Logitech Squeezebox Duet
Manufacturer: Logitech Part number: 930-000033
- More product information:
- Editors' review
- User reviews
- Specifications
- Manufacturer info
- Bottom Line:
- With its excellent iPod-like remote, the Logitech Squeezebox Duet is an ideal way to stream the full range of digital music--including files on your computer's hard drive, premium subscription music services, and free Internet radio--to your living room stereo system.
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CNET editors' review
Logitech Squeezebox Duet price range: $339.99 - $429.99
- Reviewed by: John P. Falcone
- Edited by: Matthew Moskovciak
- Reviewed on: 03/04/2008
- Updated on:05/30/2008
The good: Network digital audio system includes excellent wireless remote with color screen and scroll wheel control; supports Wi-Fi and Ethernet home networks; compatible with virtually all non-DRM audio file formats, provides access to PC-based music files (on Windows, Mac, and Linux machines) as well as PC-free Internet radio, podcasts, and premium online music services including Rhapsody, Sirius, and Pandora; excellent online account integration; expandable to multiple rooms.
The bad: Minor improvements could make the already good interface even better; scroll wheel isn't quite as responsive as the iPod's; no compatibility with DRM music files such as those purchased from iTunes or Zune online stores; setup process could frustrate those who aren't tech-savvy.
The bottom line: With its excellent iPod-like remote, the Logitech Squeezebox Duet is an ideal way to stream the full range of digital music--including files on your computer's hard drive, premium subscription music services, and free Internet radio--to your living room stereo system.
Editors' Note: This review has been updated to reflect the addition of Sirius Internet Radio support, which was added to the Squeezebox Duet via a firmware upgrade in April 2008.
Digital audio is great--especially if you've got a multigigabyte music collection sitting on your computer, or you subscribe to an "all you can eat" music service like Rhapsody. The problem, for a lot of people, is that they're stuck listening to all that great music on the tinny speakers of their computer--or perhaps patching the laptop into their living room stereo system. Dedicated audio streamers have helped somewhat, but they have tiny little screens, which--like docked iPods--aren't very useful if you're sitting on a sofa across the room. And the best solution to date--the excellent Sonos Digital Music System--costs a pricey $1,000 for a two-room bundle. Enter Logitech's Squeezebox Duet: the $400 network digital audio streamer employs a winning handheld remote with a brilliant color screen (not unlike an iPod) that lets you navigate your entire music collection--including several online services and the majority of free Internet radio stations--from the palm of your hand, while you hear the music from the big speakers of your home stereo.
The hardware
The Duet is so named because it's a two-part system: the Squeezebox Receiver base station and the Squeezebox Controller remote. The base station is a nondescript black brick that pulls audio from a networked PC (Windows, Mac, or Linux) or the Internet via your Wi-Fi or wired Ethernet home network. The single button on the front of the base station is used to manually sync it to the network during setup. In addition to the Ethernet jack, the rear panel boasts both analog stereo (red and white RCA jacks) and digital (coaxial or optical) jacks. That means you can output your music to pretty much anything you want--be it a high-end AV receiver, a lowly boombox, or a pair of PC speakers--so long as it has an auxiliary input jack. There's no power button, but you can shut it off via your computer (more on that later) or the remote.
Speaking of the remote--the "Squeezebox Controller," that is--it's the real innovation here. Beyond the 10 buttons controlling standard functions (volume, play/pause, track forward/reverse), it features an iPod-like scroll wheel and a brilliant 2.4-inch color LCD screen (240x320 resolution, 256,000 colors). That puts the song navigation where it belongs: in your hand, instead of a small LCD readout halfway across the room. In addition to the wheel, the menu navigation is also largely iPod-like, so anybody who's familiar with Apple's ubiquitous music player should be able to pick up and use the Squeezebox Duet with no trouble. That said, the Controller's scroll wheel isn't quite as good as the Apple version: it's an actual wheel, not the solid-state touch-sensitive version on the iPod, and it lacks the iPod's speed-sensitive ability to quickly jump up and down through long lists.
