Cambridge CXN (V2) next acquisition

afterburnt

Does anyone have one, thoughts? I got a Marantz streamer but did not like it for various reasons and sent it back. It sounded great but it was lacking compared to my Aries Mini.

deronb1

Tophat has one. He really likes it.

joecoulson

I have one
I like it
For various reasons and it blew away the Node in my A/B test at the dealer. It should I guess for close to dbl the $$

tophatjohnny

I have the 851N..different animal, while the CXN is more like the SM6, I really like the Cambridge line for what it is I do. The One Connect app works really good and handles my rather large digital library like a champion. Congrats and I'm thinking you will have fun with it. If you decide to go up a notch, the 851N is no slouch when it comes to Network players and it's easy on the pocketbook. Very happy with mine. Let us know as you go along how you like it and what all are you using it for...USB or UPnP?? NAS in the line up?? I think the CXN also displays album artwork (although looking at tiny album covers doesn't do it for me, I guess it's still kinda cool??)

deronb1

Ah tes, i stand corrected

joecoulson

The screen was actually one of the draws for me. Nice to have it as a backup to app control should you want to control it all El Manual
The DAC in it sounds as good as my PS Audio Stellar Pre. I use it with Tidal, a local usb thumb drive with all kinds of hi-res files on it (DSD, WAV, FLAC etc), Internet radio (320k and up), Chromecast (SoundCloud from the phone) and also as a Sonos connection. It’s very versatile and has a plethora of inputs.

I have a universal remote (Harmony) so I have not used the remote much but it’s heavy and sturdy. The unit looks sleek in a rack but unfortunately I have to stack in my current setup.
XLR’s connect it to the PS Audio pre. And I swapped the power cable for a Zu Audio one.

The app is pretty good. Only crashes every now and then. Has the ability to control most all of the unit sans internal settings. Tidal’s interface is simple but effective. You can also search for internet radio through the app, and of course search for drives in your network or connected locally.

Pics.

afterburnt

@joecoulson Have you tried WMA lossless files?

joecoulson

No. Have not tried just because I don’t have any. I typically use DSD, WAV or FLAC only for hi res.

joecoulson

And I believe our very own @DSkip is about to become a CA dealer.

Clipdat

My Google-Fu is failing me, is there an easy way to disable/defeat the built in volume control, so that it isn't getting in the way of the signal?

afterburnt

google fu?

Clipdat

afterburnt wrote: »

google fu?

Let me google that for you: https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Google-fu

mhardy6647

afterburnt wrote: »

google fu?

Clipdat wrote: »

afterburnt wrote: »

google fu?

Let me google that for you: https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Google-fu

that's meta, man....

joecoulson

Yes. It’s an internal setting. Digital preamp on/off

Clipdat

Very nice!

reverb

I have a CXN and like it a lot. It streams from my NAS flawlessly. I also use the digital out from the Denon DCD-1560 into the CXN. The DACs are better in it and as an added bonus, I can use the CXN volume control! When I'm not being lazy, you can bypass the volume control for a cleaner signal.

displayname

I picked up the CXN v2 yesterday and I am VERY happy with this purchase so far. Yesterday at Skip's we used it with Tidal and compared the internal DAC to an external DAC an plugged it into a few different speakers and amps. The DAC can be bested, but it holds it own for quite a bit, and when you're moving to an external DAC, it transfers the music perfectly without any noise being carried with it.

At home I've only been using Spotify Connect so far. I'll doing a Tidal trial soon, but I want to make sure I have plenty of time at home with it before I dive into that.

The biggest surprise to me was how easy the set up was. I don't know why I thought it would be difficult, but it really was a breeze and took minutes. I spent much longer rearranging wires and getting it into the rack than I spent on getting it up and running.

