An Update on Gameday Audio for Mac

by Kegler on Apr 5, 2007 8:46 AM CDT

For anyone interested in how my experience went:

I subscribed to the Audio last night. I then downloaded Firefox (which had been recommended, and because mlb.com states that it won't work with Safari) and that program linked above by another reader (the flip4mac thing). At first I was unable to get any audio to come through even though the page would load. I closed everything down and reopened Safari, figuring I'd try it there. The page failed to load properly; however, I did get audio. I listened to the last few innings of the Cub game this way.

All went well enough, with two exceptions: 1) the sound is tinny and low-band, but it's clear and 2) for some reason, the stream "skipped" from the top of the 8th back to the top of the 7th, and then played on as if nothing had happened until the game ended. Strange.

When the game was over, I closed Safari and reopened Firefox. I logged on to the Audio and clicked on the Boston game to test whether or not I'd get any sound now. It came through perfectly, page graphics and all.

Overall, if it continues working like it did last night, it'll be worth the $15/year. The sound isn't perfect (we listen through our stereo receiver, which adds a bit more bass to it, fattens it up a bit), but it's clear, which is more than I can say about our reception of WGN in the house. We live right across the lake, in Michigan, and in the car WGN comes in fine. At home it's a different story.

My biggest Q about all of this is simple: why can't mlb.com join the 21st century and give us high-quality, streaming access to the games, especially if we're paying for the service? The whole setup they're using seems held together with duct tape and silly string. There are many, much smaller sites, that stream live rock shows and radio and other things WAY more easily and with MUCH higher quality. And they all do it for free. Of course, what am I saying? We're talking the MLB here.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of SB Nation or Al Yellon, managing editor (unless it's a FanPost posted by Al). FanPost opinions are valued expressions of opinion by passionate and knowledgeable baseball fans.

Tweet Comment 5 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

I have enjoyed

MLB audio for sometime. It's cheap, and I can still get things done around the house and with my family while I listen.

My one question--has anyone been able to set it up so that they can listen through a smart phone? I can get to the site listing the games, but it won't let me click on the "WGN" link or the "L" symbol.

by TC Cubby on Apr 5, 2007 9:00 AM CDT reply actions

Two things...

First, you might want to also look into XM. It's nice because you can take it almost anywhere. The downside is that they only carry one radio feed, so you generally get the home team or ESPN if they're doing the game. The upside is all the other programming and the 24-hour baseball channel. Another downside is that it's 12.95/mo as opposed to $15 for the whole season.

Second, I agree with you on the quality of some of the feeds. I think they literally may be getting them over the phone. Even on the MLB Rewind podcast, the quality of the audio on some of the games is down right horrible.

by jolietconvict on Apr 5, 2007 11:14 AM CDT reply actions

its defiantely a mac issue

my play seems to forget its streaming sometimes... so i just listening on windows using parallels.

One of Us!One Of Us!

by HerrProf on Apr 5, 2007 2:25 PM CDT reply actions

Make sure

you turn off pop-up blocking on your browser. That clears up most of my problems when I listen on my Mac.

by helen on Apr 5, 2007 7:06 PM CDT reply actions

Re

If you used a real computer instead of a toy with a piece of fruit on it, you'd discover that MLB Audio is a great service, especially for the price.

I've never had a problem with it, and I'm almost always listening with high-end earphones running thru a headphone amp. Of course, my sound card software includes an equalizer that I adjust for a voice broadcast.

I know Macs are the cool thing to have. Me? I prefer the tool that works, gives me software options up the ying-yang, and doesn't treat me like a child.

BTW - if your Mac has an Intel chip in it, get a dual-boot program and load XP. Or get a VM program and run it virtually. Problem solved.

Visit The Digital Gazette

by Jed Taylor on Apr 9, 2007 5:44 AM CDT reply actions