I have quite a lot of music digitally saved, and it gets a quite annoying when I have to copy the same collection onto every device or storage. For this, I sometimes use a media server since it fixes this issue for me quite well. Essentially, I just keep the music on one computer, and other devices fetch the music over your local network.
I use Universal Media Server, or UMS. It is a DLNA and UPnP media server that can make the music on my computer available to other devices around the house.
I like the idea of it because it kind of feels like having my own personal radio station I can tune in to, in a sense.
One of the more useful things about UMS is transcoding. If a device can't play the file I give, UMS can convert it while it is being streamed.
My collection doesn't contains that many formats. FLAC is probably the most important one, but I also have ALAC, and AAC too. But most people have many different formats and such which don't work everywhere, having said server can help deal with the formats, like in the aforementioned point.
With this said, there is a difference between UMS being able to read a format and the device being able to play it, a computer could play something without complaining, but a fairly old television would simply not understand the given format.
| Format | What it is | Why you might have it | What happens on an incompatible device |
|---|---|---|---|
| MP3 | Lossy compressed audio | Portable music and general compatibility | Usually plays directly. |
| FLAC | Lossless compressed audio | Lossless music without huge WAV files | Newer devices can usually play it directly; older devices can have it converted. |
| ALAC | Apple Lossless | Lossless Apple music collections | Can be converted to a format supported by the device. |
| WAV | Usually uncompressed PCM | CD rips, recording and audio work | Widely supported, although the files are large. |
| AIFF | Usually uncompressed PCM | Older Apple collections and audio work | Can be converted if unsupported. |
| DSF / DSD | 1-bit digital audio | High-resolution recordings | Can be converted to PCM for devices without DSD support. |
| AAC | Lossy compressed audio | Portable music and streaming | Usually works on newer equipment. |
| Ogg Vorbis | Lossy compressed audio | GNU/Linux software and open-format music | Often needs conversion on older consumer hardware. |
| Opus | Modern lossy codec | Internet audio and modern applications | Older hardware will usually need it converted. |
| WMA | Microsoft audio format | Older Windows music collections | Common on older Windows-oriented equipment; other devices can use transcoding. |
| WMA Lossless | Lossless WMA | Older lossless collections | Usually converted for devices without WMA Lossless support. |
| APE | Lossless audio | Older enthusiast collections | Usually converted before being sent to hardware. |
| WavPack | Lossless or hybrid audio | Archival and enthusiast collections | Mostly a software-player format on modern systems. |
| Musepack | Lossy audio | Older high-quality compressed collections | Usually converted for hardware. |
| Shorten | Lossless audio | Older archival collections | Hardware support is rare, so conversion is normally required. |
| True Audio | Lossless audio | Older lossless collections | Usually converted for hardware. |
| ATRAC | Sony audio codec | MiniDisc and older Sony collections | Older Sony equipment is where it is most useful; other devices can have it converted. |
| AMR | Speech-oriented compression | Old phone recordings | Can be converted for playback. |
| ADPCM | Compressed PCM | Older recordings, games and multimedia | There are several different variants, so support varies by variant. |
| LPCM | Uncompressed PCM | CD, DVD, Blu-ray and professional audio | Usually plays directly. |
| AC-3 | Dolby Digital | DVD and surround sound | Can be sent to compatible equipment or converted. |
| DTS | Digital surround sound | DVD and Blu-ray | Needs compatible equipment or conversion. |
| MLP | Meridian Lossless Packing | DVD-Audio | Usually needs conversion for ordinary network players. |
So if I have some strange old file in the collection, I do not necessarily have to touch it. UMS can leave the original alone and convert it only when a particular device needs something else.
