Any info regarding Touch will be appreciated.
Also, it has been a while and it is still unclear as to official release date.
I have received email a week ago from Logitech that it is about to hit the streets but shuffling through on-line stores shows empty shelves or out of stock.
:thumb:
(edit)
Just saw Streaming Players section. :duh
Please move this topic to appropriate section.
Thanks :thumb:
If anyone is holding out for one of these, here's a way to pre-order one at 25% off...
Discount codes at Logitech.com...
pm337eymx gets you 10% off
mir15 gets you another 15% off and is stackable
I believe these discounts will work on any Logitech products.
Picked one up.... great deal. :D
Pre-ordered one myself - yes, a great deal at $230! Hopefully, these will be released soon. Thanks to mdconnelly for the discounts.
Mike Fox
With shipping and tax it comes closer to $250 but still not a bad deal. How does it compare with the old Squeezebox?
It hasnt been released yet. Several delays and no release date confirmed, I believe. From what Ive read with modification to the code it should be able to do 24/192 decoding, then there was an ensuing fight about whether you could hear a difference between 24/192 & 24/96 and a discussion of whether HD Tracks hi res were actually hi res files.
Mike
I think the best it will do is 24/96 passthrough without conversion. For most of us mere mortals, that's likely more than enough. I don't know what to make of those HDTracks posts, but I suspect it'll sort itself out.
I also ordered a Touch with the sale, but who knows when we might see it. Some say within a month, others say this summer. I suspect the delay has much to do with the delayed impact of the Logitech purchase of SlimDevices on the development team. Sounds like the Touch hardware itself has been sitting in warehouses waiting for the software (v7.5 imbedded) to be fully debugged and released.
Quote from: JBryan on March 01, 2010, 09:20:52 AM
With shipping and tax it comes closer to $250 but still not a bad deal. How does it compare with the old Squeezebox?
My electronic receipt shows no tax and free shipping for a total of $229.49 - now, whether we'll see this product released any time soon is another story.....
Beta testers have been praising the sound of the Touch from its analog outs. Also, jitter is supposed to be much lower than current Squeezebox models, so digital out to a DAC should be better.
Mike Fox
How come you didnt get taxed? I did. Mike you are in NY right?
M
I got taxed as well (North Carolina). It must be in states where Logitech has a physical presence.
Can anyone comment with a similar or opposing opinion to the CNET article (http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10332579-1.html) and its comments about remote v. screen functionality? If what CNET says is true, I'm scratching my head about why Logitech didn't offer the unit with a fully featured remote; or, did the CNET writer not understand what the remote could offer?
IMHO, a fully functioning remote IS available in a number of different flavors. I'm sure from a marketing position, Logitech wanted to position the Touch as an SB3 replacement at essentially the same price. That it is and a whole lot more (well, assuming they ever actually release it ;-).
If you want a full function remote that will work with ANY of the Squeezebox products, there are lots of options including....
Logitech Controller
iPhone
iPod Touch
iPad
any laptop, desktop or netbook computer
Logitech could certainly have packaged the Touch with an equally robust remote but it would have significantly increased the cost. Or, they could have taken the Duet route and kept the Receiver and provided a substantially better Controller.
But, as an owner of both an SB3 and a Duet, I personally think the Touch is exactly what I want. Higher audiophile appeal than the SB3 or Duet, far lower cost than the Transporter. Personally, I want a display on the unit attached to my system and I want a high functioning remote. I most often use iPeng on my iPhone which makes for an excellent remote. My take on the CNET article is that the author is not a Squeezebox owner.
Mike, how do you mean higher audiophile appeal? Is the audio quality of Touch supposed to be better than previous consumer level squeezebox products?
A friend used his iPhoney to control my Sonos last week. It was a very cool interface. I'm sure the Squeezebox iPhone app is similarly beautiful.
Quote from: Deton Nation on March 01, 2010, 11:25:46 AM
How come you didnt get taxed? I did. Mike you are in NY right?
