[bhakti]

It appears Logitech has dropped all the Squeezebox products as they no longer appear on their website.

Check out the slimdevices discussions:  http://forums.slimdevices.com/forumdisplay.php?2-General-Discussion

More info:  http://www.audiostream.com/content/did-logitech-just-kill-squeezebox

[WC]

Sure looks like the SB is dead. Wonder when the fire sale starts. 

[Phil A]

I'd pick up another Touch if they blew them out.  I got mine a couple of years back from Logitech with a 40% coupon and free shipping.  I have to say for the $180, it is nice.   I could always use it as an alarm clock if it was cheap enough.

[saeyedoc]

I've gone through most of those thread. Not happy since I just installed a Touch last month. Was thinking of adding another or a SB radio for another room, but I'm not spending money on a discontinued product. Thinking that a pure i-20 into a DAC/integrated might work. Could run ipeng with the player software on the iphones, ipad to access my music library.
The new UE Smart radio has been dumbed down for the masses. No random play is a deal breaker for me. 

[Charles Calkins]

I have an SB-3 music server. If it craps out what would I buy to replace it?

                                          Charlie

[srb]

Those who want one as a backup should probably consider buying one now for $240 - $250 shipped while still available from a number of retailers whose websites say it is in stock (Amazon, Circuit City, J&R, Vanns, etc.).

I think it's doubtful that Logitech will offer them in closeout if they haven't even formally acknowledged the discontinuation other than it simply disappearing from their website.

Steve

[saeyedoc]

Given that the new product is a direct competitor to the SB Radio, I would place good money that you'll never see them on Logitech's site again. The Touch is a different story, I'd like to get another one at closeout prices.

[galyons]

Sadly that is typical Logitech "throw away mouse" mentality.  They never seem committed to more complicated products.  The history is they rush a product to market or buy technology, then poorly market and poorly support.  When unrealistic revenue targets are not met, they run from the product.

Sad.  I will always wonder where the SqueezeBox would be today if it was still Slim Devices.

Cheers,
Geary

[Steidl Guitars]

Even at twice the list price, the Touch would be a remarkable value.  It's a stand-alone Linux server (albeit a bit thin for that job, but if you're careful, it works well), a wireless streamer, and a darned good-sounding source, as it sounds as good as or better than many dedicated DACs at the same price point.  In my opinion, that is remarkable bang-for-buck, without even considering that it is one piece among a larger set of fully integrated, syncable hardware. 

It has been clear since Logitech acquired Slim Devices, that they never really understood what to do with that line, and this new direction confirms that--as does the comments by members of the original engineering team.  Boo.

I can only hope that someone acquires the brand to move it forward.

[lcrim]

The real question here is whether Logitech will continue support of the Touch and for how long?.  I have two of these devices, one in each of my systems and I agree that they are a true bargain in audio but w/o support especially the firmware that the device downloads when its first configured and the connection to mysqueezebox.com that enables web services as well as the server software, the hardware is worthless.   
There are a number on this site who never miss an opportunity to complain about the "damn  Squeeze Box."
I find the hardware and software among the most reliable I have ever used.  With the EDO mod and and an asynchronous USB DAC, playback quality is simply stunning, even on 16/44.1 material and for a reasonable cost.
I'm keeping mine just as they are.  I have never heard of reliability problems w/ any Squeeze Box device but I would keep my eyes peeled for new developments.  Maybe an angel will intervene but I'm not holding my breath for that.  The pace of development in digital audio is such that something new will come along shortly.
Larry

[richidoo]

Online music services and cloud storage (Pandora, iTunes, Amazon) on wireless broadband (iPhone and Android) are what killed the Squeezebox.

As much as I would enjoy piling on Logitech for all the broken mice I have had to replace over the years, they did a halfway decent job with Squeezebox brand, considering they bought it after it was already obsolete. Slim sold out just in time. Logitech probably made some money on the tail end too.

As bandwidth continues to grow on portable devices to support HD video conferencing and entertainment,  online uncompressed music will become available everywhere. In twenty years or less we will be having this same conversation about any and all  hardware music players.  By then the vinyl loving baby boomers will be retiring from the hobby too and even more enticing virtual music services will be upon us.

