Detailed look at AirPort Express w/ AirTunes

[drew2778]

linky to a cool article with pictures of internals, externals and setup guide for the new AirPort Express with AirTunes:

http://www.notebookreview.com/default.aspx?newsID=1894

enjoy!

[Daveman Deluxe]

What's still unclear to me is whether using an optical cable on the AirPort Express requires a converter. Or is it a single jack that can handle both somehow?

[robbieduncan]

What's still unclear to me is whether using an optical cable on the AirPort Express requires a converter. Or is it a single jack that can handle both somehow?

I'm sure this has been covered more than once. It's a combination port, just like MiniDisc players have had for years. The internal sides are metal and contact with the 2 rings on a normal analogue port. At the bottom is an optical section for the optical port.

[redAPPLE]

i have read through about 500 posts and somehow no one thought about this "problem"...

if i have multiple macs with music libraries, how does the base station know, which library to play? first-come-first-serve basis?

can i buy this optical cable somewhere else? i mean, does it have to be Apple-branded?

(one other thing i asked myself :) i could connect this thing to a switch for my home computer network... and in theory the answer is yes, if Apple did not disable this option)

[Finiksa]

if i have multiple macs with music libraries, how does the base station know, which library to play? first-come-first-serve basis?
I'm not quite sure what you're asking here. The AP Express will play the music from the computer that you connect to it, in the iTunes speaker selection drop menu, I doubt you can connect multiple Macs to the one AirTunes device at once. However using iTunes sharing you can play music from all your Macs through a single computer.

can i buy this optical cable somewhere else? i mean, does it have to be Apple-branded?
There are two types of optical connectors Toslink (Square plug) and Miniplug (Round plug, same shape as an Analogue mini-jack - AP Express uses this) So you'll need Toslink-Miniplug cable if your stereo uses Toslink or Miniplug-Miniplug if it uses Miniplug. Depending on the length you need and connector type it'll cost somewhere between $10-$40.

[Mudbug]

i got the internal pics from somewhere else...

[Mudbug]

and the externals:

[mikeyredk]

will apple extenstion cords work with this? i hope one is included

[michaelrjohnson]

will apple extenstion cords work with this? i hope one is included

yes they will

no, i believe it's extra

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

will apple extenstion cords work with this? i hope one is included

The extention cord works, and is included in the extra/optional AirTunes cables packet, along with audio cables (analog and digital). The full name of the packet is "AirPort Express Stereo Connection Kit with Monster Cables".

[Dave00]

There's one error I've found in the otherwise very helpful website mentioned above - they state you need OS X 10.3, while apple's website says at least 10.2.7. Also, the site says that you need an airport or airport extreme card, but I'd imagine it'd work with 3rd party 802.11g solutions, as Airport Extreme isn't available for my Pismo, and 3rd party 802.11g solutions work on a PC with AirTunes. (Correct me if I'm wrong.)

I bet streaming with iTunes to AP Express really eats up the processor time. Ripping mp3's is processor-intensive, and streaming requires decoding from mp3's and then re-encoding to Apple Lossless.

--D

[virividox]

i dont believe streaming will take up much processor power; its just a simple data transfer