Clipdat

Assuming you are using the analog outs, let us know how those dual Wolfsons sound after they get some more time on them.

gudnoyez

displayname wrote: »

I picked up the CXN v2 yesterday and I am VERY happy with this purchase so far. Yesterday at Skip's we used it with Tidal and compared the internal DAC to an external DAC an plugged it into a few different speakers and amps. The DAC can be bested, but it holds it own for quite a bit, and when you're moving to an external DAC, it transfers the music perfectly without any noise being carried with it.

At home I've only been using Spotify Connect so far. I'll doing a Tidal trial soon, but I want to make sure I have plenty of time at home with it before I dive into that.

The biggest surprise to me was how easy the set up was. I don't know why I thought it would be difficult, but it really was a breeze and took minutes. I spent much longer rearranging wires and getting it into the rack than I spent on getting it up and running.

Nice this might be my next purchase while I am at Apoxana this spring I will be looking at all the vendors offering streamers. Enjoy your new Cambridge.

joecoulson

I have been very happy with it now for about half a year. DAC’s are almost as good (really probably as good) as the PS A stellar pre.
App crashes and no Tidal Masters support are my only gripes. And they are very small gripes compared to the pluses.
XLR our seemed to be a step above the RCA’s in my particular setup

joecoulson

The app will crash when:
Opening it back up after playing something and then say answering a phone call or switching apps. When coming back to the CA app it will crash.
It also crashes when opening up for the first time rarely.

As far as MQA goes, there is built in support for Tidal on this unit, it’s advertised as such. It would make sense to me that a company would offer the services of its built in partner in their entirety, not just hifi streaming. Bluesound and some others do, not sure what CA does not. Regardless of how you feel about the format, and what tech is needed to “unfold” it’s just how I feel about the matter.

Clipdat

https://techsupport.cambridgeaudio.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000579989-Does-the-TIDAL-update-support-MQA-playback-

Clipdat

Frankly, I consider it a bonus that they aren't natively supporting MQA in the box. MQA is nothing more than a marketing gimmick and form of proprietary DRM, designed with one goal: to line the pockets of already rich executives.

The more companies that drop MQA or never choose to pay in to it's licensing fees, the better. Hopefully it'll eventually go away completely and we'll never have to talk about it again.

joecoulson

Apple AirPort Extreme.
Maybe it’s mine but give it time as you have only had it a day or so. You may or may not have those issues but I have read on other sites people had some crashes too.
Not a big deal as I have said before. Just not flawless.

joecoulson

I’ll talk about MQA as long as it bothers you.

Clipdat

I'll let you guys know if I get any app crashes on my Samsung Galaxy S8.

Clipdat

It could also be individual phone specific. Way too many variables.

displayname

Clipdat wrote: »

Assuming you are using the analog outs, let us know how those dual Wolfsons sound after they get some more time on them.

Yup, using the analog outs in my system. If the DAC opens up further I'll be very pleased, because I'm very happy with it right now for this price point.

tonyb

DSkip wrote: »

joecoulson wrote: »

Apple AirPort Extreme.
Maybe it’s mine but give it time as you have only had it a day or so. You may or may not have those issues but I have read on other sites people had some crashes too.
Not a big deal as I have said before. Just not flawless.

The issue with most app failures and crashes is network driven, not app driven. This is true with AURALiC, Lumin, and I highly suspect with Cambridge as well.

To elaborate, these apps are very sensitive to your network - more sensitive than your streaming devices or computers. I had similar issues frequently but have had none since upgrading my network router. This is a common issue and the hardest thing to convince clients of.

Good point Skip, and totally agree. The more streaming your doing the better your network needs to be. Overlooked by many.

afterburnt

I got mine today and it works like a charm although having Phil Collins staring at me from the little screen is kinda creeping me out. Good sounding right off the bat, got to spend some time with it. It's playing with itself right now.

rooftop59

DSkip wrote: »

On the 851N you can cycle the screen to show album cover, song information, or both together.

afterburnt wrote: »

It's playing with itself right now.

Let's hope the CXN is the only one doing that right now.

It is Valentine’s Day. Let em play!!!😬