Internet radios

[ObviouslyNotAGolfer]

I am looking for a small, portable internet radio for travel and listening in the back yard and in various places without easy AC outlets.

I am willing to pay for build/sound quality. I am looking for the following features (not sure I can get everything here, but the first item is a must).

- High fidelity reproduction with no boomy exaggerated bass (aside from that I do not have great expectations from a small, portable deivce)
 
- Can stream Qobuz

- Can play flac files from a USB drive

- Battery powered (rechargeable or AA)

- Dual voltage (if rechargeable)

Any advice will be appreciated. Thanks!

[Daley]

Use the equipment you already have, i.e. use your Android phone and get a decent portable Bluetooth speaker or two.

To use a USB thumb drive on your existing LG K7 (if you're still using it), you'll need a Micro USB OTG cable, which are cheap. Otherwise, you can use the MicroSD card storage of the phone itself, or if a newer phone either a USB type C thumb drive or USB type C OTG cable.

Software? RadioDroid (F-Droid/Play) uses the RadioBrowser database. The F-Droid link technically has a minor point release newer build of the app than the Play Store has, but there were a lot of feature and bug fixes with it. Alternately, there's TuneIn Radio.

VLC for Android can play your FLAC files, and can handle streaming internet radio stations (if you would rather have fewer apps to use), provided you know/have the addresses for your favorite stations already (see RadioBrowser above).

The only software catch is going to be Qobuz on that K7 if Google won't let you install it from the Play Store, as the last version that supported any version of Android below 6.0 was Qobuz 6.0.0.4 released on 02 July 2021, which the APK can still be found easily enough through reasonably reputable means, though I'd still check the APK signature verification of any APK you download and run it through Virustotal just to be extra cautious. The older software version will probably still work, but if Qobuz ever changes their API backend down the road, you may need a newer phone. If you already replaced the old K7 with a newer smartphone, this point is moot.

As for decent portable Bluetooth speakers? Something no-frills like the JBL Flip would probably work. Most portable Bluetooth speakers overcompensate with bass and WiFi subscription smart feature connectivity to provide more bang for buck. This isn't that, and you can easily pair two together for stereo output if so desired.

[ObviouslyNotAGolfer]

Hi Daley,

Thanks for your reply. The more I look at the available offerings, the more I am in agreement with you. There appear to be very few small ones; even when I do a search on Amazon, BH or wherever, and specify "internet radio", the search results yield mostly AM/FM radios. There was a Sangean that looked OK at first, but the photos show it is rather large, and is powered by four (!) D (!!!) batteries. GTFO-not going anywhere near D batteries.

I have owned and loved a small Sony ICF-S10 MK2 AM/FM "transistor radio" for many years. The sound is fine for such a small device, and the batteries last for years! I also have a tiny 50$ Sony rechargeable speaker (about 3" cube) with very impressive SQ for its size. I attach it to my Fiio X1 player via 3.5mm cable and have a very nice, small, light system for travel. Those, plus my laptop, and--one day--a new phone to replace the K7 should cover all my bases. (K7 still works ok, but is slowing down. I am very frugal with phones! Don't even have, or need, a data plan!)

[Daley]

Yeah, I think after a phone upgrade to a model that still has a headphone jack (and preferably/ideally a radio), you could probably actually slim things down to just the phone and your speaker at that point without sacrificing much of anything else. On one hand, I used to think that smartphones did everything poorly (including calls), but media consumption's a pretty solid thing for the most part now, especially audio. The biggest part is just finding the right software/apps (VLC is a good catch-all for oddball formats) and getting over the loss of physical buttons. At this point, even we have abandoned our dedicated MP3 players and don't haul out the dedicated digital camera as much... though it's taken over 15 years of advancements in the devices to get to that point.

[gooki]

How often do you stream from Qobuz?

If it's not often, I'd consider a Logitech Squeezebox Radio. Good sound, portable, will play FLAC files. And then stream Qobuz from your phone with a 3.5mm cable to the radio.

It's not perfect (Spotify updated their API, and the squeezebox radio app didn't get updated so we switched to Deezer). And they're hadish to find (discontinued 5 years ago), but we love ours. They also make good clock radios for bedrooms.

[cool7hand]

This bluetooth speaker has been a great investment for us. It has good sound and is rugged enough for camping and fishing. Just pair it with your phone or computer! We've even used it in a former car that lacked CarPlay or the like.

https://www.ultimateears.com/en-us/wireless-speakers/megaboom-3.html

[FIRE 20/20]

- High fidelity reproduction with no boomy exaggerated bass (aside from that I do not have great expectations from a small, portable deivce)
 

I think this will be the toughest criterion to meet.  I have (and like) both the Megaboom 3 and a couple of JBL Flip bluetooth speakers, but both are the opposite of high fidelity.  They're great for listening to podcasts, but have muddy mid-range response, weak highs, and overly boosted bass.  There aren't a lot of great high-end portable bluetooth speakers out there that I've seen or heard.  I have heard good things about the Marshall line of portable bluetooth speakers, including the Stockwell II, Killburn II, and Tufton.  You might want to give them a try.  Another option that should have above average sounds quality might be the Bang & Olufsen Beolit 20, or, if you want something smaller the Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen).  I haven't heard these B&O speakers, but they've received good reviews from places like What Hi-Fi?  I think you're more likely to get closer to the sound you're looking for with them than the mainstream speakers.