 The Best Streaming/Internet Radio |
| Review Date: September 12, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Groch, Broomfield, CO United States |
I am a radio nut (going back to the tube days)and the Squeezebox Boom is my third internet radio. I have a Roku Soundbridge R1000 and Sangean WFR-20 as well. All have their strengths, but the Squeezebox Boom is without a doubt a significant step up; it sets a new high standard in performance, capabilities, and ease of operation.
For wireless streaming of your music collection from a PC or Mac, the Boom is best. It can handle more formats (nearly anything except DRM protected iTunes files) and works well without crashes or delays. In this the Roku is #2, and the Sangean ranks 3rd(crashes and stutters a lot).
For internet radio, they all work well. The Sangean is the only one that natively handles RealAudio Streams (like BBC) but has problems with clear channel stations. All of them pick up the stations I want without problems, so I rate this a tie.
If you want to interface with online music services like Rhapsody/Pandora/ MP3Locker etc, the Boom works great, with far more capacity than the other two. The Slimdevices/Squeezebox folks also update and improve their software far more frequently than the other two, so I expect it to remain in the lead in features and available services.
In sound quality, the Roku and Boom are both outstanding, with the Sangean good, but clearly a step lower. The Roku's subwoofer seems to go a bit deeper in my room, but the Boom is perhaps a bit more smooth and musical. The Boom uses the same woofers and tweeters as the highly rated Logitech Z-10, but with better bass (because of a larger cabinet and new amp/equalizer circuitry). They both sound absolutely great and play quite loud.
Ease of initial setup: If you are starting from scratch, I think the Sangean is the easiest to set up, if you do NOT want to stream audio from your PC...that is a real hassle. Both the Boom and Roku require a bit more work.
Ease of Use AFTER set up: Boom is best BY FAR. Not only do the menus make real sense, but the illuminated controls make it the only radio you can use easily without turning on the lights. The big control knob and back lit function buttons get you through all of the functions fast.
As a Clock Radio, the Boom has more options than the others, and the display has a huge adjustment range so it will not disturb light sleepers.
All of these radios are a lot of fun. The Boom does most, and does it best. |
Amazing sound from such a small box
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| Review Date: September 12, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Jonnio, |
I was intrigued by the idea of a network media player that had built in speakers etc, but I was completely put off by the size of the player. For those of you that don't know, the Boom is heavily marketed to be a bedside type unit (also kitchen wall/cabinet mounted). While shopping I thought I would prefer something with a little more heft at the cost of better sound, so I pretty well discounted the Boom and was looking at Audioengine and other options for powered speakers.
During my research I ended up coming across the Squeezebox Boom Whitepaper (http://wiki.slimdevices.com/uploads/a/ad/Logitech_Squeezebox_Boom_Audio_Design.pdf) and read through that. It went into a lot of detail regarding the amount of time that Logitech/Slim put into the audio output portion of the box. I also found reviews that in double blind testing the Boom was besting a lot of similar sized boxes that are more expensive and lacked network connectivity. I decided it was worth a shot.
Once I got home and go my Boom all opened up I plugged it in and was up and running in 2-3 minutes (I already have a wifi network setup with a Duet and receivers, so software etc.... had been pre-installed). I started with the Boom in our master bathroom. It was EXCEPTIONAL at filling a pretty large room (about 20x9 with 15' vaulted ceilings) I then played with it in spare bedrooms and the master bedroom. All sounded great.
Even though I usually don't need it I decided to set up some alarms to wake to. I don't leave my squeezecenter on, so I set the boom to wake up to Pandora over squeezenetwork. This took a little bit of fiddling, but once I figured out that you need to add a channel as a favorite it worked perfectly. That night I was a little bothered by the brightness of the screen, so I turned it away from the bed. However, the next morning I awoke to a sweet crescendo of Nelly :)
About the bright screen - There is already a bug report/feature request to change the behavior of the auto-dimming. Apparently people complained that it was auto-dimming too dark during beta, so when they changed it they went a little too high, and now it isn't dimming enough in certain situations. The fix is likely to be an adjustable low level that the screen dims to. In the meantime I simply overrode the brightness to a level that is acceptable at night.
Overall I must say I am more than impressed with the Boom, especially for the price. I am already thinking about adding one to the baby's room so that I have a stereo in there I can remotely control from my Duet/PC to play soothing music while still being able to listen to my tunes when I have to wake up with her.
