Logitech 930-000033 Squeezebox Duet Wireless Network Music Player

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minutes I was up and running.

But as Hamlet said "Aye, there's the rub" because a wired connection means that the system must be tethered to the router, and all the advantages of mobility within your house or office are gone. But it works, and soon I was enjoying subscription Internet radio.

And that is where my final question arises. Even with wireless connections in an iPod, satellite radio, cable radio age, do we really need this service to pump sound into a room which may be the only one in the house without some form of digital music? My guess is that Logitech will have to make a major marketing push to differentiate itself in a marketplace filled with alternative competition.

Logitech 930-000033 Squeezebox Duet Wireless Network Music Player

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Wi-Fi or other non-IR control). This further narrowed my choices to Sonos, Squeezebox, or even more expensive systems by Control4, Creston, etc...
Squeezebox won due to price.
Operation
Setup was easy but could be a little simpler. The directions could be a little better (such as indicating squeezecenter must be working for the squeezebox to find the computer). I also ha to attempt to connect several times before everything was working. I have the squeezeboxes set up wired and the remotes are wireless (obviously).
After the system is setup the operation is flawless. I can scroll through my entire library and pick and choose as I feel or have the system do a random selection (by song, artist, album, year, and genre) which I love (since I don't do playlist). The buttons allow for pause, FF, REW, home, volume +, volume - (which is nice so I do not have to go to my wall panels). There is also a scroll wheel (like an iPod). The remote can control multiple squeezeboxes but only one at a time. However, multiple squeezeboxes can be set up to play the same programming (if desired). In addition through squeezecenter (on your PC), you can control the programming on any squeezebox.
The remote's range is really good for my applications. I can go anywhere in my house or yard and still control the devices. I did notice outside the screen is barely visible. Hopefully, Logitech (slim devices) will make the screen brighter in either future versions (or via firmware upgrade, if possible).
The system does use iTunes for artwork, playlist, etc... For some this may be a con but I prefer iTunes for ease of use over WMP.
One neat feature I just found is you can access your Flickr account and stream your pictures to the remote to be used as a screensaver.
The expansion possibilities are there too. The remote as an SM slot and jack in the top (don't know what that is for). You can also upload 3rd party applications that allow the squeezebox to do other features including playing SAT radio. It would be nice if Logitech could combine the Harmony series remotes with this product ...
For the future, I intend to buy a windows home server and centralize all of my media onto that. I would then run squeezecenter on that. The forums on the slim devices website indicate this works flawlessly.
Note: I have not even tried the internet radio functions of the device.

Logitech 930-000033 Squeezebox Duet Wireless Network Music Player

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familiar to your iPod, and with all the same features such as shuffle etc.

You also have access to internet radio, and other option features. I chose to delete things like Rhapsody (why are they still in business) etc. as there is no need for anything like that.

I did have to contact customer service as there was a minor piece missing from the ac adapter. It was fully functional, but the missing piece would provide more convenience. Not only did they answer within seconds, they were going to ship the piece overnight. I told them to ship normal mail as it was not urgent, but I was so impressed with the phone call and service, it's great to know they are there in case something more major happens down the road.

This is something I will buy repeatedly even if it breaks. I am so thrilled being able to control my music and find everything I want at the touch of a button. ... and it looks really cool. Buy it yesterday and soon you'll be living in the future.

Logitech 930-000033 Squeezebox Duet Wireless Network Music Player

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just such a tiny letdown that I don't care. Another letdown was the remote control itself--I found it a bit difficult to use due to its unresponsiveness. It's iPod-like wheel doesn't work as smoothly as my iPod's and clicking on buttons sometimes needs to be done a few times before it "takes."

The system is actually in two parts: a base station, which can be connected to external audio (speakers, etc.) via several types of connections, from RCA and digital audio. The other is the remote which I mentioned. The remote is also wireless and can turn on and off the base station, which doesn't have a power switch. The base station can also be turned off and on by the SqueezeCenter running on the PC.

Honestly, this thing is easy to use and very versatile. With the online music services, I can create dynamic play lists. I can search for just about any song on both the service as well as in my PC's music library. If you don't mind the sometimes irritating unresponsiveness of the remote and the way it works to choose letters (which takes some getting used to), this is a must-have for those audiophiles who are transferring their musical collection into digital format.

Highest recommendation!

Logitech 930-000033 Squeezebox Duet Wireless Network Music Player

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step, just point the Squeeze Center application to the disc folder where the music files were, easily accomplished via the familiar browse process. With the receiver now connected to a pair of powered speakers, I picked up the remote, scrolled over to my Music Library, picked an album, and music started flowing. And sound good it does. The 24-bit digital-to-analog converters did their job. I could not discern any quality degradation from the original CD. (I chose the FLAC file format to retain the audio quality of my CDs instead of going the mp3 route. One objective is to regain the shelf space currently consumed with hundreds of CDs.)