The Controller includes a rechargeable lithium-ion battery (it's removable, too, so you can replace it a few years down the line when it eventually expires). The included charging station is heavy and metallic, so the remote won't be tipping over when docked. Interestingly, the Controller also includes an SD slot behind the battery compartment, a standard 3.5mm headphone jack, an IR transmitter, a small speaker (for menu clicks and other feedback), and a three-axis accelerometer (a la the Wii controllers). Few of those features have even been tapped yet, but they show how much room the controller has to grow with future firmware upgrades, both from Logitech and the avid developer community that's been active in developing past Squeezebox products. (Both the Receiver and Controller are firmware upgradable--just choose the "update" option on the controller menu for an automatic download.)
The Squeezebox Duet is an expandable system, so the two components are also available separately: add additional Receivers for $150 each and additional Controller remotes for $300 (thus, you're saving $50 by buying the Duet bundle). Moreover, the Duet system has been designed to be backward compatible with earlier Squeezebox models. That means that the Squeezebox "Classic" and the high-end Transporter can double as receivers within a home network, and the Controller remote can interact with those models as well. Logitech recommends not exceeding six to eight Squeezebox nodes (Controllers and Receivers total), after which the bandwidth constraints are likely to overwhelm most home networks. But if you're going for a home music system larger than that, you probably should already be considering stepping up to the Sonos Digital Music System anyway.
Features
The Squeezebox Duet can draw audio from two main sources: the Internet or a networked PC--Windows, Mac, or Linux. The breadth of the online sources is impressive and varied:
Online music services: If you like online music services, chances are you'll love the Squeezebox Duet. Thus far, supported services include Rhapsody, Sirius, Last.fm, Slacker, MP3tunes, Pandora, Live365, RadioIO, and RadioTime. (These are mostly premium services, but all of them offer a free trial period.) Also available is the complete catalog of the Live Music Archive, a free resource that includes thousands of live concert recordings.
Internet radio: Prefer free online music? The full panoply of online radio is available. Either access Shoutcast servers (divided by region or genre), or add your own bookmarked favorites through the SqueezeNetwork interface (see below).
Podcasts: As with the Internet radio bookmarks, you can add the feeds for your favorite podcasts on the SqueezeNetwork home page.
You'd think that controlling access to that wide range of online music sources would be a challenge, but Logitech and Slim Devices couldn't have made things simpler. All of the online music sources are aggregated under a single online location called SqueezeNetwork. Set up a free account (it takes about 30 seconds, and you don't need to give more than your e-mail address), and the SqueezeNetwork service provides a single location to coordinate everything: all of your account information for any of the premium online services to which you're subscribed. (The Squeezebox generates a unique PIN code during setup that you input to the SqueezeNetwork page, linking the two together.) The SqueezeNetwork home page is also where you add your Internet radio favorites and podcast RSS feeds (just cut and paste the appropriate URLs). You can even add text RSS feeds, for viewing Web clips on the Squeezebox Controller's screen.
In all, the SqueezeNetwork site provides a quick and easy way to pull together all of the online assets available on the Squeezebox Duet. Anything we added was instantly available on the Squeezebox remote just a couple of seconds later. Moreover, because everything is accessed via the Web, it's effectively universally compatible, regardless of what browser you're using (Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera, Safari, whatever) or from what sort of computer (Windows, Mac, Linux--or even a portable device, for that matter).
Of course, many of us have a multigigabyte library of music sitting on our computer's hard drive--and the Squeezebox can access that as well. Download and install the latest version of the SqueezeCenter software (7.0 or later). It was previously known as "SlimServer," but aside from the name change and added Duet support, it's largely the same great software that's been developed by the Squeezebox community for years. Thanks to its open-source roots, the software is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux machines (it can even be installed on Infrant NAS drives). During installation, just point the software to the directories holding your music files and playlists, and the SqueezeCenter will make them available to your Squeezebox.
A few things we liked about the software: like the SqueezeNetwork site, the controls are all browser-based, and it's very noninvasive--it doesn't change any of your file preferences or make itself the default music player. In other words, it works in concert with your existing music management software--namely, iTunes, Windows Media Player, and Winamp--so any DRM-free music and playlists you add in those programs will be instantly available to the Squeezebox as well. As a result, iPod users can continue to use iTunes for their music management, and let SqueezeCenter do its thing in the background.
