Distributed Streaming Music: The CD Rack of the Future

In the world of luxury homes, perhaps nothing has evolved more over the past few decades as the media or listening room. While speaker, amplification, and other audio technology has certainly seen its share of improvements, the most significant changes have come in the media technology itself. The first digital music players began popping up in the late 1990s, and pretty soon digital music was as ubiquitous as vinyl records were at the dawn of the rock and roll era. With this rapid change in the way we obtain and listen to music, the listening room of the past has taken on an entirely new direction, and with through distributed audio and Crestron automation, homes have been transformed like never before.

While the ubiquity of streaming music is hard to deny, effectively distributing streaming audio throughout a space is a much more complicated endeavor. With so many streaming options available to consumers these days, each streaming at different bandwidths, it’s important to optimize these streams for consistency of quality. This means utilizing our go to streaming device, the powerful MMS-5 streaming server by Autonomic Control, which allows our music loving clients to stream from pandora, spotify, and any other streaming music service they desire with optimal sound quality throughout their home.

Streaming music from an online source such as those listed above is only one piece of the puzzle. Music purchased in either a physical form or purchased files need to be stored on a physical hard drive and distributed effectively throughout a Crestron control system. Luckily, the aforementioned MMS 5 can be powerfully integrated with Google Drive. This integration allows us to link music stored in a hard drive at one location into a custom built cloud streaming platform giving access to a music library in any part of the home or even an off site location without having to duplicate and store large music files in more than one location. This means that when an end user purchases and downloads a new record or song, it is instantly available from all of their Crestron enabled devices.

To us and to our clients alike, one of the most important features of a Crestron automation system is the ability to simplify and streamline as much of their lives as possible. With what seems like endless choices for streaming music we at the #DoneRightNotEasy crew take steps to ensure that selecting what music to listen to is as second nature as grabbing a CD or Vinyl record off of a shelf. To do this we work closely with our customers to understand their music listening habits, and design user interfaces and automated systems to deliver exactly the music they need when they need it.

Are you a music lover looking to stream audio throughout your home the right way? Contact GMI today to learn more.