Bluetooth audio receiver

[John D]

Can I use Bluetooth to transmit audio played on my home PC to
loudspeakers which are in another room?

Is it possible to get a device which is like a bluetooth receiver to
pick up the audio broadcast from the PC dongle and then output an audio
signal into my self-powered speakers?



(I'm on bit of a budget, so I would rather not buy another Bluettooth
transmitter dongle or buy some complete send-receive kit unless I have
to.)

 

[Paul]

Can I use Bluetooth to transmit audio played on my home PC to
loudspeakers which are in another room?

Is it possible to get a device which is like a bluetooth receiver to
pick up the audio broadcast from the PC dongle and then output an audio
signal into my self-powered speakers?



(I'm on bit of a budget, so I would rather not buy another Bluettooth
transmitter dongle or buy some complete send-receive kit unless I have
to.)

The most reliable solution is: wires (line level audio)

At least they won't let you down. Wireless schemes or other kinds of networking
schemes, all have their exposures. For example, with wireless, you have competition
from the portable telephone, microwave, existing Wifi for computers, any Bluetooth
traffic that is already there. With networking over power lines, any interference
generating appliance (vacuum cleaner), can affect the goodput of the network. That
being said, here is a (not so cheap) solution.

*******
If the device in the other room is near a power outlet, you can actually
use power lines to carry audio. If you could find an ethernet to audio box,
you could also use other Homeplug Alliance member's solutions for power line
networking. The reason I mention that, is maybe the solution could be cheaper,
if using a different set of component parts.

http://download.devolo.com/webcms/0593372001191855411/awb_2_de.jpg

http://www.materiel.net/ctl/Solutions_CPL_et_PoE/34779-dLAN_Audio_extender_Starter_Kit.html
http://www.devolo.de/de_DE_cs/produkte/dlan/dlanaudioext.html

Audio quality is roughly CD quality.
http://download.devolo.net/webcms/0661987001199783387/datasheet_devolo_dlan_audio_extender_de.pdf

The above power line method is not bulletproof. Apparently, vacuum cleaners
and hair dryers, if operated on the same outlet, can knock out the service.
If you can make some lucky choices in each room, as to where to plug in the
adapters, you might avoid most of it.

*******
Bluetooth "basic" audio channel, is telephony quality (64 kilobit). And telephony
voice channels carry <4KHz signals. (Would sound like a bad AM radio station,
like our local government sponsored broadcaster.)

Bluetooth also has audio profiles. They carry some kind of compressed
content, which will have lossy compression artifacts. So similar issues
to MP3. If you like MP3s, then maybe you wouldn't mind.

I have seen a lossless CODEC for Bluetooth mentioned, but I don't think
it is shipping yet. When it is available, it should be more interesting.

*******
There are analog wireless devices, some of which are quite cheap. (Radio
Shack used to carry some of these, but I don't see the exact ones any
more.) None that I've looked at so far, bothered to state what analog
bandwidth they carried. Which means you have no way of judging what they'll
sound like. At least the Devolo is uncompressed, and has a sampling rate of
44.1KHz (audio can be up to the Nyquist limit, or 22.05 KHz - the practical
limit should be whatever a CD promises).

*******
You could also go Wifi audio. If you have a Wifi router already, for your
computer, then this could be your remote audio peripheral. Notice
that this thing actually has audio specs Being wireless, it only works
as long as there is sufficient goodput via the local conditions (apartment
dwellers beware).

http://www.rokulabs.com/products_soundbridge_specs.php

*******
One problem with all of this, is the instant you say "audio" or "audiophile",
the price goes up. At least some of these things, do not have expensive
component costs. But the price goes up, to suit the perceived market. The
display on the Roku is just a waste, but it looks pretty.

HTH,
Paul

 

[Gerard Bok]

Bluetooth is intended as PAN (personal area network).
I.e. am operating range of 3 feet or 1 meter.

Possible: yes. Certainly if you are living in the middle of
nowhere (wich means: no interfering magnetrons, wifi, wireles
baby monitoring equipment, etc.)

...don't waste it

 

[Jon]

Can I use Bluetooth to transmit audio played on my home PC to
loudspeakers which are in another room?

Yes, but bare in mind that bluetooth is designed for short range
applications. If you try and put it through walls etc you may find the
signal is degraded.

Is it possible to get a device which is like a bluetooth receiver to
pick up the audio broadcast from the PC dongle and then output an audio
signal into my self-powered speakers?

Yes. Or you can just get a pair of bluetooth speakers.

 

[Dave]

Yes, but bare in mind that bluetooth is designed for short range
applications. If you try and put it through walls etc you may find the
signal is degraded.

Not enough to log into my next door neighbours mobile phone though. Next
time I saw him I asked if he had a mobile with blue tooth enabled and he
told me it was is son's.

Dave

 

[DCA]

Bluetooth is intended as PAN (personal area network).
I.e. am operating range of 3 feet or 1 meter.

How did you work that one out?
Bluetooth has come a long way and was always intended as a comms device
but distance 1m?
I always saw it advertised as capable of 'up to 30 feet' so you appear
to be a factor of 10 out!
I have never seen its range purported to be so minimal

 

[Paul]

How did you work that one out?
Bluetooth has come a long way and was always intended as a comms device
but distance 1m?
I always saw it advertised as capable of 'up to 30 feet' so you appear
to be a factor of 10 out!
I have never seen its range purported to be so minimal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bluetooth

Class 1 100 mW (20 dBm) ~100 meters
Class 2 2.5 mW (4 dBm) ~10 meters
Class 3 1 mW (0 dBm) ~1 meter

Paul

 

[Jon]

Not enough to log into my next door neighbours mobile phone though. Next
time I saw him I asked if he had a mobile with blue tooth enabled and he
told me it was is son's.

Being able discover another device requires much less signal strenght
than sustaining an audio stream.

 

[Jon]

How did you work that one out?
Bluetooth has come a long way and was always intended as a comms device
but distance 1m?
I always saw it advertised as capable of 'up to 30 feet' so you appear
to be a factor of 10 out!
I have never seen its range purported to be so minimal

There are 3 power classes. Class 1 is 100m, class 2 (the class you get
in mobile phones) is designed for 10m and class 3 is the 1m stuff.

 

[ric]

Jon wrote:

Being able discover another device requires much less signal strenght
than sustaining an audio stream.

There are a number of different bluetooth profiles. The one the OP
wants is "A2DP" - i.e. high quality, stereo audio. Not to be confused
with the low quality mono "headset" or "handset" profiles.

To get this to work you'll need a dongle that supports A2DP and a
receiver that also supports it, and provides a line out into your
amp. I use a Belkin Tunestage originally bought for my iPod. It has
an iPod-specific dongle that plugs into the iPod, and a receiver that
plugs into the amp. Happily, as it's A2DP my mobile phone and my
Apple Macbook Pro can both natively stream audio to it without a
dongle at all.

The audio is lossy, i.e. compressed, but it's plenty good enough not
to notice, at least to my ears. Range is around 20-30 feet, if I had
to guess.

I also use some excellent bluetooth stereo headphones/headset - the
Motorola HT820s. These were under 20 quid delivered via Amazon and
work with all my BT devices nicely.

Ric