Tag: Bluetooth audio adaptor

Wirelessly playing music held on your mobile device through other equipment

You may have your music held on a smartphone or tablet but you want it coming through better and louder speakers. Similarly, you have packed out your laptop computer or an external hard disk which you connect to your laptop with music. But you still want the flexibility of moving around your space with your phone or positioning your laptop wherever you want it.

Devices you can use

Primarily you could use a wireless media adaptor that is connected to existing audio equipment or speakers. This function may be integrated in some audio devices like Internet radios or music systems. On the other hand, you could purchase a wireless-enabled speaker system such as a speaker dock which integrates the wireless media adaptor with the speakers.

Methods

Bluetooth

Creative Labs Sound BlasterAxx PS-SBX20 Bluetooth wireless speaker (Image courtesy: Creative Labs)

Creative Labs Sound BlasterAxx PS-SBX20 Bluetooth wireless speaker system for the smartphone, tablet or laptop

A common method would be to use a Bluetooth link. This is supported by every smartphone and tablet but would only work with a Bluetooth audio adaptor or Bluetooth speaker system.

Here, the Bluetooth audio device must work to the Bluetooth A2DP audio profile for music playback and AVRCP audio control profile if you want to control the phone from the device’s controls.

To set up your wireless link, you would have to “pair” you mobile device with the Bluetooth audio device. Here, you place the device in “discoverable” mode and then use the mobile device’s “add Bluetooth device” function to discover the audio device. Most recent devices go in to “discoverable” mode when they are first plugged in but with a device that is already connected to power, you may have to hold down a “setup” or “Bluetooth” button. Here, an indicator light may flash in a certain manner to show that the device is in “pairing” or “discoverable” mode.

Bluetooth audio setup with a laptop

Bluetooth audio setup with a laptop and a Bluetooth audio adaptor

When you go to your mobile device and use the “add Bluetooth device” function, there will be a list of devices you had already “paired” with your phone as well as a new device name, typically representing the audio device’s brand or model name. Select this device and the pairing process will take place. If your mobile device shows a “password” or “PIN” request as part of this setup, enter 0000 in response to this request.

In this situation, you will likely have your mobile device connecting to your Bluetooth speakers or adaptor. On the other hand, if you already paired your phone or tablet to the Bluetooth audio device and your device and mobile device are on, you would have to go to the Bluetooth menu to select the “Connect” option to establish the connection.

If you subsequently use the same Bluetooth audio device, you may have to “connect” to that device to have it play its music through the audio device. This may require you to enable Bluetooth and, in some cases, select the device’s name to connect it.

Laptop users would then find that the Bluetooth A2DP and Hands Free Profile will present themselves as “sound devices” through the use of class drivers implemented by Windows 7 and MacOS X. You may have to set the Bluetooth virtual sound cards as default sound devices if you are using applications that don’t allow you to determine the sound device for that application. I have covered this issue in further detail in an article about using laptops with Bluetooth devices.

Wi-Fi wireless

Another wireless connection method is to use a Wi-Fi wireless network. This uses a choice of two protocols: Apple Airplay and the open-standard DLNA protocol.

Network setup

These setups require that the mobile device and the wireless network media player are linked through a network that has a Wi-Fi segment and are seen as the same logical network.

In some cases, the network media player can be connected to an Ethernet or HomePlug segment as long as that segment is accessible to the Wi-Fi wireless segment.

Denon Cocoon 500 Wi-Fi wireless speaker (Image courtesy: Denon Marantz Group)

Denon Cocoon 500 Wi-Fi wireless speaker that works with DLNA or AirPlay setups

These setups can work with network media players and wireless speakers that implement Wi-Fi Direct thus avoiding the need to use a wireless router like a MiFi to create a wireless-network segment. Similarly, some Wi-Fi Direct “master-device” implementations like the Intel implementation used in Windows laptops can allow the device to be a host for a Wi-Fi Direct segment and a client to an existing Wi-Fi network, thus bridging the connections. This can come in handy with public wireless hotspots due to client isolation and, in most cases, Web-based login being established on them; features which could impede the establishment of a Wi-Fi wireless music network.

But you can gain better results with a dedicated WiFi router or access point like one of the portable “MiFi” routers.

Infact most of these setups implement WPS one-push setup for Android mobile devices, Windows 7 computers and most current-issue Internet audio equipment. On the other hand, they will have a pre-determined device-unique WPA-PSK device passphrase for use with Apple devices.

Sony SA-NS410 wireless speaker

Sony SA-NS410 Wireless Network Speaker

It is also worth knowing that some speakers like the Sony SA-NS310, SA-NS410 and SA-NS510 also have access to advanced functions through the use of a dedicated smartphone app. In the case of these speakers, they have direct access to online music services or Internet radio with this software but you may find that they would work better with a regular small-network setup with a router serving a dedicated Internet connection. Again a “MiFi” may come in handy here when you use them at a hotel or serviced apartment with the existing public-acces Wi-Fi network.

