What’s the best way to wirelessly stream music to non-WiFi and non-Bluetooth speakers? There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, since everyone has different devices, speakers, operating systems, preferred music services, etc.
I’ve covered different possible solutions in the past. The Gramofon is one option, but it only works with Spotify Connect or Wah Wah Radio. I’ve found the latter to be pretty abysmal.
You could splurge and buy a wireless speaker, but many of them only let you stream certain music services.
I’d recommend Rocki for those with Apple devices and a speaker with an auxiliary port.
Rocki also works with Android, and in the future it will be compatible with Windows Phone, BlackBerry 10, Firefox OS, and Ubuntu Phone, but AirPlay on iOS is where Rocki really shines.Rocki is a small device that comes in a variety of colors and looks like a fancy rock. It has an AUX port, a mini USB port for charging, and a power button. It comes with an AUX cable, an RCA cable, and a USB charger.
The Rocki connects to WiFi. Users can set this up by using the Rocki app for Android, or by connecting to the Rocki’s wifi signal and changing the settings on iOS. There’s a Rocki iOS app, but it doesn’t work on iOS 8 and it wouldn’t be necessary even if it did work.
Once the Rocki is set up, iOS users can connect to it directly via AirPlay. Android users have to use the Rocki app (or find another compatible app in the Google Play Store). The Rocki app streams SoundCloud, Deezer, Rhapsody, or music that is on the device. Rocki can play MP3, MP4, FLAC, OGG, and other file formats.
I currently have a Rocki plugged into a HEOS Denon speaker. I know this defeats the purpose of the wireless speaker, but it’s convenient to be able to AirPlay any audio from my iPhone, iPad, and iTunes on my Mac.
+PUC Review: Wirelessly Connect MIDI Devices to iOS and Mac…
A single Rocki is $49. Multiple Rockis can be purchased as a set at a slight discount. There is also a Rocki Play+, which adds includes an HDMI and optical connection.
Nina Ulloa covers breaking news, tech, and more. Follow her on Twitter: @nine_u
You’re probably experiencing some degree of quality loss in using the Rocki Digital to Analog conversion, rather than the Dennon hardware.
There’s long been an issue in these types of devices, where technology companies (I’m looking at you, Apple,) create convenience devices with little regard for audio quality… to the degree where modern releases are having to be completely remastered to sound better through lesser hardware configurations (“mastered for iTunes”).
What’s interesting to me is that digital is digital is digital, it doesn’t degrade like an analog signal. So all that any of these convenience devices need to do is output a digital signal & put the burden of analog conversion onto another device, & then you have a worthwhile addition to even the most expensive stereos.
That said, it’s curious to me that, in your successive reviews of these types of devices, you never compare them to the native AirPlay experience… the Airport Express or Apple TV, both of whom output digital signals.
How well to do multiple iterations of this device sync with each other and with other airport devices like the airport express?