Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion HiFi & HT Chat Moving to a Streaming Setup (A Bit of a Ramble, Sorry)

I think my ethernet connection sounds better, but i've had so many problems with it (and so little time to diagnose them) that I've fallen back to wireless and it's still pretty d@mn good :-)

Duncan

I connect my SBs on wifi with no problems and no drop outs.

If wifi doesn't work then an alternative to pulling Ethernet cable round the house is to use your mains cabling with home plugs. My Sooloos data goes via 200Mb/s home plugs with zero problems.

Has anyone tried home plugs or, say, the Netgear Powerline plugs with an MS600? I will put some Cat 6 down in due course, but I have laminate flooring where I want to run cable and....

As an aside - and I hope this will be read calmly - I have also just read that many manufacturers of streaming devices recommend connection via an Ethernet switch, rather than directly to the router, so that the device is isolated from the 'noise' of the router! Does anyone do that with Sooloos?

Richard

Thanks all I have wifi and I have no problems at all. All I have to do is get a coax digital cable, as I only have analogue or optical. Can I use any coax cable??

I must confess it sounds very good and I like the software, I find it easy to use, however, I don�t have a large classical collection. Are 100 large? I suspect not, anyway I haven�t loaded them on yet. I haven�t even seen a Sooloos let alone heard one so I can�t comment. But there is a big price difference. I think if Logitech made a bigger model with a few modifications there would be real competition.

Has anyone modified their Touch to improve the sound quality if so what have you done?

CheeRS

Shaun

Hi Shaun

Glad you have got going and are happy with it. Any reasonably well made coax cable will do as long as it's 75ohm and thus designed for digital.

Logitech do make a bigger model, the Transporter which, although is getting on a bit in design, has low jitter output and sounds superb.

There are Touch modifications (e.g. Soundcheck's Squeezebox Touch Toolbox 2.0), whether or not these made a difference is another question. Check out the Slim forum for discusions on these.

Cliff

I use these Amazon - Powerline Ethernet to connect my ID40. At the other end I have one connected to the switch and the MC200 and the TwinStore are on the switch. Works perfectly. (I also use them elsewhere about the house to provide network connection.

I use a switch as above connected to the router but that's because the router doesn't have enouigh ethernet sockets for everything.

This for me is a game-changer - if Sooloos data can pass over the mains, to be 'corrected' by an ID40 or MS600 through these devices...

I was about to buy an MC600, but now a MD600 and MS600 are looking a whole lot more attractive.

I really wish there were someone at Meridian who could see such opportunities; the sales they must lose through lack of detail, or lack of vision. One even wonders if they either use their own equipment, or live in a home?

Time to get a reality check though from Mr Heeley...

Richard

Hi Richard,

Neither the MD600 + MS600 contain a Sooloos Core so you would still need to add a another Sooloos device that does for the system to be complete (Core + Store + Source) and functional. Have a look over on Duncan's Site - Sooloos Overview for more details.



I think to be fair to Meridian here; they state that the Sooloos devices should be connected together via an Ethernet LAN. If an end user / installer wishes to extend that LAN using Ethernet over Power devices they may do so. However, Meridian are right to be cautious as a lot of these LAN 'extenders' can be problematical.

Regards,
Carl

Richard

Not all houses are suitable for 'over the mains connections' It all depends on how well it is cabled. In my case I had dropouts from using both 'homeplug' and 'Vigor' plugs. Also, and this could be a killer, it is recommended that a dedicated electric plug socket be used for the connection. This rules out plugging into 'adaptor bars'. I know this is true because in my case I couldn't get any connection whilst plugged into my Russ Andrews mains adaptor, but could when plugged directly into a separate wall socket. This was not ideal and once I started getting dropouts reverted back to wifi. As an aside my Transporter is very receptive giving a wireless connectivity of 90%+ whereas my Squeezebox 3 gave values between 35 and 55%.

Rod

Hi Carl,

Time to update signature; I have an MC200, and thought an MD 600 + MC200 too close in price to a MC600, and would replace the MC200.

Do need to see if the powerline products could work for me; have thick Victorian wall for Wifi to penetrate.

Richard

I know other people have different experiences but I have no problems at all with using the powerline adapters in the link above plugged into multiple way extensions with other things also plugged in. It might be that some sorts of extension lead with noise suppression attenuate the signal but I have mine plugged into extensions with surge protection and all is fine.

My SB Touch turns my PC on, how cool is that!