As my HDX may be on the way out I have been looking into the use of upnp with my two streamers, a ND5 XS2 and Muso QB 2. I had backed up files from the HDX to a ssd drive attached to my iMac and have begun a 7-day free trial with FireStream. I have searched this forum but can’t find any posts about FireStream. Does any one have experience of this particular upnp application? I have seen several posts recommending Asset but I tried that a few years ago and didn’t get on so well with it. FireStream seems to be working pretty well but should I try alternatives as well?
I have Asset on my Synology NAS and it works really well for me. I can’t say I’ve heard of yours, but if it works and does what you want……. I guess it partly depends on how much it costs after the seven days.
I believe it is a one-off £39.99.
I don’t want to push Asset just because I have it, though it does tent to be the go-to server on the Forum, along with MinimServer. If you rip CDs with dBPoweramp it makes a lot of sense to use Asset as they are made by the same people. Whether they make a Mac version I don’t know, as most people would use a NAS.
Asset have a Mac trail version if you want to try it.
If it works for you, then go for Asset UPnP Universal, this is a 5 license pack that enables installation on 5 different devices…..
Windows, QNAP, Synology, Apple macOS, Debian Linux & Raspberry Pi Raspbian.
So if you do go for a pukka NAS or another operating system, you’re all set up and ready to go.
It’s a pay once for £28 and free upgrades for life.
With a ND5-XS2 Roon becomes another option. Audirvana is also well known. I tried a trial of it for my UPnP-enabled DAC but hated the UI/UX so back to Roon I went.
The Audirvana trial period is one month.
I’ve never heard of Firestream, what’s so good about it?
For a simple alternative try sticking the USB drive into the ND5XS2 and use the built in UPnP server.
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That’s exactly what I do with my Nova, and it works like a charm.
Give some thought to support too. Asset and MinimServer are both well supported and many users here and on other forums use this software
Sorry cannot help with FireStream but another Asset user here. I have a dedicated MacMini as my music server running headless (no keyboard/screen - access it via screen share on my MacBook) and it works flawlessly.
Asset user here. Asset has been designed from the ground up as a music server. Firestream as far as I can tell looks like an all-purpose UPnP server handling photo and video as well. I also use serviio, a free all-purpose UPnP server and although it does music as well, it just doesn’t do it as well as Asset and that’s why I paid for Asset. The point I’m making is that a UPnP server designed for music collections probably does a better job than an all-purpose server. Most users here use either Asset or Minimserver and there’s a reason for that; both are designed to work with music collections.
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That’s my impression too. For the OP, if they’re still monitoring this thread, Firestream will probably be OK for a small library, but with a larger collection, the metadata handling and enhanced usability of a dedicated audio media server will win out. I use both Asset and MinimServer. The former has a less steep learning curve, but MinimServer has features which are invaluable if one has a large classical collection, as I have.
Roger
Thanks Roger. As my library is a small one I am tending to think that Firestream will be ok for me. The website states that it has been designed for Mac from the outset. So far I have found it to be fast and fairly easy to use, for me rather easier than Asset. I have been able to stream from my drive attached to my iMac and also from my iCloud drive which I hadn’t thought would be possible.