Tagging classical music

[DavidHB]

(14-04-2014 17:42)Alpina_Lux Wrote:  I have heard several times that the combination between MinimServer and BubbleUPnP works very well. Although I initially wanted to use my iPad as a control point (simply because I have it and know how to use it, and the Synology apps work well on it), I would be happy to switch to an Android device if it works even better. Would you mind describing a bit your experience with this combination and browsing through your classical collection? Any input in this to bring my decision process a bit further would be most appreciated.

Actually, working with different control points has for me been one of the most interesting parts of the journey of discovery that getting into networked music has become.

I think that there is much to be said for experimenting, as you have done, first with aspects of tagging, then with MinimServer properties to 'tune' the browse tree, then with control point settings to display as much tagging information as is sensible and in the way you want to see it. It's an iterative process, because changes in one aspect of the system will have knock-on effects elsewhere. I also think that it's quite personal; if it feels right for you, then it is right, whether or not someone else is doing something completely different.

My decision making process came out of this kind of trial and error, but also out of some personal prejudices which set the scene for me. I think I must be the only person on the planet who does not generally enjoy using Apple devices, and so I really only became interested in handheld computing (which makes so much more sense of the control point, as a handheld can be a viable 'remote control' for a music system) when Android reached a certain level of maturity and smoothness in use. While sound quality was the overriding consideration in purchasing the Linn equipment I now own, an important factor was the fact that there was an Android version of Kinsky, which seemed, when I started out, to be a rather attractive piece of software.

I tried several control points. While foobar2000 had its place on the PC platform, it wasn't an alternative to Kinsky for controlling the Linn renderer (though it can do this), as there is in practice no handheld version. UPnPlayer cannot (I think) control an external renderer, and I couldn't get on with the user interface. Then spending the princely sum of £8.50 enabled me to take a hard look at Bubble DS, which I had read about on several forums.

For those who don't know, Bubble DS is designed only to work with Linn systems and compatibles; for other renderers, there is Bubble UPnP. The two products are, as far as I know, nearly identical in terms of functionality. They are available only for Android; iOS versions were promised at one time, but have never made it to market, which is a pity.

At first, I thought that Bubble was just OK, as functional as Kinsky but not as elegant. Over time, I have come to believe that it is in fact a much better control point. The key advantage is the use of a tabbed page design consistently for all aspects of the product; this makes much better use of limited screen real estate, which means that more of our precious metadata is displayed. By contrast, the columnar design of Kinsky truncates much more of each tag. Moreover, the 'Now Playing' display, which is a bit of a scabbed on afterthought in Kinsky, is an integral part of the Bubble design, and provides a full set of transport controls, which is very useful. And Bubble offers much more than Kinsky by way of display options, and so gives you better access to MinimServer's elegant and fully-featured browse tree.

Bubble DS has become my default control point for normal listening. I still use Kinsky and foobar2000 on the PC platform, mainly for testing metadata changes and newly ripped material. but it is the combination of MinimServer and Bubble DS that makes sense of my system for me. If I had not known about their existence and had the opportunity to experiment beforehand, I doubt that I would have made the significant investment involved in buying the Linn renderer.

I believe that it is the state of the software and the issues associated with metadata that are holding back the development of truly user friendly networked music systems. As I see it, MinimServer and Bubble DS/UPnP, separately and in conjunction, set standards of design, reliability and user satisfaction which others need to emulate.

David