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  #11  
Old 12-10-2020, 02:39 AM
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would be curious to know if anyone compared the Bluesound (Node 2i) with those very higher pricey streamers/DAC; what do they bring ? Is it a night and day affair?

Is it the streamer, or the DAC , that makes the difference?


I am in the same state of mind than Jimmy, I could upgrade what I use today: PIONEER N70AE, which has good reviews and good reputation, but I wonder how much it would (or not) improve the sound, that I find to be excellent .

Thank you in advance.
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  #12  
Old 12-10-2020, 04:05 AM
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Jimmy, I’m using an Innuos Zenith Mk3 streamer/server/ripper with great satisfaction. You can configure it as your Roon core unit. Price ranging USD 4250/4900/5650 for 1/2/4TB SSD units. You’ll need to add a separate DAC, there are plenty of good options out there for USD 2-3K.

An interesting all in one solution is the Aurender A10 server/streamer/DAC at 5.5K with 4TB HDD (but not Roon compatible).

If you prefer an integrated streaming DAC and don’t need a built in server then as per other suggestions Auralic Vega G1/G2 or Lumin T2 ($4500) should be solid alternatives.
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  #13  
Old 12-10-2020, 07:55 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jean-Marc jmajma View Post
would be curious to know if anyone compared the Bluesound (Node 2i) with those very higher pricey streamers/DAC; what do they bring ? Is it a night and day affair?

Is it the streamer, or the DAC , that makes the difference?


I am in the same state of mind than Jimmy, I could upgrade what I use today: PIONEER N70AE, which has good reviews and good reputation, but I wonder how much it would (or not) improve the sound, that I find to be excellent .

Thank you in advance.
That’s a great question. I currently use a node 2 and a Schiit Yggy but I have been wanting to upgrade to the auralic Aries G1.
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  #14  
Old 12-10-2020, 08:34 AM
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I have been using for a few days an Auralic Aries g2.1 streamer connected in coaxial on my dac mcintosh.
I mainly use Qobuz and internet radios via the Auralic ds lightning application on Ipad.
The sound is excellent and it's a treat to use.

Cédric
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  #15  
Old 12-10-2020, 08:55 AM
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I began to compare and here are my preliminary results:

Bluesound Node 2i: 549 euros, I don't know the brand of the DAC, anyone?
Pioneer N70AE: 1600 euros ESS SABRE 9016 DAC embedded
McINTOSH MDA 1000 : around 10000 euros.

I compared Bluesound first alone with it's own DAC,and via Pioneer's DAC and via McIntosh MDA1000.

I also compared a CD in my MCD1000 through the MDA1000 and through the Pioneer's SABRE.

To make it very short, there are no differences , and if any, not heard by my (old) ears.

I know some of us think that comparisons using in the same time/song the remote control are not the best way to proceed; I also listened some hours to the different combos but I could not say if it was "more comfortable or less harsh or if I was less fatigued" etc...).

I'm exploring further now but I doubt I'll find night and day differences in the weeks to come.

That's why I'm wondering about the benefits I could get with Auralic, Lumin etc.

Did someone the same type of tests?

Or can someone explain?

Last edited by Jean-Marc jmajma; 12-10-2020 at 08:58 AM.
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  #16  
Old 12-10-2020, 10:22 AM
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If you can live without MQA, the Bryston BDA-3.14 marries a really exceptional DAC to a very nice streamer in a single cost-effective box. Bryston had not been in the MQA camp when I last heard it discussed (maybe a year ago) but maybe they are reconsidering . Jim Tanner could speak to that. It would make for a nice firmware upgrade and they certainly do a great job of keeping the firmware upgraded and advancing.
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  #17  
Old 12-10-2020, 10:44 AM
clpetersen clpetersen is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by robfine View Post
If you can live without MQA, the Bryston BDA-3.14 marries a really exceptional DAC to a very nice streamer in a single cost-effective box. Bryston had not been in the MQA camp when I last heard it discussed (maybe a year ago) but maybe they are reconsidering . Jim Tanner could speak to that. It would make for a nice firmware upgrade and they certainly do a great job of keeping the firmware upgraded and advancing.
Agreed. and now you can add the BP-17 cubed preamp into the same box -- the new BR-20.
For separates, I do like the concept of the dCS bridge - no display, no buttons - it is a bridge/streamer. As a recent convert to Roon, using an iPad pro or similar as the interface is superior to any built-in interface I have seen.
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  #18  
Old 12-10-2020, 01:50 PM
JemHadar JemHadar is offline
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Default New Streaming Unit Suggestions

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Originally Posted by Rick U View Post
My dealer offered to let me take home a dcs network bridge. It doesn’t have the highest resolution numbers, but it sounds amazing. I’m using it with roon through the coax spdif (it does not have usb out) and it does do mqa. I’ve not heard the Auralic but they get lots of great reviews. I’d ask your dealer to test drive a few in your system.
I use

a dCS Network Bridge in a wired setup (wifi never happened for this unit) feeding an Analog Domain DAC1 (AES EBU XLR)

an Auralic Aries G2 in a wireless setup feeding a McIntosh MDA1000 (AES EBU XLR)

a Limetree Bridge (by Lindemann) in a wireless head fi setup feeding a Weiss DAC202 (Toslink)

All as Roon endpoint...so native software is not used.

IMHO for my use cases
For a wired ethernet setup, dCS is King
For a wireless setup Auralic is King
When space is an issue, the Limetree is King

Must say did not expect the dCS to be that good.

Last edited by JemHadar; 12-10-2020 at 02:05 PM.
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  #19  
Old 12-10-2020, 05:17 PM
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^^^^Jacques, I'll have to come over to hear it in your system!



Jacques and I compared the Auralic Aries G2.1 with the Grimm MU1 a while ago:

https://www.audioaficionado.org/showthread.php?t=48374
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  #20  
Old 12-10-2020, 05:41 PM
JemHadar JemHadar is offline
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Default New Streaming Unit Suggestions

Quote:
Originally Posted by bart View Post
^^^^Jacques, I'll have to come over to hear it in your system!

Sounds like a plan...and vice versa [emoji573]...would love to hear the [emoji443]Grimm[emoji443] in your beautiful home
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