Apple AirPlay

This method works best with iOS devices like the iPhone or with computers that are running iTunes. Here, you have to use the AirPlay functionality within iTunes or the music player in your iOS device to “push” your music to your AirPlay-capable device.

Rogue Amoeba have provided the AirFoil program for MacOS X and Windows platforms which turn your AirPlay-capable devices in to a virtual soundcard for your computer. I have helped a friend with purchasing and installing this program on their Windows 7 computer so they can pipe Spotify through an Apple AirPort Express device connected to their home stereo. This program sells for US$29 per computer.

DLNA

The UPnP AV / DLNA-based media setup is a highly-flexible network media playback setup which is more open-frame in nature. I have covered this setup previously due to this ability and the ability for many hardware manufacturers and software developers to support it.

If the idea is to have your music device such as your laptop or smartphone control the music, you will need to make sure that the device can work as a “MediaRenderer”. Devices like the Sony CMT-MX750Ni music system, the WD TV Live network media adaptors or the Pioneer XW-SMA3 wireless speakers will work with this function out of the box but some devices that support this function may require you to visit their setup menu to enable “DLNA Remote Control” or similar functions.

A DLNA-based setup requires a media server to be installed on your computer or mobile device. Windows-based computers will perform this function using Windows Media Player but you can use other third-party players like TwonkyMedia. Here you would have to point these programs to your music library.

Android phones and tablets can work from one of many different DLNA media server-controller apps like TwonkyMedia or AllShare, which is set up to share the content on your device or the SD card.

Depending on the media-client device, a DLNA setup can be managed from the media client device’s control surface or from your computer or mobile device. For example, Windows Media Player that comes with Windows 7 or 8 offers a “Play To” function which allows you to have your content “pushed to” devices that support this kind of control.

DLNA can work as a virtual sound card for Windows computers if you use the Jamcast virtual-sound-card software on your computer, which costs US$29.99. This can be useful for setups like the streaming music services like MOG, Pandora or Spotify which rely on a Web page or client program for them to work.

On the other hand, you could use the DLNA setup to have a laptop play music from your smartphone or tablet. This can be achieved with TwonkyMedia Manager for all platforms or with Windows Media Player 12 (Windows 7 and 8). In the case of Windows Media Player 12, you would select “Stream” – “Allow remote control of my player” to have this option work.

Worth knowing

Sometimes if one of the wireless speakers doesn’t work properly such as failing to reinstate with the device or network or a Wi-Fi speaker failing to connect to another wireless network segment, you may have to reset the speaker. This is a procedure that is dependent on the speaker but may involve you pressing a “RESET” button in a certain way  Then you may have to pair your audio device to the speaker again or configure it to the network you want it to join.

If the idea is to operate that Bluetooth or Wi-Fi speaker at a pool party, avoid the temptation to think that you can operate the iPhone that’s containing the music from the pool or spa. This is where a lot of portable devices become damaged due to the water. Here, it would be better to have the device containing the music, as well as the speaker located as far back from the water as you can, such as near a wall or safety fence.

Conclusion

Once you have your smartphone, tablet or laptop working with a wireless-audio link such as a Bluetooth link, you can be able to have a chance to hear better sound out of these devices while allowing yourself to move the smartphone or similar device around freely.

Update Note

This article, originally published on October 2012, has been updated to make reference to Rogue Amoeba’s AirFoil virtual-sound-card software for Apple AirPlay and to update new pricing details for Jamcast. As well, I have provided direct links to the software developers’ Web pages. I have also created links to the product reviews for the Sony SA-NS410 and SA-NS510 speakers which I had reviewed since the article was first published.

Product Review–Nokia BH-111 Bluetooth Audio Adaptor

Introduction

You have a pair of good-sounding B&O, Bose or Sennheiser headphones but want to use them as a full-blown headset with your smartphone. You may also want to try them with your laptop or desktop computer when you are playing a game or using a softphone app like Skype.

The only solution would be to buy a wired or Bluetooth headset that connects to the computer or phone. But these would make your good headphones redundant. Therefore you would need to look for an audio adaptor with an integrated microphone so you benefit from full handsfree communication.

The only problem with a lot of the wired audio adaptors supplied by the phone manufacturers and third-party accessories suppliers is that you may not be sure that they will work properly with your phone. This is more so if you jump mobile platform every time the contract expires. Similarly, wired audio adaptors can be hard to find because the only device to be seen using with your mobile phone is a Bluetooth headset.

There is also a greater risk of failure with wired audio adaptors as they are used in that the wiring at the device plug can be easily damaged through regular use and storage, thus impairing the quality of phone calls with these devices as I have experienced.

