2. digital
  3. 185313-158289

Digital front end upgrade options

Hey everyone,

want to get some opinions and advice as to what may be the best upgrade path for my system.

my digital front end is currently lacking quite a bit. It’s my primary playback out of pure convenience. I currently stream tidal and qobuz through a MacBook Pro into a dragonfly cobalt. I would like to invest into a dedicated streamer. I have been looking at two units that are in different leagues. The first option would be the bluesound node 2i (more budget option) and the second would be a lumin u2 mini. So with that being said if I went with the cheaper option of the bluesound node 2i would I see any real sonic improvements over my current setup? Or would I be better suited to just pony up for the more expensive lumin u2 mini? And if I went with the u2 mini would the sonic improvements be significant over my dragonfly cobalt? I would like to think either option would be a significant upgrade but unfortunately I don’t have the option to test gear to find out for myself. Hoping to get a little insight here. Thank you all!

james1911

Showing 2 responses by audphile1

audphile1's avatar
audphile1
5,443 posts
 

Node will likely be a noticeable improvement over your current setup but the Lumin D2 would be a big step up 

audphile1's avatar
audphile1
5,443 posts
 

Mr. .45 ACP….Lumin U1 Mini is a pure streamer. You would need a DAC and going from U1 Mini into your AQ cobalt would be a potential waste of resources.
If you like a one box solution, some of the options include, Lumin D2, HiFi Rose, Ever Solo (see Steve Huff’s review on YouTube), iFi Neo and your aforementioned cheaper option of Bluesound Node among others.
Alternative would be to get a decent DAC, i.e a Chord Qutest and continue using your your macbook but the mac isn’t that good as a streamer. If you’re looking for convenience and don’t want to spend a lot, the Bluesound Node is your ticket

 

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