2. digital
  3. 161764-135741

Where are the cheap home streamers?

When CD players were first introduced, they were $1000 and more new.  And this was in early 80's dollars.  New ones would eventually drop to under $200, and new players that also play most all formats can still be had around at that price or less.  Sure, not the best quality, but they work well enough for most.  

The new frontier is of course, streaming.  Whether from a local host, online, and so on.  Many options in the high end, but what seems odd is the lack of budget options.  Probably the least expensive that's of decent quality is the Sonos Connect.  Oh sure, you can pair a computer or tablet with a cheap DAC, and get by.  Or roll your own with a Raspberry Pi solution.  And yes, most disc players are "smart" and can stream audio and video just fine.  Among other issues, is that the budget options are defaulting to HDMI out, and omitting Optical, Digital, and Analog out.  

There were some early efforts by Sony and Dlink a few years ago.  Both not only required a display, but were pretty terrible implementations overall.  We recently tried one of the Dayton WBA 31s.  For a mere $50, expectations were of course also modest.  As you might imagine, analog audio out is not great.  Below that of many phones we'd say.  It does however had an optical output.  A dealbreaker for most of our clients in terms of added complexity.  If produced in sufficient number, there is no good reason such a unit with a decent DAC couldn't be built and sold for $200 or so.  Or maybe someone is doing this, and it's just not well distributed?  



austinstereo

Showing 2 responses by mike_in_nc

mike_in_nc
1,166 posts
 
I agree with @unsound that the Allo DigiOne with a Raspberry Pi (prebuilt if you want) is a great solution. I have one, and I’m not positive I could tell it from the more expensive streamers I’ve used (Auralic Aries G1, Bricasti M5) in a blind test.

It’s this thing, for $215. I’d add an iFi iPower supply to it ($50). That and an SPDIF cable, and you’re done.
They also sell a "Signature" version of you want more audiophile cred.
mike_in_nc
1,166 posts
 
@austinstereo--

As for the Allo, and the Pi, and any other DIY stuff, they are great options for hobbyists. And the results are beyond what you’d expect for the money. In this case, we’re looking for ready to run. Many of our customers just want a simple solution.
Oh, I missed that you are a dealer. The Allo can be bought pre-assembled and is pretty easy to set up and use, yet still, it doesn’t have the polish of more commercial products.
I’m going to look at the Songbird myself. People ask me for recommendations, and like you, I’d like to have something inexpensive, reasonable quality, and not tweaky.



More to discover