Can't get too much easier that that! Next step? Add additional receivers and order the NAS box.

Logitech 930-000033 Squeezebox Duet Wireless Network Music Player

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rooms at the same time, but then I'm only in one room at a time, anyway. And maybe the Sonos Music System is a touch more responsive, but that's nitpicking.

I guess I should mention that like with the Sonos Music System you need a box, amp and speakers for every room you want your music in. Or you could use powered speakers. I have a second box in my bedroom and I thought of maybe getting one for my office, but I use Logitech's Z Cinéma Advanced Surround Sound System there and really like it. I guess I'm just a Logitech girl.

Reviewed by Stephanie Sane

Logitech 930-000033 Squeezebox Duet Wireless Network Music Player

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is one small problem that may bother some people, but not me. You cannot listed to Apple's DRM music on this device, but like I said, that doesn't bother me, as I've got all my music in MP3 format. If you've got a lot of Apples AAC DRM stuff, you might want to consider converting it.

Logitech 930-000033 Squeezebox Duet Wireless Network Music Player

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between that notion and reality over the years. Sure, there have been various solutions. I once had a product from X-10 that wirelessly connected my desktop to my speakers. So all I had to do was pull up Windows Media Player and play things - but the signal was poor, and the hardware poorer. It was clunky, required direct intervention, and was not the "fire and forget" solution I was looking for. We tried sharing the MP3 folders, and this worked well enough to get it to the other PCs. We ran an optical cable from the PC to the pre-amp, that got it on the stereo, but this was all still pretty clunky and dissatisfying. When the Xbox 360 Pro Value Bundle came out, we were excited about the prospect of being able to use that to play music, but (for reasons I won't waste time upon here) I'm just not a big fan of Windows Media Center. What I'm getting at, is that I had thousands of MP3s, and had downloaded thousands more over the years, and for the most part they just sat quietly and untouched on one hard drive or another. Sure, I'd toss a pair of headphones on and listen on my laptop while working on a paper, or would load a few directly into the 360 in order to pull into a game, but casual listening just didn't happen.

The Squeezebox Duet changed that moments after it showed up. I was absolutely skeptical. Despite being a big fan of the quality of Logitech products that have crossed my path as of late, such as the Logitech Harmony One Advanced Universal Remote and the Wilife DVS800I LukWerks Indoor Starter Kit, I figured this was going to be an up-hill battle. I run two different non-broadcasting wireless networks (one N, one G) with WPA2 encryption, I was out of free USB ports (I assumed I'd need one, and you don't), I was afraid the interface would be slow when burdened with so many music files (Media Center choked on them). I was, as I said, skeptical.

This is going to seem a silly diversion before I get into the installation and configuration process, but I have to say it. At a time when it seems everyone is just sealing their products in that impossible-to-open sealed heavy plastic "clam" packaging, Logitech has truly made an art of packaging and presentation. Yes, even the packaging is both aesthetically pleasing, functional, and well organized. Everything is meticulously wrapped and presented, but easy to open and access. They clearly spent some time and extra money thinking about the packaging, so I'm going to spend a few words celebrating that effort, it's definitely appreciated. Out of the box, I plugged the power in for the remote base, and for the unit itself, which isn't much bigger than two decks of cards sitting side by side. I plugged an optical cable into the box, ran that to the stereo, downloaded and installed software from the SqueezeNetwork website, and put the Lithium battery in the remote. The remote walked me through the steps of connecting the handset to the network, then had me connect to the box (easy as pressing a single button on it), then had the box connect to the network as well. That was it, the whole process took no more than 10 minutes. The software on the desktop had finished scanning through my media files, and I was instantly browsing by artist, album, genre, or even year (amongst others). Ultimately, I told it to just randomly grab songs, and that's just what it did. As fast as I could browse around, I was seeing album covers and details about the songs in the visual display on the remote. The dial-based navigation quick and easy, the whole experience smooth and responsive. Even on random, I can hit a button and see what the next several songs are going to be. With a couple presses, I can leave my hard drive and connect to online streaming radio, and/or a service like Pandora. I walked through the whole of my two-story home trying to figure out where it wouldn't work, and never had it lose connection even from a floor, several walls, and about 60 feet away.