M
I'm from Jersey....are you from Jersey?? (said in my Joe Piscopo voice - remember when SNL was funny?)
Mike Fox
Rich, the Touch will do 24/96 natively which puts it on parr with the Transporter IMO. I have seen posts that claim that the Touch DAC is substantially better than what is found in the SB3 or Receiver but who knows for sure. Since I use an external DAC, that is not nearly as important. It's also supposed to have better isolation that may potentially eliminate the need/benefit of a 3rd party linear PS.
It'll be interesting for sure... But for under $300, if it's an improvement over the Duet or SB3, it's a steal.
Does the Transporter downconvert 24/192 to 24/96 or does it pass the 24/192 natively?
I though I read that it did downconvert, if that's the right word.
Thanks
-Mike
Quote from: mdconnelly on March 03, 2010, 08:30:16 AM
Rich, the Touch will do 24/96 natively which puts it on parr with the Transporter IMO. I have seen posts that claim that the Touch DAC is substantially better than what is found in the SB3 or Receiver but who knows for sure. Since I use an external DAC, that is not nearly as important. It's also supposed to have better isolation that may potentially eliminate the need/benefit of a 3rd party linear PS.
It'll be interesting for sure... But for under $300, if it's an improvement over the Duet or SB3, it's a steal.
I believe the touch will work with the CIAudio linear PS which I already have for the SB3.
M
Quote from: mfsoa on March 03, 2010, 08:37:44 AM
Does the Transporter downconvert 24/192 to 24/96 or does it pass the 24/192 natively?
-Mike
I'm pretty certain that the Transporter tops out at 24/96 and doubt anyone could stream 24/192 over today's wireless.
Quote from: Deton Nation on March 03, 2010, 08:44:52 AM
I believe the touch will work with the CIAudio linear PS which I already have for the SB3.
M
I also heard that the Touch uses the same power supply as the SB3 so hopefully all those linear PSs can be used for the Touch as well although I seem to remember seeing a thread on the logitech forums that indicated that it wouldn't be necessary given the new design of the Touch. Time will tell.
Quote from: mdconnelly on March 03, 2010, 05:49:32 AM
IMHO, a fully functioning remote IS available in a number of different flavors. I'm sure from a marketing position, Logitech wanted to position the Touch as an SB3 replacement at essentially the same price. That it is and a whole lot more (well, assuming they ever actually release it ;-).
If you want a full function remote that will work with ANY of the Squeezebox products, there are lots of options including....
Logitech Controller
iPhone
iPod Touch
iPad
any laptop, desktop or netbook computer
Logitech could certainly have packaged the Touch with an equally robust remote but it would have significantly increased the cost. Or, they could have taken the Duet route and kept the Receiver and provided a substantially better Controller.
But, as an owner of both an SB3 and a Duet, I personally think the Touch is exactly what I want. Higher audiophile appeal than the SB3 or Duet, far lower cost than the Transporter. Personally, I want a display on the unit attached to my system and I want a high functioning remote. I most often use iPeng on my iPhone which makes for an excellent remote. My take on the CNET article is that the author is not a Squeezebox owner.
A large vote of thanks in appreciation for your "fully featured" response. :thumb: I've been looking at the Transporter, too. I'd like to have the screen feature of the main unit somewhat replicated on a remote, for anticipated ease of use.
An aside: after getting our butts kicked on the home front in NH for a while coping with power outages and downed trees, it's nice to have a big serving of, "Here, let me help you out";
very much appreciated.
Out today! YEah!
I'll believe it when it's in hands but can't wait. I've had one on order for awhile.
Mine just shipped!
Yeah!
http://www.logitech.com/en-us/speakers_audio/wireless_music_systems/devices/5745
Mine just shipped too
I'll race ya', Mike!
-Mike
Ships ground. All depends on from where?
Just bought 2 of these:
Fantom G-Force 1 TB USB 2.0/eSATA Desktop External Hard Drive GF1000EU
and one of these: Plextor 8X Slim DVD+RW Black
for my laptop/Touch.
