I am looking for strickly a music server for one location. I have about 600 cd's and am sick of buying storage for them and also looking through my collection for a specific song. Streaming from my computer is not an option and I would like the interface to be able to go through my TV. I am bit of an audiophile so sound quality is important. My questions are :

What is the best option to rip cd's at high quality and have a user friendly interface?

What kind of storage would I need as well as what bit rate should I rip the cd's without a noticable drop off in sound quality?

Please let me know of any options on the market. I am looking at a budget of 1K but willing to go up if there is a better solution with a higher price.

Thanks.

Go to a local dealer and look at the Escient SE-80. You would likely have to delete any tracks that you may not listen to to save space on the hard drive... it's only an 80 gig hard drive. You would need to connect to your computer so that the unit could down load the title, text and cover art, but that's all that connection would be used for. Escient has a very good GUI too. It's the closest thing I can think of to what you described.

Best of luck.

Kevin

Is there any way to add additional storage to the escient? How much will 80G hold?

Thanks for the response!

Dr...

Here is a link for you to look at:

http://www.escient.com/products/CompareDirect.pdf

I am too looking at the escients. There is another thread about the escients that I am looking at too:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=843295

R~

Hey Doc,

Here's a link that may help you.

http://www.escient.com/products/se80.html

You can see there that 80G will hold 538 hours of music at it's lowest compresion rate of 320Kbps and 897 hours@ 192Kbps. That's a lot of music especially if you're a little selective about what songs you store.

Kevin

Sorry! Forgot to answer your other question. As far as I know (I'm no computer expert), it would be difficult. I wouldn't suggest trying it because you would certainly void any warranty. I would encourage you to just buy a higher capacity unit from Escient through an authorized dealer. The beatiful thing about this product is it's ease of use and lack of hassles. If you need more capacity after your purchase, any of the escient products can stream from files on a networked computer in addition to it's onboard HDD.

Kevin

I think I'm missing something here... why would somebody pay $1000 for one of these devices when an HTPC with more storage and functionality can be built for under $600?

I think I'm missing something here... why would somebody pay $1000 for one of these devices when an HTPC with more storage and functionality can be built for under $600?

Crispyfish,

I'm not looking to debate the subject but you should keep in mind that there are a lot of people out there who may not be as tech saavy as you may be. A person might be looking for a piece of equipment that is pre-configured, software in place and doesn't come with issues that come along with using a PC to serve up data to an A/V system. What is right for you may not be for the next person.

Respectfully,
Kevin

Well, that's certainly true. :)

drmikjones,

If you want a device to play audio with out having to use a external video display, then consider Roku Soundbridge (https://www.rokulabs.com/) or SlimDevices Squeezebox 3 (http://www.slimdevices.com/). The Squeezebox also offers more options with multiroom playing.

Cons: Both these device how ever require a server running (24/7) to stream your music to it. E.g. Roku works with a iTunes share, Window Media Connect, FireFly, MusicMatch; and SqueezeBox uses their SlimServer software (which has a lot of user generated plug-ins).

If you do not want a server running, the SqueezeBox is known to work with certain NAS devices i.e. people install the slim server on the NAS device itself.
(in theory, it is also do-able with Roku using FlireFly Media Server http://www.fireflymediaserver.org/)

(See http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=18445)

A ready-made solution (minus HD) at the top of your budget would be the bundle deal from Infrant ReadyNAS (i.e no PC required):
http://www.shop-infrant.com/NV0TB1SB.htm

(you will have to buy and insert the HDs).

Not just in theory ... Any NAS that has UPnP media sharing enable will work with the Roku also. You may find Firefly under it's original name, which is mt-daapd, they are the same.

Slimserver is now also shipped with many NAS today ... But it can by installed afterward depending on the NAS solution. Since it only works with its proprietary protocol, you must either get a NAS with a preinstalled Slimserver or one that can be hacked to install one.

If you only listen to only radio. SqueezeBox v3 supports a direct (without any server) to Pandora. Roku has the same concept with their in house radio service which is in beta now.

Patrick S.

I think I'm missing something here... why would somebody pay $1000 for one of these devices when an HTPC with more storage and functionality can be built for under $600?

The other reason is the GUI that Escient provides. When I first brought our Escient home, the Mrs. was like "what do you have now?" After a quick tour, she was off and running the system, building playlists, etc. When I sold our unit to upgrade to the MX-531, she was distressed about us being without it for one week :) There units just work, and are VERY easy to work. I have yet to receive a complaint in my own home or from any of my customers. The other beauty is continued support. I was scanning through my Escient after the last software update and came upon a new Jukebox feature. They keep adding goodies!