Streaming music using Google Chromecast Audio

Interesting feedback... no I haven't tried it yet. Naim certainly see it as the future with their new Uniti products.

When I bought a Muso QB for our study I dispensed with Sonos in that room and also round the house for our 'non hifi' rooms.  The sale of teh Sonos kit funded the Muso and a 24/192 upgrade to my NDX.

Chromecast works well for these rooms, it seems reliable and the sound quality is quite acceptable but I'm only feeding Bose Lifestyle products which are hardly the last word in resolution!

I do have one connected to the DAC of my NDX in the main system using an optical lead.  My findings on sound quality don't align with yours I'm afraid and it gets no use, I could take it out but it does allow me to multiroom to the non-naim units for background listening.  I was thinking it would be a viable workaround for Qobuz etc but for me the sound quality doesn't cut the mustard in the main system.

Hopefully this is a limitation of the hardware which is very inexpensive and when Naim implement Chromecast the results will be much better.

Richard

I find it good enough. Not quite as good as the NDS doing everything, but perfectly ok.  

The dac part of the NDS is excellent of course, so I feed the toslink stream into the toslink input on the NDS. I also use a power bank to power the CCA.

Does anyone know if ChromeCast will ever allow gapless playback, or stream above 16/44?

Goon525 posted:

Does anyone know if ChromeCast will ever allow gapless playback, or stream above 16/44?

I do not know whether the Chromecast will ever support gapless playback but 24/192 streaming works flawlessly, even through the wireless. I am just listening to Rachel Podger's "L'estro armonico" on my old Bose CD player in the kitchen and it sounds fine.

By the way, MinimServer can now provide the control points with the capability to open the booklet of the currently playing album. This is a great feature and Bubble UPnP has already implemented it. Hopefully Linn Kazoo will soon follow.

Best, nbpf

Chromecast does do gapless, but many Chromecast 'enabled' apps don't.  To use it gapless with an Android device is quite simple - cast the screen not the app.  Simples!

In terms of sound quality, it's significantly behind CDs ripped to my NAS; but, via optical, it's significantly better than my Sony Blu-Ray player (also via optical).  It's certainly more than good enough for MP3 / Ogg Vorbis streaming from t'internet for finding new music.

On my S2, i've noticed that the drive part of the Cca was better than the Dac built inside. Thus, i use the Cca with an audioquest Toslink fiddind a Hegel HD12. The result is pretty good for the price paid.

I have a very favourable experience of using Chromecast Audio. Been using it for about two months via local streaming from music stored on my PC (16 and 24 bit downloads, and 16 Bit ripped CDs), using Plex Media Server, and secondly streaming using Qobuz.  I use the Google optical connection into nDac...XPSDR, 52/SupercapDR, 250.2 and Linn Kabers. I have done a few comparisons of the same music: 1. CD using CDX2; 2. Ripped CD via Plex/Chromecast; 3.16 Bit downloads from various sites via Plex/Chromecast; and 4. 16 Bit streaming via Qobuz. Also, hi-res downloads compared through Plex/Chromecast and USB into nDac.

I have to say that IMHO there is negligible difference between the comparable formats. And believe me I expected a difference and have had trouble convincing myself that there truly appears to be little in it! Where any subtle differences exist, then for the money...~£35, you really do get an amazing bang for your buck!

So as a means of dipping a toe in the world of streaming, then to my mind it's a no brainer. It will be some time before I feel I have to seriously consider an alternative "high-end" solution.  

Sorry meant to add to my last post...the only "problem" with Chromecast Audio is it not playing gapless (an issue with live recordings and some classical). So interesting what you say Huge. Could you explain further what you meant by being able to use it for gapless playback?

Thanks.

HardBop,

I don't know what further explanation I can give.  Cast the screen from the device or cast the audio stream from a laptop, rather than casting from inside the Audio App(s) / Audio Application(s) / Browser Tab(s) you use.  This is explained in the manuals about configuring Chromcast Audio.

You haven't said in sufficient detail how you cast a stream from Plex to the CCA, so I can't give you any guidance to change what your doing as I don't know what you're doing!

Thanks Huge. I cast the stream from Plex/CCA using IPad. I have used the device both w-fi and Ethernet connected (via the connecter available from Google). Sorry, I'm only semi-literate when it comes to computer technology!

Hi HardBop,

OK then, if you're initiating the cast from an iPad, then rather than using the Plex app to initiate the cast (Plex may not support gapless casting to CCA), use the Google Home app (also known as Google Cast, the same app you used to set up the CCA in the first place), and tap the menu (three lines) icon in the top left.  Select <Cast screen / audio>.  If Plex can do gapless on iOS at all, that will give you gapless to the CCA.

Thanks Huge, I'll try it this evening.

Does anyone know if I can cast/stream music playing on my iPhone (Apple Lossless) to Chromecast bit perfect? Ideally an airplay icon would appear on phone music app allowing me to select Chromecast as an airplay device.

I would guess if this is possible and you connect Chord DAC to Chromecast via 24/192 capable optical cable such as sys concept then the sq should be as good as anything.

I found this to be possible and true for Apple's Airport Express.

Halloween Man,

Chromecast / Chromecast Audio isn't airpay, why would you expect to be able to connect using airplay?

Chromecast Audio is lossless transport, and of itself it is bit perfect; the app or data stream format you use may not be, but that's noting to do with the Chromecast Audio.