Note that we specified "DRM-free music." If the Squeezebox has one caveat, that's it--by default, it can't stream any files purchased from the iTunes Store, Zune Store, or any service that uses the Windows Plays For Sure DRM scheme. (Rival Sonos and some other products support Zune and Plays For Sure files, but Apple refuses to license its FairPlay DRM--ensuring that only Apple's own Apple TV and AirPort Wireless products can handle stream purchased songs from the iTunes Store that are so encoded.) At this point, that's not a huge knock against the Squeezebox, thanks to the fact that there are plenty of DRM-free music stores online--most notably, Amazon, eMusic, and some songs at the iTunes Store ("iTunes Plus"). The DRM issue notwithstanding, the Squeezebox's file compatibility is otherwise stellar: MP3, AAC, WMA, WAV, AIFF, FLAC, Apple Lossless, WMA Lossless, and Ogg Vorbis files can all be streamed without issue. In other words, if your music files are free of DRM restrictions, there's a good chance the Squeezebox will play them.
Another advantage of the SqueezeCenter software: it's effectively another "remote control" for any Squeezebox Receiver on the network. Using the browser interface, you can set preferences on the Squeezebox from afar (change the audio outputs from variable to line-level and back again, for instance), as well as build playlists, access music services, and the like.
The Squeezebox Duet also includes a few extras. Aside from the RSS newsreader, there's built-in support for environmental sounds (babbling brook, crickets, thunderstorm, waves hitting the beach) and alarm clock functions. The background wallpaper for the remote screen can be set to a variety of colors, patterns, or photos. Default screen-saver options include a simple clock (analog or digital) or you can even pull in Flickr photo streams.
If you're an advanced user looking for more elaborate options, the Squeezebox Duet includes a wide range of software plug-ins (again, thanks to its strong support from the open-source community). But you don't have to take our word for any of this: the SqueezeNetwork site and SqueezeCenter software are both completely free, whether you have a Squeezebox or not. Feel free to set up an account (SqueezeNetwork) or download the software (SqueezeCenter) and test drive it yourself.
Performance
Setting up the Logitech Squeezebox Duet wasn't quite as smooth as our best-case scenario--the Apple TV--but it was still remarkably straightforward compared with a lot of network devices. Connect the Squeezebox Receiver to an amplifier, stereo, boombox, or anything with speakers (we used a direct hookup to a set of M-Audio AV40 powered speakers). Fire up the Squeezebox Controller remote, and log in to your home's Wi-Fi network (WEP and WPA security is supported--just dial up the password on the remote scroll wheel). Then select "Setup receiver," which links the Receiver to the Controller, and links that to the network as well.
Once the hardware is setup, you need to provide the Squeezebox with a music source. To do so, either set up the online account at SqueezeNetwork (for online music providers, Internet radio, or podcasts) or download and run the SqueezeCenter software on your computer (to access music on your hard drive). Switch between the two by accessing the "music sources" menu option. In fact, that dichotomy is the only real annoyance when using the Squeezebox Duet. Toggle to your computer, and you lose access to the online bookmarks (radio station and podcast favorites) you've set up; choose the SqueezeCenter online account, and you can't get to your local music. It's easy enough to go back and forth, but it would be even better if the Squeezebox could "see" the totality of your local and online music options simultaneously.
Similarly, the organization of the Controller's menu could be a bit better organized. "Music library" includes either your local music (via SqueezeCenter) or your Rhapsody/MP3Tunes library (if you have accounts on those services). But the latter ones are also available under "Music services." Likewise, podcasts are buried under the "Extras" menu, but--to our minds--that's a category that should be elevated up to a primary selection on the main menu. Even playing a song is a bit unintuitive--clicking the center click wheel button doesn't start playing the song, it brings you to a screen with the song data (you need to click the dedicated "play" button instead). The Controller remote was nearly always responsive, and it was easy to dial up any song, artist, or playlist. While we did experience a hiccup or two--usually when the remote was "waking up" or shutting down, we only needed to reboot the thing once (popping the battery out).
