BBC running a FLAC trail

I wonder if the BBC will ever sort out streaming of 56kbps radio. Currently, on some products (such as Sonos) there are lots of reports of drop-outs, possibly due to so many people these days streaming.
FLAC would potentially be even worse!

Intersting Mike, and about time!!! I do think our current generation of Naim steamers might struggle even were the firmware to be updated to understand FLAC within a MPEG DASH container if that is what they are doing. The new Uniti series should fare better

Simon

will give it a listen over the weekend - thanks for heads up Mike

Naim reacted with uncharacteristic swiftness and effectiveness a couple of years ago when the BBC switched HLS without warning. 

I think lessons have been learned since that time, but this seems to be different. It's a temporary trial. The limiting factor may then be its legacy platform, but let's not discount Naim's project management challenges.

Keith

the underlining problem with streaming in flac with radio, it is likely that fm will be switched OFF very shortly

audio1946 posted:

the underlining problem with streaming in flac with radio, it is likely that fm will be switched OFF very shortly

???   errr  this .flac trail is on BBC web radio,  not terrestrial.    

Mike-B posted:

audio1946 posted:

the underlining problem with streaming in flac with radio, it is likely that fm will be switched OFF very shortly

???   errr  this .flac trail is on BBC web radio,  not terrestrial.    

Yes, but it could be Auntie's way of trying to placate Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells when the FM switch-off comes? 

ChrisSU posted:

Yes, but it could be Auntie's way of trying to placate Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells when the FM switch-off comes? 

mmmm .........  hadn't thought of that one  ......  tricky  

ChrisSU posted:

Mike-B posted:

audio1946 posted:

the underlining problem with streaming in flac with radio, it is likely that fm will be switched OFF very shortly

???   errr  this .flac trail is on BBC web radio,  not terrestrial.    

Yes, but it could be Auntie's way of trying to placate Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells when the FM switch-off comes? 

Well, if they can stream lossless Radio 3 and I can match the output of the NAT01 then I'll be dead chuffed.

Curious of Tunbridge Wells

Mike-B posted:

ChrisSU posted:

Yes, but it could be Auntie's way of trying to placate Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells when the FM switch-off comes? 

mmmm .........  hadn't thought of that one  ......  tricky  

I'm not sure it'll have much effect on the majority of DoTW. I'd have thought that the vast maJority of complainers would be a lot more angry about the obsolescence of their non-DAB radios than the reduced sound quality. Even a lot of classical music lovers are happy with sound quality that most people on this forum would find unacceptable.

On a different note, congratulations to Auntie, reading that it seems they helped drive the standardisation of the encapsulation of FLAC to enable them to do this, nice to see the Beeb at the bleeding edge.

Gary Shaw posted:

ChrisSU posted:

Mike-B posted:

audio1946 posted:

the underlining problem with streaming in flac with radio, it is likely that fm will be switched OFF very shortly

???   errr  this .flac trail is on BBC web radio,  not terrestrial.    

Yes, but it could be Auntie's way of trying to placate Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells when the FM switch-off comes? 

Well, if they can stream lossless Radio 3 and I can match the output of the NAT01 then I'll be dead chuffed.

Curious of Tunbridge Wells

Indeed, however not sure it would work in my car, and DAB still doesn't cut it on R3, but not so bad on R6.. However I wish the online web radio offereings could sound a bit more organic and less sterile and clinical. It seems to persist no matter what DAC I use so I have to assume it's the encoding/codec.(albeit not tried their FLAC yet) ..

well aware how flac is presented. its the bbc/government way  to say that fm is going shortly..

We're doomed!

Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells and a NAT01 owner. 

I see this as simply BBC experimenting with something better for high quality web radio.  Yes it might be used as a sweetie for the 'quality radio' listeners over BAD - oops sorry DAB.    Talking to people in the radio industry, it's a 'given' that FM will stop & DAB (in some form) will become the only national terrestrial broadcast medium.  When that will happen no one knows at the moment, & it might well be the Government has a few more bigger fish to fry to even bother with it until the after the next election in 2020 & now looks like 2022.