016, 04:10 pm »

Quote from: TomS on 15 May 2016, 02:55 pm

I had the same problem with Roon and my older iPad, which works fine for everything else. It is odd that Roon will run fine on an iPhone, but not these older iPads

Most people trade phones every two years or so. You need a fairly new iPhone as well as far as I know. Mine is an iPhone 6, so I can't comment on earlier iPhones.

- Jim

TomS · « **Reply #74 on:** 15 May 2016, 04:29 pm »

Quote from: jsalk on 15 May 2016, 04:10 pm

Most people trade phones every two years or so. You need a fairly new iPhone as well as far as I know. Mine is an iPhone 6, so I can't comment on earlier iPhones.

- Jim

Yes, makes sense. Mine is a 6 as well.

ctsooner · « **Reply #75 on:** 15 May 2016, 09:12 pm »

Thanks for the answer. I think I'll be purchasing the Acrombe Nimbie I think they call it. Seems like a few dealers are using this with db to mass rip for clients at a charge.

toddc2 · « **Reply #76 on:** 5 Jun 2016, 04:39 pm »

Is there anything special about the DC power regulation in the StreamPlayer? Something along the lines of a quality linear supply built in?

Or is there enough space in the box to do some mods? The reason I ask is that much of the research I've done on the server topic implies that clean DC power is essential.

jsalk · « **Reply #77 on:** 12 Jun 2016, 10:21 pm »

Quote from: toddc2 on 5 Jun 2016, 04:39 pm

Is there anything special about the DC power regulation in the StreamPlayer? Something along the lines of a quality linear supply built in?

Or is there enough space in the box to do some mods? The reason I ask is that much of the research I've done on the server topic implies that clean DC power is essential.

toddc2 -

The StreamPlayer uses a switching power supply. That said, there are quite a few companies offering linear power supplies. Teddy Pardo is one example. I have one of his power supplies but never noticed a difference in the StreamPlayer's performance. I once loaned it to a customer who wanted to check it out. He could not hear a difference either.

Many people will tell you a linear power supply makes a significant difference (especially those who offer them). I certainly wont' argue. After all, who am I to say. But I haven't been able to confirm to myself that they do make a difference. So I won't comment either way.

The point is, if you feel strongly about it, there are options out there and the StreamPlayer will work just fine with them.

- Jim

Afterimage · « **Reply #78 on:** 23 Jun 2016, 04:34 pm »

I have the Generation III. I had a hard time getting up and running, mostly getting on the network, but with Jim's help we got through that. He took time on the weekend to help us work through stuff plus he helped load everything on my external hard drive to the streamer. So customer service is absolutely fantastic. As for the streamer, I'm still in the learning curve, but it's just awesome. On another note, does it make any sense to plug and aftermarket power cord into the extension box?

jsalk · « **Reply #79 on:** 23 Jun 2016, 05:49 pm »

Quote from: Afterimage on 23 Jun 2016, 04:34 pm

I have the Generation III. I had a hard time getting up and running, mostly getting on the network, but with Jim's help we got through that. He took time on the weekend to help us work through stuff plus he helped load everything on my external hard drive to the streamer. So customer service is absolutely fantastic. As for the streamer, I'm still in the learning curve, but it's just awesome. On another note, does it make any sense to plug and aftermarket power cord into the extension box?

Yes, depending on the network setup in your home, it can sometimes be a bit of a challenge. The issue is never with the StreamPlayer directly, but getting everything on your network to cooperate. This is especially true on networks with a majority of Apple products.

In this case, for example, the Apple turned on journaling on the USB backup drive. This made it impossible for Linux machines like the StreamPlayer to read the drive. Fortunately, I have run across this before and knew the solution. We just hooked it up to a MAC laptop, turned journaling off and then hooked it back up to the StreamPlayer. This issue is related to the fact that Apple doesn't like system components not manufactured by Apple and throws up roadblocks for non-Apple products. The problem is, most consumers wouldn't know about issues like these and would naturally blame the new device. But we're always here to provide support in this type of situation.

Issues like this are always simple to solve once you are able to nail down the nature of the problem. In this case, we were able to get things up and running without too much trouble.

As for the power cord, I doubt it would make any difference. The StreamPlayer draws very little power, so it doesn't require a mega power cord.

- Jim