The death of Hi-Fi

nice, what about the real thing,
nando.

 

I get where you're coming from. It seems like the whole trend of digital music and Squeeze Box gadgets doesn't sit well with you.

 

I write as a great fan of the Squeezebox. It's totally changed for the better the way I listen to music.

All my CDs (some 3000) have been ripped to the hard-drive (and backed up twice) and I also use Spotify for new music. The sheer luxury of having my entire music collection available, plus all BBC radio plus the world's Internet radio (Radio Paradise and Venice Classic are my two favourites) is just too compelling.

If I can't think of what to play, I can call up a random mix, and pretty soon I'm remined of an album I haven't played in years, and can immediately play that. Similarly, with the Proms, I can listen to them over and again, at a time to suit me, so I can't imagine musical life without the Squeezebox.

Compared with other streamers, having the Server as Open Source, maintained by an army of volunteers is so much more reassuring than buying a streamer from any other company that will discontinue support as soon as they bring out the Next Big Thing. Considering how often the BBC change their access methods, it's essential the Server software is maintained.

I also play a fair bit of vinyl, but probably 80% of my listening time is through the Squeezebox.

S.