If those issues sound like quibbles, it's because they are. By and large, there's little not to like about the operation of the Squeezebox Duet. Wireless performance was largely flawless, whether streaming from online services or locally networked PCs--that's compared with other wireless music systems, which occasionally have dropouts. Rhapsody performance was particularly impressive, offering near gapless playback between tracks. Another great thing about the Duet was the ability to create an "on-the-fly" playlist, using pretty much any source available. For instance, we created a single playlist (using the "add" button on the remote) that encompassed music from our PC, Rhapsody account, and the Live Music Archive.
Conclusion
From one perspective, it's hard to call the Logitech Squeezebox Duet a groundbreaking product because it follows in the footsteps of the Sonos Digital Music System, which first appeared in 2005. Indeed, the Sonos still has a lot going for it: in addition to many of the same music services and Internet radio streams delivered by the Squeezebox, the Sonos also offers compatibility with a variety of Microsoft-blessed DRM download stores, including the Zune Marketplace. But the fact is that the Squeezebox Duet delivers much of the same functionality of the Sonos, including the option for multiroom setups, at a far lower pricepoint--and without many compromises. Existing owners--and anyone looking for a large (more than five room) whole-house audio system--will probably want to stick with the Sonos. But for everyone else--including digital music fans who've been interested in the Sonos but couldn't stomach the $600-$1,000 price tag--the Logitech Squeezebox Duet is an easy recommendation.
User reviews
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There and Back again ... a digital music tale
by tethior on May 7, 2008
Pros: Price, flexibility, open source nature
Cons: stability, expandability
Summary: In short summary:
I purchased, setup and lived with the Duet for two weeks. I then returned it.
I had three zones total (upstairs, downstairs, outside)
Duet. Two. As in ...Summary: In short summary:
I purchased, setup and lived with the Duet for two weeks. I then returned it.
I had three zones total (upstairs, downstairs, outside)
Duet. Two. As in two faced, when it worked, it was fine. And when it didnt it was frustrating.
I work in IT. I consider myself more than just "Tech Savvy". Even still, setup on this device was maddening. The Logitech tech support folk were very helpful and patient and after four hours we got it to work. When applying the multiple firmware upgrades / patches it kept losing settings and having to be reconfigured. Each reconfigure required a reboot of my router (D-link). Wireless setup is not so easy to do. Wired setup was only a little better.
The original plan was to have this setup over the wireless network. Whelp, that didnt work so well. 15 feet away from the router the signal would drop and the device would stutter / drop out. Is this the fault of the router? Perhaps. But on more than three occasions the Duet would need to be reboot to synch back into the network (or the router would need a reboot to allow it back in). So that plan was nixed for a wired solution. Purchased a network switch to reuse the network cable going to the Tivo.
Once it was up and running on a wire it was much more stable (the same could not be said for the two other zones). However, access over the remote had similar range issues. I could not sit outside and control the unit (25 - 30 feet away). And performance was intermittently slow (a consistent 15 -20 second delay was the deal breaker. Up to three minute delays did happen)
Lets talk synchronized music for a moment. Yes, the Duet did synch the playback - and it came very close to doing so well. But either network issues or something else got in the way (about once an hour a song would un-synch then re-synch). On a few occasions my local network was overwhelmed by the demand and crashed.
Lets talk NAS (Network Attached Storage). This is in place of having to leave your computer on all the time. For whatever reason the NAS would shutdown in the middle of a track or the Duet would not be able to access the NAS and throw an error (this happened three times, once requiring a reboot of the Duet). In all cases I was able to access my NAS from any of the computers in the network.
Performance. When the remote what in the same room as the router and network speeds were not in question, to scroll through my media library was not as easy as I would like. Not enough screen space (or perhaps poorly managed screen space). Then there was some lag time for the remote to catch up with my key entry. On several occasions I had keyed ahead too far and had to backtrack. In any case I was not able to navigate as well as I would have liked. The remote did fit very well in the hand and was physically well designed. Performance on the Duet was adequate. There were some audio artifacts (noise) in my FLAC files and MP3 files that did not return on repeat playback. Kind of like a juice harp being introduced to Led Zeppelin (along with cow bell). It was often enough to be noticed, but Logitech support could not explain it.