From the handset, I can flag songs that are playing as favorites for easier future access, browse details about them ranging from the technical (bitrate, file length, sample rate), to the genre, year, album name, etc. -- everything you can detail in your ID3 tags. You've got the time played and the time remaining displayed for a given track as it rolls, as well as the track number, title, and artist name (complete with the album cover, when available). When steaming over the net, the song title and time is displayed. The roughly 1.5"(w) x 2"(h) display dims and shuts down on its own after a while, and just picking up the remote brings it back to life. The handset makes this duet the dream that it is, hard for me to imagine having one without the other.

This is the solution I've desired for years. It's a brilliant piece of engineering, and an instant hit in my household. This is one of those products that I'll be enthusiastically recommending and demonstrating to my friends.

Logitech 930-000033 Squeezebox Duet Wireless Network Music Player

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for what you get in return. The Quick Start Guide included in the package is all you need. For the physical components, it is a breeze. Install the battery into the control, snap on the connectors for the power outlets of the controller and receiver, plug them both into an outlet, and connect the receiver to the AUX jack on your stereo or standalone speakers.

At this point, you will need to sign on to the Squeeze Network web site and create your account. They use a pretty standard registration process, and you will receive an e-mail to activate your account. Once activated, you need to download and install the Squeeze Server software. I did find it challenging to find the actual link for the download. As I mentioned in my Harmony One review, Logitech could benefit from paying more attention to the usability of their software. While this is fairly minor in the grand scheme of the product, some people will be frustrated by it.

The slowest step is downloading the Squeeze Server software that runs on your PC; however, I prefer this to having a CD-ROM that I'll never use again. While CDs are not expensive, it does save the manufacturer a little as well. Once downloaded, the installation process is very easy.

Once this is in place, you are ready to configure the controller and receiver. Once you install the battery into the controller, you are prompted to begin the configuration process. The on screen instructions are pretty straightforward. The one thing that I found annoying was around entering my wireless network information. I do not broadcast my SSID, and I use 128-bit WEP encryption. I had to use the wheel to key in my SSID by hand followed by the 26 hexadecimal key. I can understand why Logitech made this trade off because you only have to enter this information once, and alternatives would require more complicated hardware either to allow a more tactile entry on the controller or USB connectivity to your PC where you could make use of a full keyboard. Neither of these complications is really worth the cost so grit your teeth and be thanking that you only have to do it once.

A final note on setup. If you are able to connect a laptop to your wireless network, you have all the technical knowledge you need. However, if you needed the "Geek Squad" or someone else to set this up for you, you should expect to need the same level of assistance to get this device up and running.

USAGE: The Squeezebox is a great "glue" device in that it brings the best of both worlds together from digital music on my PC and my stereo. I get about half of my music electronically this days, and I really only listened to it on my computer or my mp3 player. With the Squeezebox, my complete music collection is again available to my stereo even though my computer is on a different floor of the house! I also love the fact that I have access to all of the CDs that I have ripped to mp3s through my stereo without having to change discs. I also have access to my playlists that jump from one CD to the next at will. In addition, my stereo has a poor antenna. Thanks to the Squeezebox; however, I can get crystal clear reception of any radio station that streams music over the internet. So, not only do I have access to the majority of my local radio stations, I have a wealth of additional choices for national radio stations that stream. And if that's not enough, you can also access your digital subscription music services such as Rhapsody. Simply store your login information in your Squeeze Network account, and you'll be able to stream any music through your stereo that you would using Rhapsody on your PC. There are other services as well. Of course iTunes is not included, but this isn't an Apple product so shouldn't come as a shock.

I found it easy to control all of these features from the iPod like controller. A clearly marked "home" button takes you to the main menu at any point. It was a minor adjustment to get used to the wheel feature. I have owned Sandisk mp3 players which do not use a wheel but rather a directional pad. This is a minor point. What really matters is the easy of use of the menus. The wheel drives the controller's 2.4 inch display which allows you straightforward access to your music library on your computer as well as the plethora of internet radio stations. After scrolling to your selection, the center button is used for selection. Other buttons are dedicated to volume up and down, pause, previous track, and next track buttons. All operate as expected.

Another feature accessible from the controller's main menu is a series of settings that you can change. Here you find ways to change your wallpaper, date and time format, clock settings, etc. Further, you have control over screensavers, and display dimming timers, etc.

The display itself is sharp and of the same quality of the Logitech Harmony One's display. If your collection has the album art stored with the music, you will see the album cover for the song that you are playing. This works very much the same as Windows Media Mobile does on a PDA. During radio station play it simply shows an icon of a broadcasting radio tower with the station info.

CONCLUSION: As I said at the beginning, this is a music lover's dream. In a way, it made my home stereo relevant again. At the end of the day, you have easy setup and great, easy to use features. For me it is a no brainer five star item.

