SSL radio streaming · https only
SSL radio streaming.Every listener on https.
SSL radio streaming is how every Server Room station is heard: the listen link is https, served on a Let's Encrypt certificate, and plain-http listening is switched off. Nothing to request and nothing to pay, on every plan including Free.
- TLS on every plan
- Plain http refused
- Encoder settings unchanged
A player on an https website plays it, a phone app accepts it, and what your listeners tune in to stays between them and us. Your encoder connects exactly as it did before; only the listener side moved to https.
Why https
An http stream fails quietly in three places
Nothing about the audio changes with TLS. What changes is who will agree to play it.
Players on https websites
Browsers no longer load http audio inside an https page. They try the https address instead or block the request, so a stream that answers only on http plays nothing and shows no error.
Phone apps
iOS refuses plain-http connections from apps unless the developer adds an exception, and app review asks why. An https stream needs no exception, which is one reason the station apps on Premium and Platinum use it.
Listener privacy
Over http, anyone on the network path can read which station a listener has open and alter what they receive. Over https they see only that the listener is connected to our server.
The link
One https address per stream, on the standard port
The station's port sits in the path, not after a colon. Our https proxy on the radio node carries every station on port 443, so the link works on networks that let only web traffic out, and the station's own port stays free for encoders.
Anatomy of the listen link
- Scheme
- https
- Host
- ny1.radio.serverroom.net
- Path
- /your port/stream
- Certificate
- Let's Encrypt
- The overview tab prints it with copy and open buttons
- On Platinum each of the 3 streams has its own https link, the lighter ones for listeners on mobile data
- Listener counts, the 24-hour chart and the monthly listener hours sit on the same screen
Player and page
A web player and a station page that are https already
The Share tab gives you an embeddable web player for your own site: pick the theme, the accent and the height, watch the preview, copy the code. The public station page carries the same player with your logo, your weekly show line-up and what is on now, and joins our radio guide once we approve it. All of it is on every plan.
- The player fills the width you give it, so it fits a sidebar or a full-width banner
- A station page for stations that have no website yet
- A direct https link on the overview tab for VLC and radio apps
Encoders
Your encoder keeps its settings
Only listening moved to https. Sources still log in on the station's own port with the source password, so no encoder needs a TLS option and none of your settings change.
From the Go live tab
- Icecast encoders
- server, station port, mount, user, password
- SHOUTcast-protocol encoders
- server, station port plus one, password
- Browser studio
- on Premium and Platinum, nothing to configure
Country limits
The same proxy enforces where you may be heard
If your music licences cover only some countries, set them under "Where the station is heard" in the Licensing tab. The https proxy then turns away a listener from anywhere else with a clear refusal, and lets through a listener whose country it cannot place. With every listener arriving over https, the rule has no side door.
- Country limits on every plan, Free included
- The setting is kept with your licensing records
- Licences listed and checked by our team, with a flag when one ends within 30 days
Plans
https on all three plans; the rest is bitrate and audience
Free is $0 a month after a one-time $5 setup. Premium is $39 a month and Platinum $79. Each one serves its listeners over https.
| Feature | Free | Premium | Platinum |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broadcasting | |||
| Concurrent listeners, hard cap | 1,000 | 2,500 | 5,000 |
| Listener hours per calendar month | no allowance | 500,000 | 1.5 million |
| Maximum bitrate | 32 Kbps | 128 Kbps | 320 Kbps |
| Streams (extras are lower-bitrate relays) | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| https listen link and web player | Included | Included | Included |
| Icecast and SHOUTcast-protocol encoders | Included | Included | Included |
14 days free on Premium and Platinum. The card or PayPal account goes on file at checkout and nothing is charged until day 14 ends; cancel before then and the trial costs nothing. One trial per new customer, and a Free or Premium station gets one when it moves up a plan.
The radio hosting page lists every feature of every plan.
Answers
SSL radio streaming questions
What is SSL radio streaming?
Serving a radio stream over https, so the connection between the listener and the server is encrypted with TLS. On our platform it is the only way a station is served: the listen link is https on a Let's Encrypt certificate, and plain-http listening is refused.
Do I pay extra for an https radio stream?
No. It comes with every plan, Free included, and there is nothing to switch on.
Why does my old http stream link no longer play?
Plain-http listening to a station's port is refused on our platform. Copy the https link from the overview tab and put it in your players, apps and directory listings. A station still on one of our older machines keeps its old address until it moves; ask us on chat for its https address.
Does https add delay to the stream?
Only when a listener tunes in: the TLS handshake costs a round trip or two at connect. After that the audio flows as it would over http.
Can my encoder connect over SSL?
It does not need to. Encoders log in on the station's port with the source password, as before, and only listener connections are https. The Go live tab prints the settings.
Which players can open an https stream?
Browsers, VLC, phone apps, the station apps we build on Premium and Platinum, and most radio apps and directories. A very old hardware receiver that predates TLS may not; tell us the model on chat and we will check.
Is there a free trial on the paid radio plans?
Yes, 14 days on Premium and Platinum. You add a card or PayPal at checkout, the first charge comes when the trial ends, and cancelling before then costs nothing. Each new customer gets one trial, and a Free or Premium station gets one when it upgrades.
An https station for a one-time $5
The free plan carries live audio to 1,000 listeners at once, over https from the first minute.