I spent some time with a Bluesound Node 2 in a nice system at a hi-fi shop this weekend. Overall I was pretty impressed. The app seemed a little confusing, but I'm sure I would catch on to it quickly. I like the idea of unfolding MQA files from Tidal, along with streaming background music from other apps like Spotify. Here are my main questions, answer any you can. Also, feel free to chime in with any other positive or negative things for you personally. I'm currently unfolding MQA with Audioquest Dragonfly Red, and it's pretty good for $200 (my Lenco L-75 / Denon 103 still sound much better though).
1- Will the Node 2 provide better sound quality from MQA files than my Dragonfly? I assume yes, based on the fact the Dragon fly is a tiny stick, and the Node is much larger allowing for less compromise in design.
2- Can I play hi-rez downloads from sites like HDTracks if I plug a jump drive or hard drive with the hi-rez files into the Node 2? Does the Node have a digital out so I can use the D/A converter in my Marantz SACD player?
3- How does it sound with standard streaming content from Spotify, Pandora, and Amazon Prime music?
4- What does the SUBW OUT RCA connection do?
5- Do I need a hard wire connection to my router, or will it be reliable with WI-FI? I'm currently using wi-fi with my MacBook Pro and Dragonfly setup with no buffering issues.
6- If your a user, tell me what you love, and what you don't like about it.
7- Is there something other than the Bluesound Node 2 I should be considering?
My main goal is to get maximum performance from MQA, and the added benefit of streaming for background music helps me justify the cost.
Onebean
1- Will the Node 2 provide better sound quality from MQA files than my Dragonfly? I assume yes, based on the fact the Dragon fly is a tiny stick, and the Node is much larger allowing for less compromise in design.
2- Can I play hi-rez downloads from sites like HDTracks if I plug a jump drive or hard drive with the hi-rez files into the Node 2? Does the Node have a digital out so I can use the D/A converter in my Marantz SACD player?
3- How does it sound with standard streaming content from Spotify, Pandora, and Amazon Prime music?
4- What does the SUBW OUT RCA connection do?
5- Do I need a hard wire connection to my router, or will it be reliable with WI-FI? I'm currently using wi-fi with my MacBook Pro and Dragonfly setup with no buffering issues.
6- If your a user, tell me what you love, and what you don't like about it.
7- Is there something other than the Bluesound Node 2 I should be considering?
My main goal is to get maximum performance from MQA, and the added benefit of streaming for background music helps me justify the cost.
Onebean