Chromecast Audio bargain (UK) - £15 @ Currys

[windhoek]

Currys is selling the Chromecast Audio for £15 (link). I've ordered one even though I’m not sure what I’ll do with it, but it seemed like far too good an opportunity to pass up. Fwiw, according to this review, it seems to have good specs whether used as a streamer and DAC or streamer on its own no matter what: no matter the price

 

[user 4725]

Argos have now price-matched.

 

[winopener]

Been there done that with several streaming devices (CC included), they may be nice for occasional streaming of mp3 from your phone but these are a royal PITA to make it work reliably on a network on a daily basis.
Since it's a UK reference, you may go a lot better with a used Linx 7" tablet and Foobar + plugins, and on a windows machine you have no problem to add a USB DAC to really get music and not only sounds, while on embedded devices this is pratically impossible.

 

[user 4725]

The Chromecast Audio is rather more reliable than its predecessor. I use mine to stream Spotify and (glitches in Spotify's software notwithstanding) works very reliably with an Android phone or tablet.

 

[Snood]

Currys is selling the Chromecast Audio for £15 (link). I've ordered one even though I’m not sure what I’ll do with it, but it seemed like far too good an opportunity to pass up. Fwiw, according to this review, it seems to have good specs whether used as a streamer and DAC or streamer on its own no matter what: no matter the price

Let us Know how it goes Wind............looks interesting

Reading up on it..........says it easy to stream from your phone or tablet, but mentions being able to stream 24/96 hi res...........but from where?

 

[windhoek]

I've now had a wee chance to play about with it and in a nutshell, I like it - so much so in fact, I've bought another one for my kitchen

It's easy to use with a phone/tablet once you install the Chromecast app because if you want to send an online radio stream to it for example, all you have to do is click on the cast button and hey presto, the corresponding music stream is cast across wifi and pops out at the hifi. The same can be said about casting a radio programme from a PC once you install the Chromecast browser extension. I haven't tried any streaming services such as Spotify or Tidal, but I imagine they would be fairly easy use too.

It was a bit tricker casting music already on my laptop because uploading a just few albums to Google took quite a while, although once they were in the cloud, it was easy to play and cast to the device using Google Play Music. That's where 24/96 capability comes in handy however, because I've got quite a few audio files in 24/96 and the Chromecast played them no problem. The only real snag was the slow upload time. Although apparently, it's possible to use apps such as Plex to cast music already on a computer, so there might not be a need to upload anything to the cloud, but I haven't tried it for myself yet.

Fwiw, the sound quality is surprisingly good when the Chromecast acts as streamer and DAC and of course, when used simply as a streamer. A no brainer at £15

DJ

 

[Snood]

It was a bit tricker casting music already on my laptop because uploading a just few albums to Google took quite a while, although once they were in the cloud, it was easy to play and cast to the device using Google Play Music. That's where 24/96 capability comes in handy however, because I've got quite a few audio files in 24/96 and the Chromecast played them no problem. The only real snag was the slow upload time. Although apparently, it's possible to use apps such as Plex to cast music already on a computer, so there might not be a need to upload anything to the cloud, but I haven't tried it for myself yet.

Thank you Wind, one question though - Google play music at 24/96? What kind of files are you uploading at 24/96? Flac?Wav?

 

[windhoek]

I'm like Jack The Ripper, Snood as I rip everything for playback via my HTPC (a mac mini) and the 24/96 files I have are DVD-A rips thanks to DVDAudioExtractor. I don't really intend to use the Chromecast to play local files as my HTPC will do that (I just tried it out to see what it would be like); instead, I'll use it to cast online radio and webpage music streams etc.

Derek

 

[polmac]

Thanks Windhoek for the heads-up. Santa brought me one at crimbo and I use it every day to cast Spotify to my system, but I've been looking for one for my kitchen too. Have just ordered one from Currys, now £14 with free delivery.

 

[windhoek]

Yeah £14 is an absolute no brainer and I'm just back from buying my third; and as I had the receipts for the first two, got a £2 refund lol as well as the third for £14

 

[windhoek]

Well, hello my old thread, how's tricks?

It just so happens I've been enjoying my CCA more than ever but not in a way I'd ever expected. Sadly, it's got nothing to with surround music, but even so, I thought it's worth sharing all the same. In a nutshell, the CCA is a phenomenal headphone amp and DAC all in one - even when it's being powered by the battery in my phone via an on-the-go (OTG) cable!

I never had a phone that had OTG capabilities when I bought my CCA back in 2016, but damn, these wee gadgets can run off the power of a phone (or tablet) that supports OTG i.e. a USB connection with suped-up functionality. This means the CCA has the potential to become a portable device. And it just so happens it has incredible potential in that regard as it can drive my Sennheiser HD650 headphones with aplomb and then some. Seriously, the puck can drive them like a monster truck can drive like, er, a monster truck!

The soundstage is wider and seems deeper, too than any previous headphone combo I've had. Plus everything is crystal clear and snappy as hell and with plenty of bass to boot. I can't believe I'm typing all this but the CCA is one helluva headphone amp.

As for playback, I've got FLAC files stored on a USB drive connected to my Nvidia Shield TV, and I use PLEX (I've got PLEX server enabled on my Shield TV and PLEX app installed on my phone) to cast those files to my CCA, which then drives my HD650s. I reckon I can listen to about five albums or so before the battery in my phones dies due to the extra demand placed upon it by the CCA. If I want to listen for longer, I can just plug the CCA into a mains socket of my choosing and then settle in for an enjoyable listening session.

While this portable mode of listening is only portable within my house - specifically, within reach of my wifi router - it might well be I can use my phone to transmit a wifi hot-spot signal that would allow me to use the CCA anywhere as long as my phone has enough battery. I obviously wouldn't use my HD650s out and about, as it were, as they're not suited to outdoor use, but in principle, the idea might have legs.

Suffice to say, if you've got a CCA lying around the house yourself and you've ripped your music files, it's worth exploring just how good the CCA is as headphone amp/DAC. And all for the price of a bag of chips (if you live in Kensington, London)