If you are looking for a small network music player that you can move to the various rooms of the house then the Boom is definitely worth looking into...Now, don't expect room filling sound in a 50x50 banquet hall, but for bedrooms etc... it is pretty awesome. |
Set Your Digital Music Library Free!
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| Review Date: October 25, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Philip R. Heath, DFW |
The Good: The Logitech Squeezebox Boom gives you a portable unit for accessing your digital music library from any room in the house using your wireless network. It has above average sound quality and some nice extras such as a highly configurable alarm clock.
The Bad: Nothing worthy of mention.
Overall: Logitech hit this one out of the park. My detailed usage based review follows.
BACKGROUND: I have been using the Logitech Squeezebox Duet Network Music System (see my review) for over six months so I was already very familiar with the basic functionality of the Squeezebox Boom. While these two systems can work together, the main difference is that the Boom is a standalone system while the Duet requires a separate stereo or speakers.
SETUP: While you may ultimately intend to use your Boom in another room, it is best to perform the setup tasks in the same room with your computer since you will need to go back and forth between the two. Don't worry. All of the information you enter during setup is stored in non-volatile memory so you won't lose any of it when you unplug the unit to move it.
Allow 30 minutes for setup. However, if you already have another Squeezebox product, you can expect a shorter investment of time.
Assembly of the Boom is a breeze. First, you open the remote and remove the protective cover from the battery. Then all that is left is to snap in the plug into the power adapter, connect it to the Boom, and then to your power outlet. Now you are ready for the simple configuration steps.
Logitech continues a trend that they started in other products in giving you a worksheet (only two lines for the Boom) to jot down necessary setup information before getting started. For the Boom this consists of your wireless network information - SSID and encryption key (if your network is secured). I was dreading the step of entering this information based on my experience with the Duet, but I was pleasantly surprised at how much more tactile the D-pad on the Boom's remote was over the Duet's controller. After entering this information, the Boom connects to your network and asks you to choose your music source.
At this point, I would recommend that you choose "Squeezenetwork" even if you never intend to use internet radio or online music services. You will be given the PIN for your unit that you must enter into your Squeezenetwork account. After doing so your new unit will become available in the Squeezecenter software on your PC.
About Squeezecenter. You will in all likelihood have to upgrade Squeezecenter if you have a previous unit as the 7.2 version (or higher) is required to work with the Boom. Download and install is about 5 minutes with a high speed connection. Don't worry; the Boom will tell you if you need to upgrade during the setup process.
At this point you should be good to go for accessing both your music library on your computer and the online music services available through Squeezenetwork.
USAGE: The Boom is essentially flawless. I have it located on the first floor while my computer is on the second floor on the opposite end of the house. However the Boom has no problem finding my network and playing an uninterrupted stream of music. The system is very easy to control as it provides menus that let you select from your PC music library by artist, album, etc. Additionally, I have my Pandora (other paid subscriptions such as Rhapsody can also be accessed) account registered at Squeezenetwork, and all of my Pandora stations are available as well. Finally, there is a plethora of internet radio stations giving access to almost any style of music.
While I admit I am not an audio snob, I think that the sound quality from the Boom is above average. There is a good balance of bass and treble, and the volume can be taken as loud as most people would want without being distorted. Logitech didn't skimp on the speakers that they put on the Boom.
New features that are not on the Duet include a programmable alarm clock. I setup three alarms: 1 for Monday-Friday, 1 for Saturday, and 1 for Sunday. These can be specified as repeating or one time. The only complaint (and this is really being picky) I have with the alarm is that they don't offer a true alarm sound. You can use any of your music, but I have always used an alarm even on clock radios. I settled on the "Rooster Crow".
There are tons of settings that you can adjust, and it would take up too much space to cover them all here. I would suggest using the drill-down menus and exploring what is there.
As if you could need more music than what is on your PC, the Boom also includes a jack for audio input. This does close one gap that the Duet had in that you can now access your iTunes music by connecting your iPod. Unfortunately, the DRM music from iTunes cannot be streamed to the Boom (or any other non-Apple product for that matter).
If you have a Duet, it is of interest that the Duet Controller can be used on the Boom by changing the player that it is controlling. The main benefit that you get from this is the display on the Duet Controller is far better than that of the Boom. For example, you can display all of the alarms that you have set on one screen using the Duet Controller, but you cannot do this on the Boom itself.