In the end I was not happy with the device. I fully support open source, but never felt comfortable with the basics of the machine to see what was developed by the community at large.
Hence I returned the Duet.
I next purchased, setup and am living with the Sonos system. The Sonos proprietary network has not given me any trouble. I had it setup and running within an hour of opening the box. The Sonos unit that is wired has an extra port and acts as a network switch so I did not have to run an extra line or buy additional hardware. Synchronized playback has yet to even hint at a problem. And while the remote is big (not quite clunky) it responds beautifully and was easier to operate. I am now looking for some GPL stuff for the Sonos as the manufacture does put some of their code out to the community.
Is the Sonos more expensive? Yes. Do you get what you pay for? In the case of the Sonos yes. But I sure do hope they come down in price and add some to the feature set now that there is another game in town!
Bottom Line: If you are using a wired system and just need one ?zone? to liberate your music, the Duet may just be the right answer for you. If you plan to fill your house with sound, don?t plan to do it with Duet.16 out of 17 users found this user opinion helpful.
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User Reviews? Let's wait until we USE one!
by kpfeif on March 6, 2008
Pros: Great Open Source Community, Terrific D-to-A
Cons: I guess iTunes DRM, but hey, that's going away, too.
Summary: Ok, first and foremost, the user "ro53ben" above is a longtime Sonos advocate and big contributor on the Sonos forum, so consider the source (google "ro53ben sonos").
For me, it ...Summary: Ok, first and foremost, the user "ro53ben" above is a longtime Sonos advocate and big contributor on the Sonos forum, so consider the source (google "ro53ben sonos").
For me, it was between the Squeezebox and the Sonos. Sonos is closed architecture and yes, awfully expensive. The Duet (which I received today) will replace my Squeezebox3. It's the perfect choice for my whole-home audio system. I just need one source to replace my 200 disc CD changer to provide music throughout the house. This fits the bill. The UI is great, bright and responsive. The setup was easy, and I'm very happy.
The Duet is $200 less than the cheapest Sonos alternative...oh yeah, you have to pay $40 extra for the Sonos charger. Add the open source community to the mix with the great plugins availabile, and it's a winner.9 out of 13 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Stellar looking interface and great functionality
by akbungle on March 5, 2008
Pros: All your music in the palm of your hand! Excellent price when compared to the Sonos or any other streaming device.
Cons: Set-up I'm sure could be easier but .....?
Summary: To "Not Entirely Convinced" the Sqeezecenter 7.0 fixes the sync issues and about the Rhapsody music service last I heard Sonos could only do one stream compared to three ...
Summary: To "Not Entirely Convinced" the Sqeezecenter 7.0 fixes the sync issues and about the Rhapsody music service last I heard Sonos could only do one stream compared to three on the Slim devices.
7 out of 10 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Siperb unit completes the Squeeze line-up
by MuckleEck on March 6, 2008
Pros: compact and easy to use
Cons: slight niggles on set-up
Summary: In particular, to "not entirely convinced", I for one am not interested in Rhapsody, Slacker or Pandora as living in Europe they are not available, so the fact the the ...
Summary: In particular, to "not entirely convinced", I for one am not interested in Rhapsody, Slacker or Pandora as living in Europe they are not available, so the fact the the squeezebox may or may not be able to stream these is irrelevant to me.
What I am more interested in is the fact that this remote gives me a visual access to my music easily in a configuarable way that I view by composer/ensemble/work/conductor or other combination without being fixed to the artist/album combination.
Finally the quality out of the duet is leagues ahead of any other simarily priced (even some more expensive) digital music systems.3 out of 4 users found this user opinion helpful.
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My patience was NOT rewarded!
by StillSilly on April 9, 2009
Pros: Connected to my wireless network immediately. Loved the connection with my Slacker account. Awesome remote.
Cons: The connection drops were maddening. The remote needed a factory reset three times a day. The range was limited to about twenty feet. The longest we could get it to play during three week trial was 38 minutes. And then it would just stop.
Summary: I was very excited when I unwrapped my new Duet. The packaging was slick and functional. The remote was awesome, with vivid display colors. It connected to my wireless network ...
