Streaming questions.
- Thread starter BlueFox
- Start date
Jack
Active member
Yes you can use it to Stream. The setups for Qobuz, Tidal and Spotify are already embedded in the Lumin app. As to free, not that I am aware of the cheapest of the major ones with the largest catalog is Spotify but it is only 320 mps. Qobuz is the cheaper of the FLAC level services and also has Hi Res versions of a lot of titles.
You do not need a computer for Tidal / Qobuz / Spotify Connect, or app that can run on an iPad and allows AirPlay.
Spotify free account does not work on the Spotify Connect in Lumin or any other standard Spotify Connect implementations from other network streamer manufacturers. A paid Spotify Premium account is required.
However, I've not really tested using a free Spotify account then AirPlay to Lumin. I suspect this might work.
According to some report YouTube is actually the most popular music streaming service. I'm sure YouTube on iPad can AirPlay to Lumin. I test this quite regularly.
I think you can have free trials of all major music streaming services.
Spotify free account does not work on the Spotify Connect in Lumin or any other standard Spotify Connect implementations from other network streamer manufacturers. A paid Spotify Premium account is required.
However, I've not really tested using a free Spotify account then AirPlay to Lumin. I suspect this might work.
According to some report YouTube is actually the most popular music streaming service. I'm sure YouTube on iPad can AirPlay to Lumin. I test this quite regularly.
I think you can have free trials of all major music streaming services.
Free streaming options (Spotify, Pandora, YouTube) have limited resolution and are not ad-free. You can try those and see if you like the result. However, keep in mind that you will be casting using Airplay or similar as opposed to a direct internet connection. Given that you are talking limited resolution anyway, that might be fine.
You can use internet radio and stream radio stations from around the world. However, the resolution will likely be similar to MP3.
If you want CD-quality or greater, you will have to pay. If you subscribe to Amazon Prime you can have a $4/mo. Unlimited Music account with one device. But in order to connect it digitally to the Lumin you will need another device like the Echo Link.
If you are in the habit of purchasing discs/albums, a paid streaming option will save you money plus will give you immediate access to millions of albums.
And once you get used to INSTANTLY stream ANY music you want, you might likely not care that you don’t actually “own” the disc.
You can use internet radio and stream radio stations from around the world. However, the resolution will likely be similar to MP3.
If you want CD-quality or greater, you will have to pay. If you subscribe to Amazon Prime you can have a $4/mo. Unlimited Music account with one device. But in order to connect it digitally to the Lumin you will need another device like the Echo Link.
If you are in the habit of purchasing discs/albums, a paid streaming option will save you money plus will give you immediate access to millions of albums.
And once you get used to INSTANTLY stream ANY music you want, you might likely not care that you don’t actually “own” the disc.
CPP
Active member
No computer used on my end AT ALL. Lumin to the world via Ethernet and to Tidal and Qobuz.
A desire not to put “a computer into the audio setup”, as you say, and use it as a pure streamer is why I went with Lumin. I’m sure Roon is great [never tried it, I used Audirvana when I had a computer and NAS in the mix], but for audio setups without a computer you need a streamer with its own app that can access the services you want, or that can work with *any* UPnP/DLNA controller, or another form of “casting” protocol (e.g., Chromecast or Airplay).
After much research, Lumin was the answer for me: not only is there robust support for UPnP/DLNA so that I can use other controller apps (e.g., mconnect), but the native Lumin app is excellent too with great support for TIDAL and Qobuz. And Lumin products support so many other ways to connect your streaming-service-of-choice (e.g., Airplay, Spotify Connect, and, although I don’t use it, as a certified Roon Endpoint).
I’m so glad Lumin keeps updating their app. I know most audiophiles with their huge libraries of locally-stored music are often tied to their computers/NAS/cores and 3rd-party server/controller software like Roon. But for my setup, I don’t want or need a Roon subscription; I seriously don’t think Roon Labs’ business model is sustainable anyway, in its current incarnation.