The Nokia BH-111 Bluetooth Audio Adaptor itself

Nokia BH-111 Bluetooth headset adaptor fob

Nokia BH-111 Bluetooth headset adaptor fob - same size as SD card

But wait, I have come across the Nokia BH-111 Bluetooth Audio Adaptor which connects to a set of regular headphones, comverting them in to a Bluetooth stereo headset. It comes with a set of in-ear earphones but these may come in handy as “emergency spares” or for compact-use requirements. It is available in three different colours – black, white and a “hot-pink” colour and retails for AUD$50, making it fit within gift-pricing range.

This kit is centred around a small fob that houses a microphone, control buttons, rechargeable battery and Bluetooth transceiver. You can connect the supplied earphones or a pair of headphones to a 3.5mm stereo jack on the end of the fob’s “hinge pin” and this fob can clip on one’s shirt or tie like a lapel microphone.

Nokia BH-111 Bluetooth headphone adaptor with headphone jack

Bluetooth headphone adapotr fob with headphone jack facing you

The operation buttons are each edge of the face of the fob, with one “multifunction” button that is used primarily to make or take calls, a previous-track button, a next-track button and a play-pause button that can mute the microphone during calls as well as start and stop the music. The hinge pin on this fob has a knob for adjusting the sound volume opposite to where the headphones are plugged in to.

When you charge this Bluetooth audio adaptor, you plug the supplied battery charger or a USB-2.5mm DC cord in to the side of the “hinge pin”; and it doesn’t take long to charge this adaptor.

The Nokia BH-111 complies to the following Bluetooth device classes: Hands-Free Profile, Headset Profile, A2DP audio playback profile and AVRCP audio controller profile. It can store pairings for up to five physical devices at a time and can only connect to one Hands-free or Headset Profile device and one A2DP / AVRCP audio-player device at a time. This could allow you to work it with a Bluetooth smartphone and a separate Bluetooth-capable MP3 player at the same time.

Nokia BH-111 headphone adaptor connected to headphones

Now these good headphones work as a stereo Bluetooth headset for your smartphone

The clip can be very stiff and hard to attach to a thick tie or suit coat but can work with most shirts. But it doesn’t look like something that could break easily after regular usage.

Setup and Usage

You have to use the “multifunction” button to turn the unit on and off as well as make it open for pairing. Here, you have to turn the audio adaptor off, then hold the multifunction button down until you hear a five-beep sequence, followed by a silence then a distinct beep. Then you start your device in “Bluetooth-device-scan” mode and it will show up as “Nokia BH-111” on the device’s user interface.

On the other hand, you hold the multifunction button down until you hear the five-beep sequence complete, then release this button in order to turn the audio adaptor on.

The Nokia BH-111 can act in a very confused manner if two or more devices that are paired with it are in the vicinity. This can happen more so if it is still connected to a mobile phone while a computer associated with it is nearby.

When the phone rings, you hear the Nokia ringtone rather than your handset’s ringtone, which can be confusing when you take a call through the audio adaptor for the first time and your phone plays its own ringtone through its speaker. I would rather that the phone’s ringtone plays through the headphones when a call comes in.

Battery Runtime and Sound Quality

For battery life, the Nokia BH-111 audio adaptor can complete a day of music-playback use with a Bluetooth mobile phone and longer in a quiescent state. It works properly and clearly when making and taking calls – the caller can hear and understand my voice properly and I can hear their properly as if I was using the phone handheld. I noticed this more with quieter environments but the intelligibility for the sound degrades if I was in a noisier environment.

The audio quality for music playback doesn’t change from what is offered by a wired connection to the phone, although there may be jitter occurring if the phone is “overloaded” with other tasks.

Limitations and Points Of Improvement

The clip could be improved on with a lever-type action similar to a clothes peg so it can easily clip to thicker material such as winter clothing or formal wear. The functions could also be marked in a colour inverse to the finish so it is easier to discover them.

It could be beneficial for a device like the Nokia BH-111 to have a 3.5mm input jack so you can connect other personal-audio devices to this adaptor, with the call audio from the Bluetooth phone cutting over sound from the connected personal-audio device. This could benefit people who use a high-capacity iPod Classic or similar device as their music library, listen to broadcast content from a personal radio or play content on legacy formats like cassettes or CDs using a device like a Walkman or Discman.

Similarly I would like to see a function that allows the audio adaptor to work as a speakerphone when connected to other audio equipment that uses speakers rather than a set of headphones. This may appeal to those of us who want to connect it to a car sound system via the AUX-IN jack or cassette adaptor for cassette-based equipment and use Blu-Tack to secure the fob to the dashboard for a high-quality reliable Bluetooth handsfree / music-player setup in a borrowed or hired vehicle.

An improved unit could implement a microphone array as a way of focusing the sound on the user’s voice in a phone conversation, and could place this leagues ahead of the typical Bluetooth headset.

Conclusion

The Nokia BH-111 headphone adaptor is infact the first product of its kind on the market that permits one to use their favourite headphones as a reliable calls-and-music Bluetooth headset for their smartphone especially if they use it for more than just phone calls.