Bluesound 2i coaxial output sound quality

1. No

2. Yes

What is the sound quality of the bluesound compared to other sub $1k streamers?

Usually subpar. Besides the OS blows.

@fuzztone could you elaborate? I disagree 100% particularly regarding the OS…

my 2 cents

dac has much greater impact on sq than streamer... as in 80/20 or 85/15

i like blu os - i think (short of paying for roon) it is an excellent, quite stable streaming control software

bluesound node 2i or new node, are excellent values

 

Agree completely with geof3 and jjww49, my combination of a Node 2i with an external Bel Canto DAC 3 sounds superb and I find the both the Bluesound OS and the Tidal Connect app very well designed and reliable.

It's worth looking into upgrading the power board with PD Creative and power supply with Sbooster. The high noise floor of the stock Node 2i streams lo-fi at best, even with an external dac.

better DAC will definitely improve the sound, but wouldn't spend too much, as the streamer itself will limit sound quality...I use mine with Denafrips Ares ll , but wouldn't spend more than that (it's about $800 new )...

I plan on using a Cary 306/200 cdp

 

 

@wlutke ,

Will adding $500 worth of upgrades to a $500 streamer give you better than a $1000 streamer?  I bought the new Node and got a bad one and sent it back and am waiting for a replacement. As I am waiting, I’m wondering if I could do better.

All the best.

JD

 

there is an endless debate about the importance of the streamer itself, though there seems to be agreement that the DAC in the 2i is not very good...

@curiousjim , That's a very good question. Sorry, I haven't heard a $1000 streamer in my system so I can't answer it. I broke into streaming at entry level with the Node 2i and then the newest Node. I do like the OS and especially the remote. It has finer volume adjustment than my pre, allows me to surf preset radio stations, mute, pause, skip and can switch me from Spotify to radio. I have $1700 invested in an MHDT Orchid, new Node Sbooster power supply and power board upgrade. For $2200 including Node I think I would get a different flavor of sound and different OS in a streaming dac. Maybe someone who has done the upgrades and moved on can comment. Certainly the upgrades seriously shame the stock Node as a streamer.

@geof3

I prefer Volumio custom ala miniDSP and Pro-Ject OR piCorePlayer/LMS (open sourced). Anything with a switchable persistent queue.

In my experience people who like BluOS never tried anything else. Of course the cannot on a BlueSound, it is locked up like Hannibal Lecter.

From my experience a DAC does matter w/ the Bluesound Node 2i.  I had one and it was decent.  Used the coax and fed that into my McIntosh C47 and there was a major upgrade in SQ.  Likewise when I got a Simaudio 280d DAC, it sounded much better through the Simaudio then on it's own.  But the streamer isn't the best quality.  Its good, but not great and a $1000 streamer/DAC sounds better then the Bluesound through a $3000 DAC.  But at least Bluesound app is polished...  

I’ve been into high end digital since tha advent of the CD while maintaining a high end analog rig. I have tried many combinations of streamers an DACs while upgrading my main system, office and creating a headphone system. See my User ID for a couple of my systems.

A streamer is every bit as important as the DAC as is the preamp etc. In a well balanced synergistic system they all must be of equivalent and equal sound quality. Finding this combination for your system is hard… hype, different opinions, different sound quality character among all the components.

But at this point in time, in general, if you find best in class, the place to start is assuming the cost of each piece should be about the same… Streamer, DAC, preamp, amp, speakers (these will be more).

 

So on my systems the best matches I got on my different components are the following (all are mature complete end point systems):

Main: Streamer $22K, DAC $17K, Preamp $17K, amp $22K

Headphone: Streamer $4K, DAC $4K, Headphone amp $5K

I have had dozens of combinations and spent decades building these… working my way up. The formula has changed as streamers, DACs and other components have gotten better.

So, don’t believe anyone that says the streamer isn’t important… either they are playing with sub $1000 systems, or just haven’t had wide enough exposure. Probably well intended, but without lots of exposure at many levels, it is easy for your head to tell you, “it’s just bits, it can’t matter”… and believe it. I thought that once.

 

 

 

Interesting comments.  I am new to the streaming thing.  But I build reference audio components, DHT DAC point-to-point wired with 20lb power supply.  IMO the DAC makes the biggest improvement.  The streaming device contributes but not to the level of the DAC but most of you have not heard what we manufacturer, and you cannot buy something like our DAC anywhere.

 

Now that being said, last night with the Node 2i, we found that Spotify was better sounding than Roon.  Very easy to hear the immediate difference. 

The Pro-Ject audio CD transport was also a major improvement in sound quality.

We used the Holo $3K DAC and the Rockna $16K DAC for comparisons.

I also have accessible the Auralic to compare to the Node 2i to see if any improvement and how much improvement there will be but we did not get the chance last night to take a listen.  I will probably do that comparison next week.

Thanks for posting your comments, very informative.

 

 

 

 

 

So, don’t believe anyone that says the streamer isn’t important… either they are playing with sub $1000 systems, or just haven’t had wide enough exposure. Probably well intended, but without lots of exposure at many levels, it is easy for your head to tell you, “it’s just bits, it can’t matter”… and believe it. I thought that once.

@dvdgreco

This is wise and thoughtful counsel from @ghdprentice. I simply do not understand the downplaying of the significance of the streamer. It is your digital source and thus vitally important. Increasing its quality will yield better sound just as improving your DAC’s quality. A compelling case could be made for 50-50 contribution.

Charles

@fuzztone Understood. However, I think for most people the ease of use of the Bluesound OS makes it a win. Regarding the overall conversation, I think this entire discussion hinges on what does one want from their streaming? If super high level fidelity is the goal, as in trying to match a good analog rig, that’s going to be costly. However, if streaming is mostly casual listening and new music discovery, for the $$$ the Bluesound Node is tough to beat.