A while back we at home were in the market for a new NAS. Initially we were taken with a model that offered a PLEX plugin. We weren't especially enthused by the NAS itself, but thought itd be great to have the PLEX system throughout the house as a server for all our films and shows. But then we thought, Hang on a moment, weve only got the one TV. What do we need a server for? Why dont we just go with LibreElec and the best NAS we can afford? Keep it simple and affordable.
Its the same with LMS vs Volumio. We only have the one hi-fi, why do we need a dedicated central server? Cobbling together an LMS on our NAS (or buying a new NAS with an LMS plugin) is just an extra layer of hassle and something extra to go wrong. Easier to create a music folder on our basic NAS and set up Volumio on a Raspberry Pi. In our case the need for an LMS central server is as much a weakness as a strength. And I believe it can be a real discouragement to those neophytes who want to try a simple alternative to their tinny smart speakers. Though I take the point about the fantastic PiCorePlayer OS. Which could be the alternative if it had the user-friendly simplicity of Volumio. PCP is great, but it's still for enthusiasts only; Volumio is trying to be for everyone. That's not to say that I don't appreciate that there can be advantages in controlling multiple players from one location: just one library and system to update, and its very useful with the bookmarks plugin. However, I have noted that the Volumio can now work with multiple players. Switching easily from control of one to another via the web or mobile apps. And there is also support for multi-room sync. But none of this answers the initial question about the relatively small number of 3rd party plugins for Volumio. Unless Im right in inferring that the reason LMS developers dont moonlight as Volumio developers is that they only develop for the system that suits them. And with the time and effort involved in creating and supporting plugins thatd be perfectly fair and reasonable. Though I still wish people could show Volumio a little more love. With a few more plugins I have a feeling it could begin to make some real inroads in to the consumer audio market. And still be open-source and free. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ pettifoggery's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=69041 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=112042
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