Spotify on Squeezeplay on Jolicloud

General discussion relating to the O2 Joggler, from the default O2 setup, to alternative operating systems and applications.
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michaelm
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2011 9:18 am
Location: Glasgow

Spotify on Squeezeplay on Jolicloud

Post by michaelm »

Hi guys

I have been having some trouble with Spotify on Squeezeplay on Jolicloud.

I am a premium subscriber but I do not seem to be able to play the music. I can see the playlists so the Joggler knows who I am and what my credentials are but for some reason I cannot play the songs.

I am not at home at the moment but once back at home I will post a screenshot of the error.

Is there anybody else here that is having similar issues?

Thanks

Michael
gegs
Posts: 1146
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2011 3:22 pm
Location: Edinburgh

Re: Spotify on Squeezeplay on Jolicloud

Post by gegs »

I think the problem is that you need to use the 'Triode 3rd Party Spotify plugin', not the official Spotify release.

Install Squeezebox Server from their website (it should be a deb package; Ubuntu will install this but I don't know about Jolicloud). After installing SB Server, open a browser and type 'localhost:9000' - without quotes - in the address bar and hit enter; the Squeezebox Server web interface should load. Click on the 'settings' link on the bottom right of the page. Click on the 'plugins' tab and make sure you untick the Spotify v1.0 plugin and tick the Triode Spotify 1.3 plugin. Apply the settings and wait a minute or so for the server to restart.

The Triode Spotify plugin should now appear at the top of the list as an installed plugin but it might not be enabled. Make sure the box next to the plugin description is ticked. apply the settings and wait for the server to restart again.

Now click on the 'Advanced' tab and make sure that Spotify is chosen in the drop-down tab at the top left. You should see a licence agreement screen; click 'I agree' and then the Spotify settings page should appear. Fill in your premium account details, making sure you choose the correct country from the drop-down selection. Apply the settings and wait (again) for the server to restart. The Spotify plugin should now appear under the 'Internet Radio' option on Squeezeplay. Hold your finger over the icon for a couple of seconds and the info screen will appear with an option to move it to your home page, if you wish.

The above worked (under Ubuntu) for me. I also could only get the BBC stations working by doing the above and choosing the 'BBC iPlayer' plugin from Squeezebox Server; the official BBC plugin didn't work for me. Also, the 'iPlayer Extras' plugin is worth installing; it allows you to search across the previous week's output on all BBC radio channels with filters by station and genre.

Post and let us know how you get on.
Last edited by gegs on Mon Mar 14, 2011 4:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
michaelm
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2011 9:18 am
Location: Glasgow

Re: Spotify on Squeezeplay on Jolicloud

Post by michaelm »

Can I just say gegs,

You are a genius!

It worked perfectly on the latest Jolicloud image (13/03/11).

For some reason i had the Spotify application and the plugin activated but never gave my login details to the Triode plugin. Once I entered those in and restarted the server the joggler was able to finally log into Spotify and the music sounds fantastic.

Like yourself, the BBC official plugin does not seem to work but the iPlayer Extras works really well and in many ways it is better than the live radio as you can pick & mix as well as fast forward.

Thank you once again - just in time as I was thinking this morning I should cancel my subscription to Spotify as I am not using on the joggler anymore!

Cheers

Michael
gegs
Posts: 1146
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2011 3:22 pm
Location: Edinburgh

Re: Spotify on Squeezeplay on Jolicloud

Post by gegs »

The BBC iPlayer plugin also works for me (as well as the iPlayer extras). You have the choice of live streams or listen again options. It was the only way I could get the BBC streams to work.

I think the BBC app from the App Gallery tries to play WMA streams which fail for me. If you go to the 'Advanced' tab on Squeezebox Server settings and choose the iPlayer plugin from the drop-down, you have the choice to use AAC streams instead. I did this and BBC radio worked fine thereafter.
michaelm
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2011 9:18 am
Location: Glasgow

Re: Spotify on Squeezeplay on Jolicloud

Post by michaelm »

Spot on again gegs

It works great for me too now that I changed to AAC. I was also getting the WMA error.

