Howard Turkster;609833 Wrote: > Wanted to follow-up and say thanks again to everyone for all the great > input. This really is a great forum. > > Also wanted to say that, after more vigorous research and tearing my > hair out going back-and-forth with different options and possibilities, > I finally decided on a "server" solution that I'm pretty excited about. > > http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856101096 > > Ends up being a little pricier than I wanted, but I had the option of > going with the model one step down with half the storage and RAM and > without the optical drive for only $175 shipped > (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856101095), > which I almost did, but I decided to "splurge" I guess. > > Was very pleased with these options as they saved some $s over the > Vortexbox Appliance. I do lose out on HDD size and the CD-ripping > ability, but I gain in RAM and, unlike the netbook alternatives I was > looking at, the processor is dual-core. A good tradeoff for me as my > library is only 130 GBs and I don't see myself doubling it any time > soon. Love that it's fanless. MUCH better option than looking at some > of the old outdated Vostro desktops IMO. > > Also unlike the netbooks I had been looking at it has Gigabit > ethernet. > > Another consideration was going with one of the barebones combos that > included CPU/processor, and then just adding the HDD and RAM myself, > but in the end I felt the savings weren't large enough to overcome the > convenience and nice design of what I was getting. > > Thought I'd share for anybody else in the market in a similar > situation.
Thanks for sharing this, Howard. I am also actively looking at the 'separation of concerns', meaning that I'd like to have a dedicated appliance that will only serve digital music via ethernet cable into my Touch, and leave my iMac for other chores. I have a few questions regarding this Shuttle appliance: 1. I am planning to attach an external hard drive containing my music library to the appliance. Is that a viable option with this product? 2. I have configured my Squeezebox server to convert all non-native formats (i.e. FLAC, WAV, etc.) to PCM before streaming to the Touch. Will the Intel Atom CPU be up to the snuff when it comes doing so much number crunching on the fly? Also, would I need 2GB or RAM, or will 1GB suffice for that task? Please keep in mind that my library of high definition, 24 bit/96 kHz music is growing very rapidly. 3. This Shuttle being on the lower price end, I'm assuming that it's made using the least expensive parts. Would that produce unnecessary noise and interference with the digital signal that is flowing into the Touch? 4. Finally, should I install Linux/Ubuntu, or some safe version of Windows on this appliance? I know these are a lot to ask, but I'm hoping some experts on this forum could guide me in my efforts to create a music serving appliance. Thanks. -- magiccarpetride ------------------------------------------------------------------------ magiccarpetride's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=37863 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=85420 _______________________________________________ Touch mailing list [email protected] http://lists.slimdevices.com/mailman/listinfo/touch
