I want the best sound quality AND ahi-style jukebox interface on my flat screen

[Dan360]

I bought a SB3 and was very happy to pump the mp3's in my office through my
HT. I really wanted an interactive display on my TV but chose SB3 bc of the
audiophiles who raved about it. FYI - I am a discerning music fan but I do
not know the science/technology/lingo behind it - thus I am not an
"audiophile." I passed on the HomeDock deluxe which had the exact on screen
interface I wanted bc it was reviewed as inferior sound. I passed on the
Sonos bc it is silly how expensive it is.

I do not like the SS interface (I must try Moose soon). I love Helium
(beautiful) and J. River. I just bought the new Yamaha RX-V2700.
Supposedly it has a mp3, networking super system.

Here is what I want.
Laptop Control (browser) I want to control my HT from my laptop on the
couch. I want to interface and pick songs from my laptops web browser. If
I chose I want to have that screen projected on the TV.

Remote - I want my harmony 880 to select from a TV interface and let the TV
stay on displaying the album art, song list, lyrics etc (ie Helium or J.
River). If I so choose I want to have that same interface on my laptop and
not have to use or have on the TV.

Does the SB3/SS simply stream to the receiver or is there something more
magical. What if I rolled a PC up to the receiver and plugged it into the
USB on my Yamaha 2700.

I know I am all over the place. I have decent equipment and I am above
average in tech savvy. I just have too many gaps in my knowledge on this
new area (home theater). Thanks in advance for the help.

Dan360

[highdudgeon]

Maybe you should look at the McIntosh music server. Why on earth would you want to sit with a laptop? Or roll a computer up to your system? The Transporter (note bene: I represent the product) is extremely flexible, as is the Squeeze Box. However, if you must have a television interface -- and if you have five grand in your pockets -- then McIntosh is probably the way to go.

Personally, I'd rather have a SB3 or Transporter and a few hundred extra CDs.

But, from your description, you want informatio on a TV screen rather than on the Slim Devices screen. Fair enough. In that case, McIntosh is about as high in quality as you can get. Their custom TV interface is pretty nice and controlled by a remote -- not a laptop. There's a 300gb HD (unless they've increased it recently) and audio output is on par with their top of the line CD player...which is very good indeed. But, again, you gotta pay and you do not get Slim's flexibility and other features.

Maybe you should just kick back and spend some more time getting used to the SB3 and remote control. Far more relaxing than picking through a web interface.

What equipment, exactly, do you have? That has something to bear on your budget.

I bought a SB3 and was very happy to pump the mp3's in my office through my
HT. I really wanted an interactive display on my TV but chose SB3 bc of the
audiophiles who raved about it. FYI - I am a discerning music fan but I do
not know the science/technology/lingo behind it - thus I am not an
"audiophile." I passed on the HomeDock deluxe which had the exact on screen
interface I wanted bc it was reviewed as inferior sound. I passed on the
Sonos bc it is silly how expensive it is.

I do not like the SS interface (I must try Moose soon). I love Helium
(beautiful) and J. River. I just bought the new Yamaha RX-V2700.
Supposedly it has a mp3, networking super system.

Here is what I want.
Laptop Control (browser) I want to control my HT from my laptop on the
couch. I want to interface and pick songs from my laptops web browser. If
I chose I want to have that screen projected on the TV.

Remote - I want my harmony 880 to select from a TV interface and let the TV
stay on displaying the album art, song list, lyrics etc (ie Helium or J.
River). If I so choose I want to have that same interface on my laptop and
not have to use or have on the TV.

Does the SB3/SS simply stream to the receiver or is there something more
magical. What if I rolled a PC up to the receiver and plugged it into the
USB on my Yamaha 2700.

I know I am all over the place. I have decent equipment and I am above
average in tech savvy. I just have too many gaps in my knowledge on this
new area (home theater). Thanks in advance for the help.