Summary: I was very excited when I unwrapped my new Duet. The packaging was slick and functional. The remote was awesome, with vivid display colors. It connected to my wireless network immediately and then to my Slacker account. When I first played music, I was happy, happy, HAPPY! And about ten minutes later it just stopped. I fooled around with it, updated the software, made sure the firmware was the latest release, etc. and then got music (for about 15 minutes). Contacted support, who taught me how to easily perform a factory reset on the unit. After three weeks of frustration, I decided to return it. Not worth the aggravation. Nice try, Logitech, but the bugs are not worked out yet on this unit.
2 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Challenging set up, excellent outcome
by kosseff on August 6, 2009
Pros: Amazing access to music on the web and computer with excellent sound on your stereo.
Cons: Quite an effort to set it up. Some controls are counter-intuitive
Summary: While it didn't take long to connect to one stereo in my house and to my Rhapsody account, the computer hook-up took a bit of work and my old ...
Summary: While it didn't take long to connect to one stereo in my house and to my Rhapsody account, the computer hook-up took a bit of work and my old Motorola G router wasn't up to the task of syncing 2 Squeezebox receivers. A new Belkin N+ router solved the Wifi problem and now the system is really sweet.
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Brillant when it works a pig when it does'nt
by tricknz on February 1, 2009
Pros: Nice interface a great concept and an easy way to interface your m,usic library.
Cons: You must run a NAS and a UPS or face constant issues with connectivity services and getting this ever to work, it worked initially very well but after numerous restarts and reconfigs it seems to be getting less stable.
Summary: Great concpet sold to the mases but has numerous issues with setup and connectivity that ruin the whole concept nice try, but needs some work before this wil be used ...
Summary: Great concpet sold to the mases but has numerous issues with setup and connectivity that ruin the whole concept nice try, but needs some work before this wil be used and loved by the masses.
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Still has bugs.
by waterqueen on January 15, 2009
Pros: Good remote interface.
Accesses music from many online sources.Cons: Only works like it is supposed to about half the time.
You have to spend a lot of time tinkering with your tech setup to make this work.Summary: This is a very good product when it works. I got it to work fine as long as the receiver, the controller and my router are in the same room ...
Summary: This is a very good product when it works. I got it to work fine as long as the receiver, the controller and my router are in the same room or the very next room. The first thing Logitech support told me to do was upgrade my firmware on my linksys router, which I did. This system works on wireless g, but not on wireless N.
My frame house is exactly 1750 square feet on top of a hill with no other networks nearby. Still the remote controller has a hard time receiveing the wireless signal from the router in the back bedroom. So the music drops out from time to time. Also the controller won't work in the living room so I can set it to play a playlist, but I can't look at what is playing or change the music unless I move the controller toward the router at the back of the house. Sometimes the controller will not shut the system off, and often it won't work after it has been off a while. I learned from the support forum to take out the battery to reset the controller which I have to do just about every time I turn it on. I've had this two weeks now and have experienced a variety of little bugs in using it. I am capable of sitiing with tech support and tinkering until the cows come home. However, I just want to listen to my online music collection and have a streamer that works reliably.
I really wanted this to work because it is so much cheaper than Sonos or Linksys, but I am sending the Duet back and will make a decision between the other two systems. There is a massive online community discussing the product here.
http://forums.slimdevices.com/
So lots of people want this thing to work and they will spend endless amounts of time online and tinkering with the system. If you want to be one of them buy the Duet.1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Still trying to keep it streaming...
by daviscr on December 8, 2008
Pros: Hardware is solidly constructed
Software interface is intuitive and user friendly, albeit a bit slow
Great concept - songs on your PC, internet radio, online music - tunes your way1Cons: Set-up is NOT straightforward unless you happen to get lucky
Staying connected seems to be a fragile and tenuous thing...Summary: Yes, I am tech savvy - and I still haven't gotten this reliably working (even for 2 days in a row) 7 months after owning it and many calls ...