But for a stand-along setup (ie., no computer needed) the Lumin app and device firmware is consistently updated so that everything keeps working even as the streaming services innovate or your controller hardware (e.g., iOS or Android devices) evolve.
Cheers,
M1k3
Computer - Wikipedia
Walks like a duck, looks like a duck. Whether you want to call it a duck or not is inmaterial: it is a duck!
Agree!
We must agree that Lumins, Aurenders and other digital music players are computers. In the case of these devices, they have been configured for the sole purpose of processing files to reproduce music.
No sense in arguing whether these are/are not computers.
No sense in arguing whether these are/are not computers.
CPP
Active member
Yep everything we use today electronically is a computer of sorts like a microwave, digital toaster oven, the new $$ fridges and ovens and they are called embedded computes. What is an embedded computer? | FierceElectronics
Shadowfax
Well-known member
I use my 2 OPPO 93s to stream my free Pandora. I hear a commercial a few times a year. (it all depends on the device used for Pandora, my PC throws many commercials at you. I created about 12 stations and let them shuffle.
It is surprising how things have changed. At one point Pandora was king of the hill on internet streaming. I used to play my stations in my car via BT all the time. Today they have the lowest resolution out there (like 64kbps but not sure). Even their paid premium level is 192kbps vs 1411 kbps (CD quality).
The OP asked about best way of streaming without a computer.
The more I think about it, I am coming to the conclusion that this is an oxymoron.
If you want to stream, you will have to have a computer somewhere. It can be a stand alone computer (Apple, PC), or it can be an embedded computer like the ones that reside inside many devices that don’t look like a stand alone computer (look at it this way, if it can accept an Ethernet cable or a USB data cable, there has to be a computer lurking around somewhere).
There are digital audio devices out there costing tens of thousands of dollars that get superb reviews that are nothing more than computers inside cases that look like audio gear.
Today’s Computer audio is a far cry from what it used to be. Long ago you almost had to be an IT guy to make it work. But today, these nice looking computers inside audio boxes have taken much of the pain out of it.
The more I think about it, I am coming to the conclusion that this is an oxymoron.
If you want to stream, you will have to have a computer somewhere. It can be a stand alone computer (Apple, PC), or it can be an embedded computer like the ones that reside inside many devices that don’t look like a stand alone computer (look at it this way, if it can accept an Ethernet cable or a USB data cable, there has to be a computer lurking around somewhere).
There are digital audio devices out there costing tens of thousands of dollars that get superb reviews that are nothing more than computers inside cases that look like audio gear.
Today’s Computer audio is a far cry from what it used to be. Long ago you almost had to be an IT guy to make it work. But today, these nice looking computers inside audio boxes have taken much of the pain out of it.
Actually the question, I believe, is to avoid using a generic computer (PC / Mac) for audio purpose. That is a very valid question, unless people believe bits are bits and nothing with noise, power, not even ground loop should affect your digital audio quality.
Even though we do not make those really expensive audiophile PC and they are our competitors (in a broad sense), their products are more than computers insides pretty cases. They have to be fanless (I always tell people to use fanless NAS or computer). Usually they have modified the power supplies. Usually the OS they ship with are tuned or customized in some ways. Sometimes they have audiophile clocks insides. Often their motherboard is selected based on their noise output. At least one manufacturer stated they underclocked the CPU to a specific value to have the best USB audio output from listening tests.
Yes, people can DIY most of these things themselves, but this is no longer a generic computer.
Even though we do not make those really expensive audiophile PC and they are our competitors (in a broad sense), their products are more than computers insides pretty cases. They have to be fanless (I always tell people to use fanless NAS or computer). Usually they have modified the power supplies. Usually the OS they ship with are tuned or customized in some ways. Sometimes they have audiophile clocks insides. Often their motherboard is selected based on their noise output. At least one manufacturer stated they underclocked the CPU to a specific value to have the best USB audio output from listening tests.
Yes, people can DIY most of these things themselves, but this is no longer a generic computer.