Logitech 930-000033 Squeezebox Duet Wireless Network Music Player

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works well via the click wheel. If you have a big music collection the wheel will speed-surf to a letter of the alphabet after a second, which allows you to find what you re looking for relatively quickly. The Duet imports your playlists from Itunes but you can also set random or user-specified playlists on the remote itself very easily. The only problem with this is if someone picks up the remote to play a different song in the middle of a playlist the entire playlist will cancel and you will have to re-set it. If you are using this for playlists at a party you re better off using a pre-designated Itunes playlist, which can all be imported into your Duet when you set it up (or whenever you rescan your music library).

This product passes the "girlfriend test"; my non-techy girlfriend was able to use it with very little instruction and is not afraid to use it on a regular basis. In fact, she's finally stopped using CDs.

Setup was relatively easy and after a couple of early crashes, one having to do with our home network, not the Duet, it has run flawlessly. I called Logitech support after the first crash and they were very helpful. We are running the Duet wirelessly but you can also use an wired ethernet connection. You can check the Logitech Squeezebox online forums for more comments about this kind of stuff The forums are farily active and Logitech employees occasionally post as well to respond to questions, etc., which is great. We've had ZERO dropouts after the first couple of setup crashes, but that may speak to the fact that our wireless router is pretty decent and the primary computer where we store our music is new and fast. The Duet streams audio from any computer on your network running the SqueezeCenter software, a free download for Mac OSX or Windows, although the switching time between source computers is somewhat slow so you'll probably want to have a dedicated PC or Mac for all of your audio files. And that computer has to be on and not in sleep mode, which means you may have to wake it up if you want to access the audio with your Duet. This is a slight hassle but can be easily overcome by setting up a dedicated always-on computer for your music or by changing the sleep settings on whatever computer you use for music storage and management. One caveat: the Duet DOES NOT recognize DRM-protected Itunes AAC files, i.e., music purchased from the Itunes store. There are apparently ways around this issue but if most of your music is stuff you bought from the Itunes store this might be a hassle for you. Start using Amazon's MP3 store already -- it's great and it's DRM-free!

There are other ways to use the Duet besides playing your own music collection. The online services right now include Pandora, Rhapsody, and Slacker. I am a big fan of Pandora so we listen to that quite a bit. One note: you have to pay a fee - $30/year as of now - to run Pandora through a Squeezebox (Pandora from a computer is free). But I love Pandora so much that I'm happy to pony up a few bucks to support what they do.

Many, many, many internet radio stations are also built into the Duet's menu and there s also a menu of stuff uploaded to the "Internet Archive," which is primarily fan-recorded live shows by lesser-known modern bands and the Grateful Dead. As a former Deadhead I was happy to be able to dial up a Dead show by menus that display the date and location of the shows. I've found that the internet radio stations don't always play reliably but this probably has more to do with particular station's streaming issues than with the Duet. You can surf for internet radio by genre or location from the internet radio top menus. We've had some fun listening to stations from around the world through our home stereo system. You can do this on your computer but the Duet menus make it more fun somehow. It's also wowed more than a few of our friends to grab the Duet remote off of the coffee table after dinner and pull up an Australian station (or whatever) on our main stereo system while we re just sitting around because it all happens so simply and with such little effort.

The Duet isn't perfect but it's pretty incredible. If you have a nice home stereo system and are starting to burn or buy music on one or more computers this is a really fun way to link those together. You re going to find yourself wanting to rip your CDs at higher quality levels which can be done in Itunes preferences menu (Advanced --> Importing) if you use Itunes to manage your music, because they sound SO much better thorough your stereo than through your computer.

Go for it! The Duet rocks!!!

Logitech 930-000033 Squeezebox Duet Wireless Network Music Player

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I've enjoyed talk radio and music of all kinds.

The receiver will also play music you've stored on your computer. While you might say, "who cares?", you would be delighted at the difference in the sound quality from computer to Squeezebox receiver. So, who cares? I do. You can also search your own music and create play lists to suit your taste.

In addition, you can listen to subscription music services, such as Pandora or Rhapsody. I have so much left to sample that it will be weeks, if ever, before I consider adding a subscription service.

Possibilities for Improvement

1. Double-check package contents to ensure a Quick Start Guide is included. I wasted many hours making setup difficult instead of a breeze.

2. A search function for Internet radio stations would be a great addition. I'd like to be able to quickly find my local classical station rather than scrolling through all available options. (Once you find something you like, you can add it to your "favorites" list. It's finding it that might take a little while.)

3. Having album covers show up on the screen is a temporarily attractive feature, but, in the long run, it takes up space for no compelling reason that I can tell. The controller has so many important functions that it seems a shame to waste space on cover graphics.

I am delighted to be able to recommend the Logitech Squeezebox Duet wholeheartedly. It's a genuine treasure!