CONCLUSION: The Logitech Squeezebox Boom is a fantastic product whether you buy it as a standalone unit or as an expansion to the Duet. Think of it as a portable version of the Duet that you can take from room to room in your house with some additional features such as an alarm clock. As with the Duet, this is another no brainer five star item. |
Slick is far too mild a term for this very innovative device
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| Review Date: October 25, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Jerry Saperstein, Evanston, IL USA |
The Squeezebox Boom is just plain cool.
It is a stylish box bout 14" wide x 3" thick x 5" high. It fits nicely almost anywhere.
Technically - much more technically then is appropriate or necessary - the Squeezebox is a dedicated computer designed specifically as a network media device.
In reality, the Squeezebox Boom is a self-contained audio streaming device. It can access non-DRM audio files on any accessible computer or network storage device, receive audio from network services such as Pandora and Last FM, stream internet radio programs from RadioTime, access fee based music sources such as Rhapsody and even get RSS feeds. It can also access Sirius's internet feed, but it is unclear at the moment whether you will be able to access XM as a result of the recent merger or access Sirius because you are an XM subscriber.
In short, the Squeezebox concept is more than enough to give traditional broadcasters and audio publishers nightmares - and justifiably so. I will happily pay small fees to internet broadcasters to be free of obnoxious, all too frequent commercials.
Squeezebox Boom comes with few accessories. Surprisingly, it has a cloth pouch. I suppose if you have a vacation home or take it to a party (at a WiFi equipped venue) or something like that, it would work well. The Squeezebox Boom is light enough to tote.
Squeezebox relies on your 802.11g Wifi network. There is a relatively small power adapter. A short cable with 3.5mm jacks on either end is also provided. There is, by the way, a line-in port for connecting your MP3 or other audo device.
The design is elegant. Two integral speaker enclosures on either side of a spartan control and display console. The display automatically adjusts to ambient lighting. The few buttons are self-explanatory, though the large knob in the middle is not. A couple of minutes spent with the very brief manual will be very helpful.
Initial setup can be very simple and quick or a bad experience. It all depends on your familiarity with setting up a WiFi device. If you're comfortable setting up basic WiFi security, it takes a few seconds and you're in business. If on the other hand, as I've seen all too often, you're not familiar with the process or have forgotten the security code for your network, you will be in a world of hurt.
Once you're set up, you still have to connect to your source devices and services. Again, if you're reasonably experienced with the technology, this is a matter of minutes. If you're not, you may become quickly frustrated.
The Squeezenetwork lets you access a number of services, like Pandora and Last FM. Be forewarned that some of these services are fee based or require fees for full functionality. You must access Squeezenetwork before you begin using the device.
Controlling the Squeezebox Boom using the front panel or the inluded remote control is about as simple as it can get - provided you spend a few moments with the manual or are patient while you explore the device.
The human interface factors on the Squeezebox Boom are very high. A lot of thought went into designing the physical controls, display and option menus. All in all, using the Squeezebox Boom is a delight.
Of course, a major factor is the audio output and its quality.
The unit has sufficient audio amplification to damage your hearing if you crank it up all the way and put your ear against one of the speakers. More realistically, you can hear this unit throughout your dwelling if that's what you want or keep it set low for personal listening. (There is also a line-out jack for headphones or a sub-woofer.)
I am not an audiophile, somy assessment of the Squeezebox Boom's audio quality is strictly a layperson's. In short, it sounds great to me, particularly the base which surprised me. Treble, Bass and Crossfade controls are menu accessible and somewhat inconvenient to deal with.
Overall, the Squeezebox Boom is a terrific audio device. Well-designed, great sound and highly veratile, it provides audio entertainment anywhere you have 802.11g and broadband access. (There is also provision for CAT5 networking.)
Right now, it is very late and I have Pandora playing on the Squeezebox Boom on my work table - and I'm loving it. Once you have one of these in your possession, you will not give it up. It's that good - and has a very high cool factor.
Jerry |
The Squeezebox I've been waiting for
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| Review Date: September 2, 2008 |
| Reviewer: SC, Florida |
| I've owned the older Squeezebox 2 for several years and it has really enhanced the way I listen to music, but I have always wanted an all-in-one unit that could be moved around the house or used outside in the yard and when I am out at the pool. The Squeezebox Boom is just the product I have been waiting for, and it sounds awesome! I use it in the bedroom, outside, and in the kitchen. It is so nice to have easy access to all my tunes no matter where I am around the house. |
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