The Plextor has an internal battery so I could try totally battery powered rips, if it makes any difference.
I have nothing ripped yet so I have a lot of figuring out to do (EAC? DBPoweramp? WAV? FLAC? Both? filename structure ahhhh)
So we can plug the hard drive right into the Touch and avoid using the PC to play tunes? Way cool if I understand this right. Can you stream internet radio w/out the PC on if your home network is on, with the hard drive connected to the Touch?
-Mike the PC audio noob
Hi Mike,
Sorry, but you still need a PC or some kind of processor outside the player to run the Logitech server software, "Squeezebox Server" I think they call it now. The Sonos system runs without external server.
I use dbPoweramp for ripping, and I send it to a NAS fileserver which is always on. I use FLAC at default setting 5. My file naming scheme is "[artist]\[album]\[track] - [title]" which allows me to browse my music by folder when the metadata fields are not adequate, like with classical tracks. dbpoweramp allows me to convert the flacs into mp3s or aac or apple lossless for my wife's ipod. I like it! But I haven't used EAC in a long time, so I don't know if it has improved. Hard to imagine that it has overcome dbpoweramp featires and ease of use. Plextor is an awesome optical drive. Have fun!!!
Rich
Dont upgrade to 7.5 (Slim Server) if you can help it. It doesnt play ALAC, which is most of my library.
Posted on Slim Forum. Hopefully someone will say something.
I thought I read somewhere that SlimServer also runs inside the Touch and that you could plug a drive right into it? Maybe too good to be true...
If I can find it I'll post a link.
Thanks
-Mike
You may be right. From Logitech website:
Features:
"USB host connector for accessing music and photos via USB drive or USB key"
"SD card slot for music and photos"
Page 12 of the Feature Guide (http://www.logitech.com/assets/30072/documentation.pdf) says this:
"Play Music from an SD card or USB Drive
To play your personal music collection from an SD card or USB drive:
Plug a USB drive into the connector on the back of Squeezebox Touch, or insert your SD card into the slot on the right 1. side of your Squeezebox.
Wait while the new device is installed on your Squeezebox.
2. You will see the messages "Attaching device" followed by "Starting Squeezebox Server". When those processes are complete, an IMPORTANT NOTICE screen will inform you of the Eject option.
Tap the left arrow on your touchscreen to return to the Home menu.3.
From the Home menu, go to 4. My Music > Switch Library and select your device
Wait while you see the message "Connecting to <5. device-name>..."
At the 6. My Music > Artists, Albums menu, navigate to and select the music you want to hear.
From the My Music menu, access your music collection by artist, album, or genre. Or select new music, saved playlists; or a random mix of your songs, albums, or artists. You can even use My Music > Search to find a specific selection by artist, album, song, playlist, or recent searches.
Note: Only the media that has been attached first will be available. For example, if you insert an SD card and then attach a USB drive, only the SD card will be listed as an option when you go to My Music > Switch Library.
Note: Squeezebox Touch will access music on SD Cards and USB drives. It does not support other attachable USB devices (for example, iPhones or other cellular phones, iPods, PDAs, Cameras, and so forth).
Note: To ensure proper operation of a USB drive with Squeezebox Touch:
If your USB drive has an AC power connection, plug it in. •
If your USB drive does not connect to an AC power supply, plug it into an AC powered USB hub.•
Note: The maximum supported SD card size 32GB
If the music that you want is not accessible through My Music:
Go to • My Music > Music Folder and point Squeezebox Touch to the appropriate folder on your SD card or USB drive.
To eject an attached device:
From the Home menu, select 1. Eject Device
Remove the device from your Squeezebox Touch2."
It doesn't explicitly say that Squeezebox server is running inside the Touch. But it does say that it is running somewhere, because you have to tell it to look at the USB port for content.
If Touch is running the server software, that also means it is doing the flac decoding internally. I guess processor power and size has improved drastically since early Squeezebox 3 days, but SB3 could never handle that task without dropping out.
