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#1 2009-09-27 12:58:21

Tido
Member
Registered: 2007-06-21
Posts: 65

MPD on media server, Sonata on clients, how to listen?

So I finally got organized and built myself a new media server to host all my music and videos (on Arch of course). I really like MPD, but the problem I'm having now is how to actually listen to its output.  Right now I have Sonata on the clients which control mpd on the server, then I output to an icecast stream and I use mplayer on the clients to hear the music.  While this works ok, it can be a real hassle sometimes.  There's a delay between changes made in Sonata and when they finally make it through the stream.  If you change the playlist the stream will stop and you have to manually restart mplayer. 

I've heard some people use PulseAudio over network to get around this, but I don't want PA to be a dependency for every computer on the network.  Before I start writing a new module for Sonata that will manage mplayer for me, does anyone have a more intuitive way of listening to a remote mpd server?

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#2 2009-09-27 13:49:02

litemotiv
Forum Fellow
Registered: 2008-08-01
Posts: 5,026

Re: MPD on media server, Sonata on clients, how to listen?

you should attach your mpd/media server to a hifi set / speakers and play through that..

if you want individual computers playing/listening, it may be easier to use the server as filestorage and let every pc have their own mpd instance.

also, newer mpd versions have a built-in http streamer which is usually simpler to manage than an icecast stream. though it still requires two players on each client, one to control mpd and one to listen to music.

an alternative solution might be Squeezecenter, though it's somewhat heavier on resources.


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#3 2009-09-27 15:27:57

Tido
Member
Registered: 2007-06-21
Posts: 65

Re: MPD on media server, Sonata on clients, how to listen?

I do have it attached to my amp and speaker set, which is great with xbmc or mpd.  However, for my laptops and desktop I prefer to hear the music there than across the house. 

If I can find a solution to the latency issues (it doesn't have to be perfect, just reasonable) then maybe I can write a simple script that sees if the stream is up and if so connects using mplayer (is there anything simplier/lighter than mplayer?). That way I can background the listening aspect of the stream and have the option of using Sonata or not.

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#4 2009-09-27 15:36:56

Runiq
Member
From: Germany
Registered: 2008-10-29
Posts: 1,053

Re: MPD on media server, Sonata on clients, how to listen?

I'd love to find a simpler solution for that, too (if possible).

Tido wrote:

is there anything simpler/lighter than mplayer?

Of course there is, you could try moc or any of the other CLI audio players mentioned on the lightweight software wiki page or the Useful Applications page.

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#5 2009-09-28 17:24:48

Tido
Member
Registered: 2007-06-21
Posts: 65

Re: MPD on media server, Sonata on clients, how to listen?

I'm looking into Sonata's plugins. There is no API documentation or anything to really explain how the plugins work. The examples use a function that is called on changing the song, but that's not what I'd need. I would need functions called when Sonata starts playing and when it stops.  Any other suggestions?

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