Just getting started...
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10-06-2020, 19:08
Post: #1
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Just getting started...
So, I am just getting started. I have built a small audio player PC in a mini-ITX case, running Windows 10 Home Edition (speed, local storage, and bandwidth are more than adequate). I confirmed that it can successfully stream via Amazon Music out a USB 2.0 port into my USB DAC and on to the analog equipment. My USB DAC is an older Benchmark DAC1, it uses the standard windows USB 2.0 driver. I intend to purchase a four bay Synology NAS, just haven't decided which one. I want my digital music library on the NAS, so MinimServer 2 seems like a natural choice for a NAS resident music server. Amazon Music is not my end goal, just a convenient test source. This is about as far as my research and knowledge has taken me. I know that MinimServer 2 can access the music files and send the data over my local network, but to what? I need software on my PC to pull the music data off the network (a UPnP 'renderer' if I understand the documentation) and redirect the audio data to my DAC1 via the USB. I do not want any DSP, not even volume. I tried to research UPnP and ended up wrapped around the axle with external IP addresses, port mapping, etc., which I suspect I don't need anyway. I presume that MinimWatch (or an equivalent Android app) will communicate with MinimServer 2 to browse the library and request the music I want to hear (tracks or playlists), but what software do I need on my Win10 PC to accept the data and redirect it (unmolested) to my DAC via the USB port? I would greatly appreciate any advice, or suggestions you may have to offer. |
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10-06-2020, 19:54
Post: #2
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RE: Just getting started...
Welcome to the MinimServer forum!
MinimWatch is used to configure and monitor MinimServer. It is not a UPnP control point, so it can't browse the library and request the music you want to play. You will need a UPnP control point for this. Most of these are apps for iPad/iPhone or Android. If you want to do this on Windows, Linn Kinsky is probably the best option. As you have said, you also need a UPnP renderer running on Windows. There aren't many of these. You could try foobar2000 with the foo_upnp plugin, running as a renderer only. Another option is the OpenHome player (see this page). |
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10-06-2020, 20:30
Post: #3
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RE: Just getting started...
(10-06-2020 19:08)jchoatejr Wrote: This is about as far as my research and knowledge has taken me. I know that MinimServer 2 can access the music files and send the data over my local network, but to what? I need software on my PC to pull the music data off the network (a UPnP 'renderer' if I understand the documentation) and redirect the audio data to my DAC1 via the USB. I do not want any DSP, not even volume. I tried to research UPnP and ended up wrapped around the axle with external IP addresses, port mapping, etc., which I suspect I don't need anyway. I presume that MinimWatch (or an equivalent Android app) will communicate with MinimServer 2 to browse the library and request the music I want to hear (tracks or playlists), but what software do I need on my Win10 PC to accept the data and redirect it (unmolested) to my DAC via the USB port? I would greatly appreciate any advice, or suggestions you may have to offer. It's not clear from the above if you want to run a Windows media player or if you want to control a Windows UPNP media renderer from a tablet/phone. Simoncn has provided some information for the latter. I would add Tunebrowser to his list. This can run as UPNP and OpenHome. This Wiki page provides more information on both although not necessarily upto date. |
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10-06-2020, 20:52
(This post was last modified: 10-06-2020 20:53 by jchoatejr.)
Post: #4
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RE: Just getting started...
Simon and Alandbush,
Thank you for taking the time and effort to reply to my post. I hope that one day I will know enough to be able to give back to the community myself. I believe that I want to stay away from Windows Media Player, because I want to avoid the Windows audio mixer, which is integrated into WMP and inextricable (AFAIK). But I am now set straight on UPnP Control Points, and have some good advice about UPnP renderers to pursue. So, I have a well defined direction of research to follow, which will no doubt lead to more (but hopefully more advanced) questions. Thanks, again. -john |
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10-06-2020, 22:22
(This post was last modified: 10-06-2020 22:25 by simoncn.)
Post: #5
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RE: Just getting started...
(10-06-2020 20:30)Alandbush Wrote: Simoncn has provided some information for the latter. I would add Tunebrowser to his list. This can run as UPNP and OpenHome. Thanks for this useful pointer. I don't see any mention of Tunebrowser on the linked web page. |
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10-06-2020, 23:36
Post: #6
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RE: Just getting started...
(10-06-2020 20:52)jchoatejr Wrote: I believe that I want to stay away from Windows Media Player, because I want to avoid the Windows audio mixer, which is integrated into WMP and inextricable (AFAIK). My apologies If I confused you but my reference to Windows media player was not to WMP itself. It was meant as a general reference to media players running on Windows. Foobar2000 and Tunebrowser, for instance, can be customised to connect to ASIO or WASAPI devices, thereby bypassing any Windows audio mixer. |
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10-06-2020, 23:46
Post: #7
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RE: Just getting started...
(10-06-2020 22:22)simoncn Wrote:(10-06-2020 20:30)Alandbush Wrote: Simoncn has provided some information for the latter. I would add Tunebrowser to his list. This can run as UPNP and OpenHome. Yes, a very good place to start for a newcomer, but clearly not every player is listed. Stumbled across Tunebrowser. A free version is available but limited to 500 tracks but the paid version is relatively cheap should it pass muster. Checkout Tikisoft page for more details. |
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11-06-2020, 09:27
Post: #8
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RE: Just getting started...
Can the free version of Tunebrowser be used as a pure UPnP renderer, controllable from some other control point and server?
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11-06-2020, 11:59
Post: #9
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RE: Just getting started...
(11-06-2020 09:27)simoncn Wrote: Can the free version of Tunebrowser be used as a pure UPnP renderer, controllable from some other control point and server? I am mistaken about UPNP but it can be enabled as an Openhome renderer. Check out the File -> Preferences-> Basic -> Network settings. I use it that way myself but the 500 track limit still applies. However, although Kinsky, Kazoo, fidata and Glider detect it as a renderer, Lumin does not. |
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11-06-2020, 13:01
Post: #10
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RE: Just getting started...
How can there be a track limit for a pure renderer? Couldn't it be configured with an empty local library so that files can be streamed to it from some other control point and server?
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