Optical S/Pdif transport usually doesn't quite have the same SQ as coax digital (due to the difficulty of obtaining 'clean' digital edges).

Audio codecs directly supported by Chromecast Audio
HE-AAC
LC-AAC
MP3
Vorbis
WAV (LPCM)
FLAC

Hi Huge

Regarding my query above. Tried Google Home > menu (three bars) in top left corner...but no "Cast screen / audio" in the drop down menu? Is this option linked to casting via android apps. only or should it be available via my IPad as well??

Thanks.

Huge posted:

Halloween Man,

Chromecast / Chromecast Audio isn't airpay, why would you expect to be able to connect using airplay?

Chromecast Audio is lossless transport, and of itself it is bit perfect; the app or data stream format you use may not be, but that's noting to do with the Chromecast Audio.

Optical S/Pdif transport usually doesn't quite have the same SQ as coax digital (due to the difficulty of obtaining 'clean' digital edges).

Audio codecs directly supported by Chromecast Audio
HE-AAC
LC-AAC
MP3
Vorbis
WAV (LPCM)
FLAC

Thanks huge. Just wondered if it supports airplay, obviously not. Would have been a useful feature but I guess Google decided not to as they would have had to pay a license fee to Apple. Seems Google also decided not to support Apple Lossless format. Hardly suitable for iPhone as Google claim.

Nice to see new Naim products now support Airplay and Apple Lossless.

Not sure what you mean by clean digital edges? I do know that with a Chord DAC jitter is not an issue using optical (it measures the same as coax), it's bit perfect, and it's completely isolated from noise (unlike coax).

HardBop posted:

Hi Huge

Regarding my query above. Tried Google Home > menu (three bars) in top left corner...but no "Cast screen / audio" in the drop down menu? Is this option linked to casting via android apps. only or should it be available via my IPad as well??

Thanks.

It may be somewhere else or iOS may not allow a way to intercept audio data at the OS driver level.  Unfortunately it's impossible for me to find out if iOS supports it, as it's a closed system.

Huge, thanks for your time and thoughts anyway. Appreciated. 

Halloween Man posted:

Huge posted:

Halloween Man,

Chromecast / Chromecast Audio isn't airpay, why would you expect to be able to connect using airplay?

Chromecast Audio is lossless transport, and of itself it is bit perfect; the app or data stream format you use may not be, but that's noting to do with the Chromecast Audio.

Optical S/Pdif transport usually doesn't quite have the same SQ as coax digital (due to the difficulty of obtaining 'clean' digital edges).

Audio codecs directly supported by Chromecast Audio
HE-AAC
LC-AAC
MP3
Vorbis
WAV (LPCM)
FLAC

Thanks huge. Just wondered if it supports airplay, obviously not. Would have been a useful feature but I guess Google decided not to as they would have had to pay a license fee to Apple. Seems Google also decided not to support Apple Lossless format. Hardly suitable for iPhone as Google claim.

Nice to see new Naim products now support Airplay and Apple Lossless.

Not sure what you mean by clean digital edges? I do know that with a Chord DAC jitter is not an issue using optical (it measures the same as coax), it's bit perfect, and it's completely isolated from noise (unlike coax).

Not surprisingly, Google doesn't support all Apple proprietary technologies, mostly because of licence fees.  On the other hand it can handle open file formats such as FLAC which Apple doesn't generally support.  It will run on Apple and connect to other service providers so it will work in a mixed apple / other ecosystem, but there's little point in an apple only system; on the other hand then you can just use airplay so why would you need Chromecast?

The cleanness of a digital edge is related to the rise / fall rate of the signal compared to the response of the optical receiver, so the quality of transmission depends on both the emitter and receiver.

Thanks Huge. The airport express I have works well as an airplay device but it has other networking duties in the home hence my interest in Chromecast audio as it's a lot cheaper to purchase.

Appreciate the explanation of clean digital edge. Would this manifest itself as errors in the bit perfect data (ie no longer bit perfect)?

Usually the lack of a clean digital edge puts uncertainty into the timing (source jitter and buffer timing uncertainty), and add uncertainty into the power supply noise (broadband noise).  Both these reduce the ability of a DAC to produce a clean analogue signal.

This digital signal is still "bit perfect", as "bit perfect" doesn't take into account errors in timing or sub digital level errors (which affect timing and noise) - it only accounts for deviations that reach the full bit level, even though smaller errors can also degrade the resultant analogue signal.

My wife can stream music to the CCA using her iPhone. I can't remember if I installed something, but it works. Google Cast.

Spotify works for sure, and also some other apps, but I don't all their names.

Can't check, am travelling ...

Huge posted:

Usually the lack of a clean digital edge puts uncertainty into the timing (source jitter and buffer timing uncertainty), and add uncertainty into the power supply noise (broadband noise).  Both these reduce the ability of a DAC to produce a clean analogue signal.

This digital signal is still "bit perfect", as "bit perfect" doesn't take into account errors in timing or sub digital level errors (which affect timing and noise) - it only accounts for deviations that reach the full bit level, even though smaller errors can also degrade the resultant analogue signal.

I was checking some presentation material of the NDS before it was released on my flight tonight. Many different types of reclocking seem to happen. To me it looks that half of the NDS is about clocking, reclocking and buffering.

Yep, shows how difficult it is to get it just right, particularly when the input is twitching all over the place!