Guys
Keen to get opinion for those who use the Bluesound Note 2i as a streamer. I appreciate its a brilliant piece of kit for plug play with Roon but can anyone comment on its capabilities as a streamer in its own right? It would be connected to high speed WiFi and not LAN.
I plan to feed a Chord Epic TT2 Dac and it will be for headphone listening. I use Grado GS1000e headphones.
Thanks
Hmm, I own one of those and if you are considering using it via Wifi, I would not suggest it. Talk about it tomorrow.
Ok. Thanks Dan.
Just exploring other ideas…
I did have one of them. My goal was exactly to use it as a streamer with wireless. My wireless is rock stable, 5gHZ speed is normally something around 866 Mbit, but Bluesound did not work reliably at all. It did even have problems when I played music directly with the Bluesound App.
So I sold it and got an Auralic Aries G1.
If the wireless would run stable on the Node 2i, it would be a great solution.
EDIT: That was 2 years ago with older firmware.
I have a Node 2i on Ethernet and I have not had any issues, although I never use wireless or Bluetooth.
Hi Adam,
I have a POWERNODE 2i. In my case, it works very well as a streamer and also with Roon. I have no issues with Wi-Fi connectivity or sound quality.
All the Bluesound products are streamers before plug-play, look stylish, and space-saving, especially NODE 2i. It is actually plug-and-play, though. Very easy to set-up.
I can recommend it to anyone!
Thamks very much.
I have a friend who uses the Bluesound Note 2i on WiFi with no issues. It’s in an apartment where there are like 50+ WiFi networks running from neighbors so seems solid.
Since also I think Bluesound have a friendly return policy the potential WiFi problem should just be something you can find out yourself. And return if it’s flaky.
I’ve been meaning to test his Note 2i in my system to compare it as a streamer but Covid got in the way… so can’t answer that one from my perspective yet. (I think I always need to add “from my perspective” or “subjectivly” from now on. Some people seems to want to talk about objective truths here, whatever that is).
Thanks…
Keen to know if anyone has has the opportunity to do a comparison between the bluesound note 2i and the Streambox Ultra S2 as a pure streaming network bridge?
Maybe compare them side-by-side? Borrow the Streambox and order the Bluesound and keep the one you like the best?
From Bluesound:
“If you are not 100% satisfied with your purchase from the Bluesound.com store within the first 30 days, please contact customer service in your region below for a full money-back guarantee.”
Discussing streames/endpoints here is not the easiest thing. You will hear a lot of different opinions and many “truth tellers”. Always best to try yourself if you can. And since it seems you have narrowed it down to two choices, I would recommend to demo both if possible.
Slight problem with the bluesound as it’s sale and no return as it’s cheap because of demo unit that’s practically new hence cheaper but won’t be returnable for that reason
Don’t buy the sale one. Buy one you can return.
But it does have the benefit of coaxial and other outputs.
True. But with all the input so far its becoming an easier decision. I was interested to hear that side by side the Ultra S2 tops the usb signature according to one comment. Yet S2 had issue in that rig.
Hi Adam,
I have 2 Bluesound Node 2is. I have used them both as endpoints for Roon as well as streamers for the following services: Tidal, Qobuz, Amazon Music HD, Radio Paradise and Neil Young Archives. It has performed well for me as a streamer.
I have a split level home. One Node 2i is in my den (basement). I have this Node 2i hardwired (Ethernet) to an Apple Airport Express due to dropouts in the den. The other Node 2i is in my living room (main floor) and uses my WiFi network. It has performed flawlessly using WiFi. My router is located in my office on the 3rd floor. That is my rationale for using the Airport Express in the den.
I hope that helps.
It does and thanks very much. I think the issues people have mentioned might be due to the reliability of theit WiFi more so than the quality of the bluesound WiFi receiver or possibly where the bluesound is located
Can I ask - Is the bluesound in the lounge visible to the router ? I plan to put mine on the floor down by the side of my bed hence it’s not directly in view.
Also Roger - did you compare other streamers before the bluesound purchase ?
Hi Adam,
I was a SONOS: Connect guy for years Adam. Initialy I bought a SONOS Port thinking that SONOS was going to offer hi res streaming across all services, not just for your library.
Since that never came to fruition with SONOS, I went with the Node 2i. I bought one and I really enjoyed how much better the soundstage was compared to SONOS. In addition, it supports RAAT, Hi Res and MQA.
My living room Node 2i is in my entertainment center which located directly below my office where the router is located. I agree with you, most of the time it is the quality of the home WiFi system and in some cases the proximity of the streamer to the router that has the greatest impact on performance.
Agreed. Thanks.
As I say keen to see if anyone out there has comparred the ultra S2 to bluesound. Cheers.
If you scan the forums there are posts by people who have used both. The latest one I remember reading in the past week or two, tested and ditched both for various different reasons and went with an Auralic G2
Thanks Dan