How to Stream Music from PC to Android via WiFi Speaker

You probably stream music, videos and movies all the time on your Android device. If you have a good collection of songs or movies on your PC and want to watch them on your Android, you need to transfer them to your device using a USB, ensure that you have sufficient storage capacity to accommodate a few movies or music files and wait for the transfer to be complete. You can avoid all that hassle by simply using a free tool called WiFi Speaker.

This works by downloading a couple of apps, connecting them and streaming. This method works great if for some reason your PC speakers are giving trouble and not playing properly, or if you want to watch or listen to something that’s on your PC from the comfort of your bed without disturbing others at home. Let’s go ahead and see how to stream music from PC to Android using WiFi Speaker.

How to Stream Music from PC to Android

To stream music from PC to Android, you need to download and install a couple of apps; WiFi Speaker from Google Play and WiFi Speaker Server from pixelatedmind.com. Both apps are free to download. Also make sure that your PC and Android device are connected to the same WiFi. Here are the step by step instructions:

1. Download and install WiFi Speaker from Google Play.

2. Download and install WiFi Speaker Server on your PC. I have downloaded it on my Windows 8 PC for this tutorial. The install was clean with no adware or crapware.

3. Open up the server window after installation. You will see something like this.

4. Now open up the WiFi Speaker app on your Android.

5. You will see a message box asking you to download WiFi Speaker Server. Click OK.

6. Now on the app, click the Search icon. The app should automatically identify your server. If it doesn’t do so, wait for 10 seconds and try again. If it still insists that there are no servers, go to your PC and note down the IP address on the WiFi Speaker Server screen and manually type it on the Server text box on your Android. Then click Connect. You will notice a message indicating “Login Successful.”

If you are still having trouble, on the PC WiFi Speaker Server screen, click the Spanner icon to access the Settings. On the left pane, select Display. Then in the right pane, toggle between the other NIC options you have to select the right IP.

7. Now open up a music player (Grooveshark, Spotify, YouTube, iTunes, VLC, Windows Media Player) on your PC and start playing the songs. Remember to mute your PC volume.

The app will automatically stream audio to Android.

Key Features of WiFi Speaker

Other Uses of WiFi Speaker

Apart from streaming audio to Android; you can use WiFi Speaker:

Using WiFi Speaker

The WiFi Speaker app and the server was easy to download and install. It did take me a while to sort out my IP issues, but once I understood the problem with the conflicting IPS, I was able to get it up and running in no time at all. If you follow the instructions in this guide, you will have no trouble setting it up.

As far as latency issues were concerned, expect some delays as many factors such as your Android’s processing power and CPU load could also play a role in them. In the free version, you will be interrupted by a promotional offer from the developer. The paid version (WiFi Speaker Pro $3.99) removes the voice and display ads; offers control over the equalizer and includes audio compression.

As far as my use of the app went, the quality of streaming was good and clean. I did not have to make any adjustments to the settings, but you have plenty of options to tweak should you face any audio issues.

If you want to stream music from PC to Android, give WiFi Speaker a try. Just hit the links below to download the apps.