Summary: Yes, I am tech savvy - and I still haven't gotten this reliably working (even for 2 days in a row) 7 months after owning it and many calls to tech support and lots of fiddling. I have updates software and firmware many times, turned encryption off, changed channels, added a hi-gain directional antenna, and reset/rebooted/re-initialized so many times I know the routine by heart. Crutchfield told me to request a replacement from Logitech but I haven't been able to convince them to do that yet either... I love this thing when it works - it excites me - but time actually streaming me music so far has been less than 6 hours total I think... then it burps, loses connectivity, and has to be re-booted 3-4 times before it connects again. Next I am buying a wireless repeater to boost the signal or even get close enough to stick a hardwire into it, in hopes it will behave and stay connected. Gee, by the time I've done all this guess I could've bought a Sonos after all, but it's too late to return it now.
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Flawed not an improvement on previous models
by iansmccarthy on March 9, 2008
Pros: When it works it is great for streaming high quality audio files
Cons: Much worse connectivity than the earlier models
Summary: The Squeezebox is great when it works. Unfortunately from 60 feet away neither of the two new receivers that I purchased will connect for more than a few moments at ...
Summary: The Squeezebox is great when it works. Unfortunately from 60 feet away neither of the two new receivers that I purchased will connect for more than a few moments at a time, whereas the Squeezebox 3 that they replaced did so without difficulty. Normally you expect new models to have better performance than older ones but this does not appear to be the case in this instance.
4 out of 9 users found this user opinion helpful.
Specifications
- Manufacturer: Logitech
- Part number: 930-000033
- Description: Squeezebox Duet consists of a multi-room Squeezebox Controller & charging stand, and a Squeezebox Receiver. The multi-room controller with 2.4-inch color display makes it easy to browse playlists, albums, artists, and more. Even search by name. Convenient scrollwheel, simple menus, and intuitive buttons make navigation a breeze. Expert engineering and sophisticated audio rendering technology provide sound clarity to please even the most demanding audiophile. Advanced 802.11g wireless technology eliminates the need to string wires everywhere just to listen to the music from your computer. And setting up an additional room is simple as pushing a button - even on secure networks. Access millions of songs, thousands of Internet radio stations, and music service providers such as Pandora, Rhapsody and Slacker, without ever turning on your computer using SqueezeNetwork, the unique Internet service. Even your personal music collection can be stored online in an MP3tunes music locker and played through your Squeezebox. Connect the Squeezebox Receiver to your stereo or powered speakers and create a musical oasis. Add additional Squeezebox Receivers and listen to a different song in each room, or synchronize them and hear the same music everywhere.
General
- Product Type Network audio player
- Width 6.1 in
- Depth 4.4 in
- Height 1.1 in
- Enclosure Color High-gloss black
Audio System
- Sound Output Mode Stereo
- Total Harmonic Distortion 0.002 %
- Additional Features Upgradeable firmware
Connectors
- Coaxial Digital Output Yes
- Optical Digital Output Yes
Network Player
- Network player type Network audio player
- Network player functionality Digital audio playback, Internet radio playback
- Supported digital audio standards AAC, MP2, MP3, PCM, WAV, WMA, AIFF, FLAC, Ogg Vorbis, Apple Lossless
- Connectivity Wireless / wired
- Connectivity protocols IEEE 802.11g, IEEE 802.11b (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.3 (Ethernet), IEEE 802.3u (Fast Ethernet)
- Sample rate 48 kHz, 44.1 kHz
Remote Control
- Remote Control Remote control
- Features LCD display
Connections
- Connector Type 1 x Network ( RJ-45 ) - Rear, 1 x SPDIF output - Rear, 1 x SPDIF output ( RCA phono ) - Rear, 1 x Audio line-out ( RCA phono x 2 ) - Rear
Power
- Power Device Power adapter - External
Slot(s)
- Slot Provided None
Miscellaneous
- Included Accessories Remote control charging stand
- Cables Included Audio cable
Manufacturer Warranty
- Service & Support 2 years warranty
- Service & Support Details Limited warranty - 2 years
Manufacturer info
- Logitech
- Manufacturer profile
- Browse Logitech products on Shopper.com
-
- Website: http://www.logitech.com/
- Address:
6505 Kaiser Dr., Fremont, CA 94555
