I went directly from the Node 2i to the U-1 mini. See my comments above in this thread.
Oz
Lumin D2 or U1 Mini
alvinnir2 - I was in the same situation as you but now it’s somewhat changed. I purchased and installed a power board upgrade modification for the Node 2i. My Node 2i can now use a linear power supply but I haven’t done that yet because the upgrade included a MeanWell medical grade SMPS and I’ve been very impressed with the sound quality after the new power board and the SMPS burned-in. It took 100 to 120 hours of audio play time in addition to leaving the Node 2i on 24x7 (i.e., not powered down). I logged the music playtime because I was curious how much burn-in would be required. I heard similar improvement as described by people who switched from the Node 2i to the Lumin U1 mini. Better bass definition and much more detail. In addition, I hear much more “fleshiness” between the speakers, better imaging, much improved soundstage depth. It’s definitely not rounded off. In fact, it really needed the burn-in period to sound organic. Bass guitar has an incredible leading edge and cymbals shimmer. I’m trying to decide if a Lumin mini would add much more or if I should just get a LPS and call it complete. And then the burn-in required for a LPS. The Sbooster on my DAC took a long time. I couldn’t listen to it for the first 50 hours. It’s a great product when finally burned-in! |
I had the D2 and changed to an Ifi Stream and Topping D70 MQA. Very happy with the results and if offers far greater flexibility with the dac. The D2 will not work with Tidal connect. https://luminmusic.com/streaming-services.html Id focus on the dac but ensure the streamer will deliver the possibilities you require in terms of streaming services. |