PC-to-Stereo Streamer Puts You in Control

Sondigo's Sirocco Wireless Audio Bridge is the latest contender for the job of wirelessly streaming digital audio from your PC to your stereo. It takes the same approach as Linksys's Wireless-G Music Bridge: Its software bypasses copy-protection issues by treating the device as a remote sound card that receives audio over your 802.11b or g network and plays it through your stereo. The $140 Sirocco is more expensive than the Linksys unit (which you can find online for about $80), but its features and controls are well worth the premium.

The excellent PC setup utility swiftly configures the device for your network and installs Sirocco's easy-to-use software for controlling the PC connection as well as all of the device's audio features.

The Sirocco attaches to a standard two-channel stereo or to a Dolby Digital Live 5.1 surround-sound system via the device's analog outputs or its optical digital output. The software's impressive controls include some two dozen options for adjusting surround sound to fit the environment, plus a 10-band equalizer with a dozen presets.

A major plus is the device's Dynamic Audio Switching technology, which allows you to toggle between PC and stereo speakers in midtune. It worked flawlessly; with the Linksys Music Bridge, you have to shut down your audio player software before switching or you risk crashing the PC sound system.

One non-Sirocco-specific complaint: Streaming lightly compressed audio over Wi-Fi makes quality-of-service demands that a wireless network can't always meet. The Sirocco's user-adjustable buffer, another nice feature, helped to reduce (but did not eliminate) skips and stuttering.

Such network issues aside, the Sirocco offers an excellent way for you to enjoy your digital music collection.