ShareThisBy MIKE BERMAN
Monday, November 20, 2006
I stream, you stream, we all stream for ....well, it isn't ice cream! For some reason the folks that are busily creating new toys for us to use with our PCs are convinced that everyone wants to stream music, videos and photos from their PCs to their TVs or surround sound music systems.
Because of this I looked at several products ranging from simple tools to the Cadillac of streaming music systems, all of which have the capabilities of delivering a cornucopia of multimedia delights.
Atop the list is the Sonos Digital Music System. A ZP-80 Bundle ($999), which consists of a ZonePlayer 80, a handheld Sonos Controller and all the cables, wires and other doodads you need to stream music to your surround sound system, is not for those of us on a beer budget.
It's designed to download your favorite tunes via cyberspace from the Rhapsody Music Service or you can stream music from your PC by using a software bundle that comes with the ZonePlayer, which allows you to use your PC as a music server.
It was very easy to set up. All I needed to do was attach the ZonePlayer to my surround sound amplifier, install the software and I was in business. And, unlike several other streaming music devices, the Sonos system was able to deliver music to my home theater with virtually no "dropouts," which occur when the signal is temporarily lost or when the wireless connection to your PC or the Internet is not as reliable as it should be.
The wireless Sonos Controller lets you scroll through all the tunes available to you and stream it to any room where you have a ZonePlayer connected, or even your backyard. It can handle up to 32 rooms, delivering different streams to each one of them. Of course you'd need a ZonePlayer 80 for each of those rooms (at $349 each), which can become an extremely expensive proposition.
But never fear, there are several less costly options for those of us on a limited budget. The Netgear EVA-700 Digital Entertainer ($249) can deliver music, photos and video to your TV or home entertainment system. Although the quality of the music streams wasn't on a par with the sounds delivered by the Sonos system, I doubt that anyone would notice the difference.
Just hook the EVA-700 up to your PC or router using an Ethernet cable or add a Powerline HD Ethernet adapter kit for a high-speed wireless connection. Using the wireless adapter kit, you can have the Digital Entertainer anywhere in your home and it will still "see" your PC. It's also designed to take advantage of the new Intel Viiv multimedia technology.
Just sit back, dig out the remote control that came with the unit and scroll through all of the items available to play on your TV.
If you only want music, there's the Logitech Wireless DJ Music System ($249) and the Sirocco Wireless Audio Bridge ($140) from Sandigo. Both are easy to set up, but use different methods to stream music from you PC or the Internet to your music system.
The Logitech DJ connects directly to a USB port on your PC and uses StreamPoint software, which is compatible with all of the popular media players.. All of the music available to you is displayed on a wireless remote control. Just scroll through the selections and click. Your selections are then streamed to a small receiver hooked up to your sound system. It's easy to set up and use, but don't expect the high quality of sound you get from the higher-priced spreads. There were a few noticeable dropouts.
The Sirocco system can be connected to the Ethernet port of your computer or work with a wireless, which delivers your music streams to a wireless audio bridge that is connected to your surround sound system. The system is able to handle any type of audio file, but you have to select it on your PC to stream it to your home theater. You can also install an endless number of audio bridges throughout your house and stream audio to any of them using software that comes with the unit.
For more information on any of these systems you can visit www.sonos.com, www.netgear.com, www.logitech.com or www.sandigo.com.