BIG news if this is true. Good find Mike. Sorry for my previous rote answer. I hope it is wrong.
The Touch can run the equivalent of Squeezebox Server with just a USB based hard drive. How well it performs is yet to be seen. Also, you do give up the browser interface but given iPeng and Squeezeplay, that's not a great loss. You also loose some of the plugins but, again, how bad that will be is yet to be seen.
Mine is arriving on Monday but I'll probably keep it running off of a PC for awhile until I hear more feedback about it as a standalone server.
Woohoo! New Touch arrived this evening and within 5 minutes it was playing music. It took me longer to unbox it than it did to drop it on my network. It is very nicely designed. Think the size and shape of an SB3 with a larger version of the Controller built in. Quite elegant really!
There have been tons of discussions about whether it is the perfect Squeezebox and I'll leave that for others to debate. What I will say is that it appears very well designed, extremely intuitive to use - particularly if you already own a controller - and very slick to see the album artwork sitting there.
Of course, none of that matters if it doesn't sound great. I plugged it into my Oracle DAC1000 so that both it and my Duet were just a button press apart and synced both together. My first reaction was that I couldn't even tell when I switched between them. The differences were indeed subtle and not tonal in nature. But, after sitting through two albums that I know well - one of which was a 24/96 recording, I have to say that I definitely give the nod to the Touch. It is subtly more refined and defined.
I will say that the difference is not as significant a difference as between my Oracle CDT and the Duet - that difference also has some tonal differences as well as a more more refined/defined presentation. But then, that config is also using a balanced JPS Aluminata digital IC where the Duet and Touch are not.
Bottom line, if you've been on the sidelines with digital playback, you need to check out the Touch. It definitely takes the Squeezebox lineup more into the mainstream yet does so with sound quality approaching the Transporter. Couple this with iPeng on your iPhone or iTouch and you've got a great setup for an amazing price.
What I have not yet done (and probably won't anytime soon) is to attempt to run the Touch off a locally attached hard-drive. I doubt I will simply because my SB3 and Duet are also wireless and it would require a double wireless hop to go from Touch to router and back again to SB3 or Duet.
Nice teaser Mike! Thanks :thumb:
Got mine yesterday and true, w/in 5 min you are making music. (First ever squeezebox user here)
Out of the box the sound is quite good. No direct comparisons to my mid-pack Rotel 1072 CDP yet, but certainly right in the ballpark.
-Mike
Im on a Mac (G5) and mine wont play ALACs. There is a patch coming soon. The Touch is about 1/4 shorter in width. Plus you have to keep it eyesight level, otherwise the screen fades. Its prety sweet, except my whole library is ALAC, and certain computers are having issue... mine included.
M
Quote from: Deton Nation on April 13, 2010, 09:59:56 AM
Im on a Mac (G5) and mine wont play ALACs. There is a patch coming soon. The Touch is about 1/4 shorter in width. Plus you have to keep it eyesight level, otherwise the screen fades. Its prety sweet, except my whole library is ALAC, and certain computers are having issue... mine included.
M
What version of Squeezebox Server are you using? I thought they fixed that in the 7.6.0 beta release. Might be worth a try if you haven't done so yet.
Actually on the forum under Squeezebox Server in one of the threads there is a patch for Mac.
I will try when I get home.
M
Just reported on AC:
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=80053.msg764816;topicseen#new
Quote from: richidoo on April 13, 2010, 04:09:34 PM
Just reported on AC:
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=80053.msg764816;topicseen#new
Rich:
Thanks for the link. I just applied both codes at check-out and there was a zero charge for next day shipping charges.
Ken
Awesome! :thumb:
Whoa! Nice deal. I was able to get 20% off when I ordered back in February... guess I should have waited a bit longer.
I just received an e-mail to expect my Touch to arrive tomorrow! :thumb:
Ken
Ken, it will be really interesting to hear how close you think the Touch is to the Transporter - partcularly your highly modded one. Keep us posted!