What we really need for this portable music revolution is a decent sounding earbud that fits well and won't fall out!

[Steidl Guitars]

Rich, I disagree with you on many of your points (in the nicest way imaginable!).  Slim was on a roll when Logitech bought them, and Logitech left them to slowly die on the vine.  It's clear from their engineers that their group was systematically gutted from the get-go. 

Anyway, it's probably useful to think about two very different markets:  those who use SB devices to deliver high-quality music from a local server and those who simply want a box that can stream compressed music from the cloud.  Perhaps unsurprisingly, Logitech always wanted to serve the latter group, which is much larger.  However, their products were most unique and most valuable to the former group (most of us).

[Nick B]

I've had over 4 years of grief with Slim Devices/Logitech.   :duh:I'll let you all know how Sonos turns out

[Flac2Dac]

Sonos is a no-go for me; as long as they don't support hi-res. 

[HAITIMAN]

I have never had a single problem running my SB Touch, both on MAC and PC. Great device. Sorry to see it go, but the best thing is the small investment we have all made. I hope the next generation of this type of product is as good and as affordable.

[Regalma]

Took a quick look at the forum. It's true. Logitech is replacing it with more commercial product.

I guess I'm not surprised. I'm glad now that I got frustrated with mine one too many times and tried out JRiver. It not just is a lot more robust, it sounds better, a lot better. The only thing I have been using my SB for is to listen to MOG.

[sportflyer]

I was planning to purchase a SB Touch for playing FLAC files stored in my Computer . This was to be used in place of the Onkyo NR3007 network receiver ( I am currently connecting via DLNA  and using the Onkyo's internal DAC ) so that some time in the future I can add an ext DAC .  Now that the  SB line is discontinued is it still worth getting it strictly for  playing locally stored media? No internet streaming is required of the SB Touch.    Tks

[Phil A]

I was planning to purchase a SB Touch for playing FLAC files stored in my Computer . This was to be used in place of the Onkyo NR3007 network receiver ( I am currently connecting via DLNA  and using the Onkyo's internal DAC ) so that some time in the future I can add an ext DAC .  Now that the  SB line is discontinued is it still worth getting it strictly for  playing locally stored media? No internet streaming is required of the SB Touch.    Tks

I've read, but not tried it, that using the USB connection has a detrimental impact on the sound.  There are Blu-Ray players that have USB inputs if that is what you want to do.  I like the interface, size/style and internet radio in the package.  I have an upgraded power supply.  I bought it with the intent of it being an entry level device for a few years.  I am looking at other streaming options and will likely do something  in a year or so.  I can't complain for the price I paid and the use I've gotten out of it

[saeyedoc]

I was planning to purchase a SB Touch for playing FLAC files stored in my Computer . This was to be used in place of the Onkyo NR3007 network receiver ( I am currently connecting via DLNA  and using the Onkyo's internal DAC ) so that some time in the future I can add an ext DAC .  Now that the  SB line is discontinued is it still worth getting it strictly for  playing locally stored media? No internet streaming is required of the SB Touch.    Tks

It will still work for local files, even if mysqueezebox.com is eventually not supported and you lose some of the other functions like MOG, Slacker, etc.
The poster above is referring to a USB drive attached directly to the Touch. It works better if the drive is on your computer and you stream to the Touch through your network.
You could even use an old iphone, ipod touch or ipad, play it through that using ipeng and connect it to your system with something like the Pure i20 (<$100), which will bypass the DAC in your idevice. The Squeezebox server software is free, ipeng is $5-10.

[sportflyer]

I am planning to stream FLAC to SB Touch via ethernet since the music files are in my computer HDD. I do not intend to use USB drives at all.   So it looks like the SB Touch is still good for my purpose as long as I have the  SB Server s/w installed in the computer .

Actually my other alternative to SB Touch is to use my WD TV Live plus an  External DAC . In this case I will use Windows shares. However I am not sure how good the WDTV Live's internal DAC is for Audio ( it's fine for Movies ) . I guess it really does not matter if I use an ext DAC .