UMS started out with the PlayStation 3 in mind, since then, it gained support for quite a big range of devices. With old devices, it can also give them a new life. Afterall, the devices themselves are good, but it is how they are used that matters. Simply because a device is old, doesn't mean it is bad.
| Device | What it can do | Format support | UMS is useful for |
|---|---|---|---|
| PlayStation 3 | Browse the server and play music, video and pictures. | MP3, AAC, WAV, ATRAC and several other common formats. | Transcoding newer or unsupported files for the PS3. |
| Xbox 360 | Browse network music, video and pictures. | Good support for common Microsoft and consumer media formats. | Converting files outside the Xbox's supported formats. |
| Sony BRAVIA TVs | Browse a media server from the television. | Common audio and video formats, with fairly strict limits on older models. | Making files fit the particular BRAVIA model. |
| Samsung AllShare TVs | Browse music, video and pictures over the network. | Common consumer formats such as MP3, AAC and JPEG. | Converting files the television does not recognize. |
| Panasonic VIERA TVs | Browse and play network media. | Common formats are supported, while older models have smaller supported lists. | Transcoding unsupported audio and video. |
| LG smart TVs | Browse music, video and pictures from a media server. | Common formats with more restrictions on older firmware. | Converting files before sending them to the television. |
| Blu-ray players | Browse network media and play it through the television or stereo. | Usually support common audio and video formats. | Handling files outside the player's supported list. |
| Network stereo receivers | Play music through a stereo system. | MP3, AAC, WAV and FLAC are common. | Converting high-resolution or unusual files when necessary. |
| Dedicated network music players | Play music through a DAC or amplifier. | Often support FLAC, WAV and high-resolution PCM; some also support DSD. | Serving files in the format the player expects. |
| Android phones and tablets | Browse UMS with a DLNA application and play the music. | Depends largely on the music application being used. | Keeping the collection on the computer instead of storing all of it on the phone. |
| iPhone and iPad | Browse UMS through a DLNA application. | Third-party players can support more formats than Apple's basic software. | Serving music without having to put the whole collection on the device. |
| GNU/Linux computers | Browse the server and play music locally. | Very broad format support through software players. | Mostly just providing the files; the computer can usually handle them itself. |
| Windows computers | Browse and play music from the server. | Common formats are well supported, with additional players covering more formats. | Serving the collection without copying it to the computer. |
| Modern smart TVs | Browse and play network music, video and pictures. | Usually good support for common formats such as MP3, AAC and FLAC. | Converting unusual files when the built-in player does not support them. |
| Old network media boxes | Play music and video from a network server. | Often support a surprisingly large selection of older formats. | Serving media without having to connect a computer directly to the TV. |
| Popcorn Hour | Play network music and video. | Designed to handle many different media formats. | Providing the files over DLNA and converting unsupported ones. |
| Realtek media players | Play network music and video through a television. | Many older models support a large selection of audio and video formats. | Serving files to older hardware without changing the originals. |
| Old USB MP3 players | Normally cannot use UMS at all. | Usually limited to formats such as MP3, WMA and sometimes AAC. | Nothing; these normally need files copied onto them directly. |
| Older Sony Walkmans | Usually play music stored directly on the player. | Older models generally support a limited selection of Sony and common formats. | Not much. Non-Android Walkmans normally do not have DLNA. |
The renderer is what makes a lot of the magic work. UMS knows that a PlayStation 3 is different from an old Sony television, so it can use a different configuration for each.
There are also custom renderer profiles for equipment that UMS can't recognize correctly. I didn't need to make one as of now, but it is definately a great feature to use when you need.
The media server is obviously not much use when you leave your home, unless you want to stream music to ghosts, or robbers nearby. For that, I use a Sony NWZ-F887 mp3 player.
It is a pretty nice music player, although it's a bit strange how it needs to run Android 4.2. But I only use it to play music.
The bigger problem is the format support. It does not support everything I use, I am suspecting that this is done purposefully against companies that compete with Sony. I find that a little silly, especially when the hardware is otherwise capable.
I fixed most of that by installing and using Musicolet. It is a music playing app that gave me much more control over the files and works better with the music collection I have.
Although I don't always use it, It is convenient, especially when it can help me the most. At home, I can browse my music from different devices, that would either have taken too long to add the music in, or wouldn't be possible anyways.
It is also a nice middle ground between owning music and having the convenience of streaming. If you come from music streaming, and are collecting physical music it can be a great way to listen to your music without having to make big changes to the way you do so.
And, it is not just for music, setting up a computer to serve music, tv shows, movies, and whatever you can think of, to old televisions, game consoles and other random hardware is just fun, and gets into the good side of hacking and tinkering.