Cheers

Michael
gegs
Posts: 1146
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2011 3:22 pm
Location: Edinburgh

Re: Spotify on Squeezeplay on Jolicloud

Post by gegs »

I'm really pleased you've got both Spotify and the BBC streams working now. They are almost exclusively what I use the Joggler for nowadays.
michaelm
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2011 9:18 am
Location: Glasgow

Re: Spotify on Squeezeplay on Jolicloud

Post by michaelm »

gegs

thanks for your help. They both work fantastic now. Squeezeplay is really what i use the joggler most for as well.

I do tend to get some choppy sound on Triode Spotify though after a while (more testing needed to confirm), perhaps I need to follow Buzz's advice for the audio settings (I have already done the thermal.psv=80 adjustment)

Incidentally I now have two Spotify icons. One normal one (green) and another one under Internet Radio (orange coloured). I take it this last one is the Triode Plugin? It seems to be more full featured.

Bizarelly, after I changed the settings for the Triode plugin, both Spotify proper as well as the Triode Plugin seems to work now.

I have restarted the server and the app a couple of times already so I am a bit confused on the duplicates. Any ideas?

Thanks

Michael
gegs
Posts: 1146
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2011 3:22 pm
Location: Edinburgh

Re: Spotify on Squeezeplay on Jolicloud

Post by gegs »

You're correct, the green Spotify icon is the official Spotify app, the orange one is the Triode plugin.

I uninstalled the official app and only use the Triode one. I've not had any dropouts yet but I have a pretty good broadband connection and have never used it for more than about 4 or 5 hours (for example, when I have friends round for a meal I set up a suitable playlist and just let Squeezeplay/Spotify do their stuff).

I might try the official app now just to see which works best.

It's also worth mentioning that once you have Squeezebox Server installed on the Joggler the easiest way to manage your plugins is in your computer's web browser. Instead of http://localhost:9000 on the Joggler you should put http://IP_ADDRESS_OF_JOGGLER:9000 on your computer (e.g. http://192.1.xxx.xx:9000).
michaelm
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2011 9:18 am
Location: Glasgow

Re: Spotify on Squeezeplay on Jolicloud

Post by michaelm »

I never actually installed the server on the joggler.

I just followed your instructions on the server installation and web interface on my iMac and that seemed to do the trick.

The drop outs are very sporadic and it can be any number of things. My connection is good (13Mbps) but the joggler ic connected via a couple of PowerLine plugs as the wirelesss on the joggler kept dropping out.

It could be the homeplugs, or the joggler itself or the squeezeplay or the plugin etc... It only happens on spotify and not on last fm so perhaps the bit rate (320) is too high for the homeplugs? Any how, it performs admirably 98% of the time so show stoppers there.

Thanks again for everything.

Michael
gegs
Posts: 1146
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2011 3:22 pm
Location: Edinburgh

Re: Spotify on Squeezeplay on Jolicloud

Post by gegs »

Hi Michael,

If dropouts are getting annoying in Spotify you might be able to get better streaming by dropping the bitrate. Premium subscribers get a better quality stream but you can lower this on the Spotify plugin advanced settings. The sound quality at the lower bitrate is still pretty good because that's what other Spotify users get.

Also, you might get a better result by using the official Spotify app on Jolicloud (now JoliOS). You don't need to run it through Squeezeplay. Maybe Spotify running on top of JoliOS has a better performance than Spotify on top of Squeezeplay on top of JoliOS.

I haven't tried either method on JoliOS, so I'm not sure about this.

P.S. I installed the server on my Joggler because I have two. The Joggler with it installed also acts as server for the other machine. This means that I have all my plugins available at all times (because the Jogglers are on all the time). When I installed the server on my computer I lost some plugins when the PC was switched off.

P.P.S. I also realise that the genuine app is not very finger friendly but I use it occasionally. I have to navigate the interface with a wireless mouse, the receiver of which is plugged into a USB hub.
michaelm
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Mar 04, 2011 9:18 am
Location: Glasgow

Re: Spotify on Squeezeplay on Jolicloud

Post by michaelm »

May just do that if I get another joggler for the living room which I am seriously considering.

For now, everything works perfect.

Cheers

Michael
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