Dan360

[Dan360]

highdudgeon, you nailed it. I just want a high quality TV interface. A laptop would be fine bc I always have mine with me on the couch (workaholic).
My system: yamaha rx-v2700 receiver, 60inch Sony SDRX tv, sony cd changer, 5 klipsch and 2 cambridge soundworks speakers.

I cant stand changing the song with the SB3 display.

the SB3 can connect my receiver to the network but what do I do with that? can the receiver help me call up an interface on the TV (which is hdmi connected to the receiver).

How can I use Harmony or J. River to control SS and have that interface either on my laptop as I sit on the couch or on the TV?

Thanks.

[azinck3]

highdudgeon, you nailed it. I just want a high quality TV interface. A laptop would be fine bc I always have mine with me on the couch (workaholic).
My system: yamaha rx-v2700 receiver, 60inch Sony SDRX tv, sony cd changer, 5 klipsch and 2 cambridge soundworks speakers.

I cant stand changing the song with the SB3 display.

the SB3 can connect my receiver to the network but what do I do with that? can the receiver help me call up an interface on the TV (which is hdmi connected to the receiver).

How can I use Harmony or J. River to control SS and have that interface either on my laptop as I sit on the couch or on the TV?

Thanks.

I don't share your priorities or viewpoints on the control issue but I won't try to talk you out of your views . We could probably discuss all sorts of crazy workarounds but I think the bottom line is that the SB is not the best product for what you're trying to do. There's currently no beautiful and fast graphical interface such as what you describe yourself wanting. One could be developed. But there's no way to do quite what you want with a squeezebox at this time.

Edit: I forgot--there's possibly one approach you could take. It'll take some work on your part. And it's a bit overkill. But it potentially provides a nice frontend for controlling a squeezebox (and about everything else in your house!) like you want. www.plutohome.com

I've been wanting to give it a try for a while but haven't. If you do, let us know how it goes.

[highdudgeon]

The McIntosh is right around five grand new, so you could get one used for around three grand -- if you can find one. Actually, it is a powerful device. It's got ethernet outputs that you run to your computer and, get this, then access from a remote computer. But, you like it or hate it. I happen to like the McIntosh aesthetic. Their build quality is absolutely second to none. Sonically, people might hem and haw and most audiophiles seem to have a preference for exotic items, but, sonically, you don't get much better than McIntosh. So, that is a possibility for you.

highdudgeon, you nailed it. I just want a high quality TV interface. A laptop would be fine bc I always have mine with me on the couch (workaholic).
My system: yamaha rx-v2700 receiver, 60inch Sony SDRX tv, sony cd changer, 5 klipsch and 2 cambridge soundworks speakers.

I cant stand changing the song with the SB3 display.

the SB3 can connect my receiver to the network but what do I do with that? can the receiver help me call up an interface on the TV (which is hdmi connected to the receiver).

How can I use Harmony or J. River to control SS and have that interface either on my laptop as I sit on the couch or on the TV?

Thanks.

[FZfan]

I just skimmed the post so please don't flame me if I missed something...

I use both my Sony PSP hand held and my laptop to control my SB3 and Transporter. There is an extensive step by step thread but it's basically opening up your browser of choice and setting up a favorite that looks something like this http://(the Slim Server IP address)the server default port)/, it would look somethign like this http://192.173.1.6:9002/. The server IP can be found at the bottom of the Slim Server home/basic settings screen on the host computer and the port is a user selected from the home/Network screen. You can use any of the included skins and other skins you can get online. There are many threads here that do a much better job of explaining this.

On the subject of the McIntosh music server, most of my system is Mac (MX119 pre, MC207 amp, MVP861 universal player and MDA1000 dac - fed by a Transporter) so I can attest to the excellent Mac build quality and I'm very happy with how my system sounds. The Mac music server is a great piece and sounds fantastic; some folks are running into storage limitations with the 300G drive but the TV interface is very, very nicely done.

Take care!