We’ve talked a lot recently about self-hosting everything from your own DNS servers to a NAS or even private cloud equivalent. But something that’s often overlooked as a type of media consumption is streaming music. This is quite understandable, as music is probably the most frictionless streaming experience. You can pay a few dollars a month to access all the content you’ll likely need, with minimal ‘island’ problems like movies or TV. Streaming music requires a fairly small amount of bandwidth, so it can be done from a mobile connection without worry, and downloading offline content is effortless and perpetual, unlike streaming TV or movies.
But there are some good reasons why you might want to host your own music streaming platform at home with a tool like Jellyfin, and why having your own media server doesn’t need to be a replacement for streaming services but can complement your experience nicely. Here are some of the top reasons why hosting your own music streaming service is a great idea.
We’re focusing on Jellyfin here, as it’s easy to set up, especially if you’ve already got a NAS server available for streaming your music. There are some other good alternatives, of course, if you’re not using Jellyfin.
6 Get away from monthly fees
If finances are tight, you can always fall back on your own collection
One of the biggest reasons I think hosting your own music media server at home is great is because it allows you to get away from online subscriptions and streaming platforms. This doesn’t necessarily mean you have to cancel your streaming subscriptions; it’s quite the opposite. I usually maintain at least one streaming service alongside my home music collection. However, by keeping a collection at home with the option of using it as you see fit, you’re inherently reducing the friction attached to your quitting your streaming platform of choice. This makes the transition much easier if finances are challenging for a few months or if you’re just looking to cut back on your overall spending.
Feeling empowered to have the option to quit streaming platforms can be half the battle, in my opinion. Relying on streaming alone, without a fallback, can make canceling a subscription feel like cutting music out of your life altogether. This doesn’t need to be the case.
5 Make use of included download codes
Don’t let the digital equivalent of your physical copies go to waste
If, like me, you like to buy physical copies of some media (for me, it’s vinyl, but tapes and CDs also apply), then you might’ve noticed that physical copies typically come with some form of digital download code. This is a great addition and part of the appeal of buying a physical copy. Not only will you own the physical copy of your media, which should hopefully last effectively forever, provided you store it well, but you’ve now also got the option of having a legal, offline copy to keep on your PC or server forever.
Again, if you’re like me, you might not use these codes without a central place to store them. It’s a pain moving physical files (especially music) between your phone, laptop, desktop, etc. Well, one of the best advantages of having a home music server is self-explanatory. You will have a central place to store the digital music you own. This is great, as these download codes will no longer go to waste.
4 You retain complete control
Manage your library your way
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Another great practical benefit of running your own media server is that you can manage your library in your own way. Modern streaming services don’t really want you to have the concept of a “library.” They’re motivated to help you discover new music algorithmically, make suggestions, and introduce you to new artists.
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3 Share your music with family and friends
Don’t overdo it though
Source: Apple
A lesser-known benefit of having your own media server at home is that you can share your music with your family and friends. Whether you do this over the public internet or via a home VPN is up to you, but by providing your friends and family with some way to access your Jellyfin server, they can easily stream music to their home or phone from your server, making use of your collection. If they also have a server, exchanging details can be a great (and very early 2000s) way to grow your collection of local music.
There may be some legal difficulties here. Depending on where you live, the licensing of the songs you’ve bought may not strictly allow sharing, but typically, as long as you’re doing this with a small group of friends and family (and not for any kind of public consumption or profit), it may not be a serious issue. Check your local laws, and ensure you stay on the right side of them.
2 Access your music offline
Internet downtime? Keep the party going regardless
An obvious benefit of having a local music server is its availability offline. You can download offline music with most streaming services (provided you’re paying for the privilege), and streaming music won’t be too data-reliant if your connection goes offline. Still, these modern apps can sometimes be extremely clunky when handling offline content (looking squarely at you, Spotify). You have to remember to have your current obsession downloaded in the first place. Having things available locally is another option, and one with limited dependency on anything else, provided it’s all working well.
Another benefit of offline access is that you can access your tracks without DRM, meaning you can load them on anything you want, whether or not it has an internet connection and apps installed.
1 Higher quality audio
If you’re a little bit of an audiophile, a serious reason to have your own offline music server might be to access higher-quality recordings of your favorite tracks. While some streaming services support high-bitrate options, they’re often either not very good or significantly more expensive than their standard equivalents. There’s also the question of compression. While some streaming platforms (like Apple Music) support fully lossless compression for audio streams, others don’t (like Spotify), effectively guaranteeing that, whatever the quality of the file you’re streaming, some data will be lost to compression.
Having your own local server gives you the flexibility to manage your streaming settings yourself. You can store the highest-quality files and listen to them as you see fit.
We’ve been talking about Jellyfin in this article, but that’s not your only option – there are hundreds of other drop-in self-hosted music streaming platforms you could use.
Music streaming doesn’t need to be complicated
As mentioned at the start of this piece, the motivation to host your own music streaming server doesn’t necessarily need to be to replace streaming services. Having your own offline collection can complement streaming, offer some features not available from streaming, and maybe even make better use of the resources you’ve already got when buying physical copies.
It also doesn’t need to be complicated. If you’re already running Jellyfin on a NAS or home server, it’s as simple as setting up some directories and indexers for your music, then adding as little or as much music as you see fit. We’d suggest you give it a go, and you never know, you might find a lot of value in streaming some of your music from your own local copies.