Blue Node...who is using one

heiney9
heiney9 Posts: 25,183
This is a very interesting product. It seems to be just what I'm looking for to finally replace my ancient Squeeze Box Touch.

Pro's - Con's - Tips discussion, etc. I'll most likely being using Roon with a networked NAS for a music server. I am excited to finally stream Hi Rez music via Qobuz, etc.

How is everyone using theirs? How is it configured? How does it sound? I will be using an outboard dac.

Discuss

H9
"Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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Comments

  • jbreezy5
    jbreezy5 Posts: 1,141
    I have a Blue Sound Node 2i. I like it a lot. I use mostly when I want to seek out new artists, or if I’m too lazy to locate a CD.

    I usually just use Apple Airplay.

    Haven’t tried getting it to communicate with my home PC network, or using streaming services yet, though.

    CD Players: Sony CDP-211; Sony DVP-S9000ES; Sony UDP-X800M2 (x2); Cambridge Audio CXC

    DACs: Jolida Glass FX Tube DAC III (x2); Denafrips Ares II (x2)

    Streamers: ROKU (x3); Bluesound Node 2i and Node N130 w/LHY LPS // Receivers: Yamaha RX-V775BT; Yamaha RX-V777

    Preamps: B&K Ref 50; B&K Ref 5 S2; Classe CP-800 MkII; Audio Research SP16L (soon)

    Amps: Niles SI-275; B&K ST125.7; B&K ST125.2; Classe CA-2300; Butler Audio TDB-5150

    Speakers: Boston Acoustics CR55; Focal Chorus 705v; Wharfedale Diamond 10.2; Monitor Audio Silver-1; Def Tech Mythos One (x4)/Mythos Three Center (x2)/Mythos Two pr.; Martin Logan Electromotion ESL; Legacy Audio Victoria/Silverscreen Center; Gallo Acoustics Reference 3.1; SVS SB-1000 Pro; REL HT-1003; B&W ASW610; HifiMan HE400i

    Turntable: Dual 721 Direct-Drive w/Audio Technica AT-VM95e cart

    Cables: Tripp-lite 14ga. PCs, Blue Jeans Cable ICs, Philips PXT1000 ICs; Kimber Kable DV30 coaxial ICs; Canare L-4E6S XLR ICs; Kimber Kable 8PR & 8TC speaker cables.
  • VR3
    VR3 Posts: 28,674
    @treitz3 is a fan
    - Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit.
  • treitz3
    treitz3 Posts: 19,059
    Eh, I wouldn't say that. With a DAC, for sure. I have to head out right now but can add more information when I am done with my adult chores.

    Tom
    ~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~
  • VR3
    VR3 Posts: 28,674
    @treitz3 likes it more than auralic
    - Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit.
  • treitz3
    treitz3 Posts: 19,059
    That, I do. You aren't a slave to Apple and at least the damned thing plays music.

    Tom
    ~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~
  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,183
    I pulled the trigger. I've been on the fence for awhile and for the $$ and how I'm going to use it, it appears to be a winning product. Streaming from my own music server and streaming hi rez music from Qobuz and others. I'll probably use both the Blue interface as well as Roon with EE Mini Max Plus dac.
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,183
    I bought the most current version (gen 3). It also has HDMI arc and a USB. It cost more the Raspberry Pi, but I feel this is going to give me less issues and should rock solid. My brother uses a Pi with Roon and he says it can be frustratingly buggy at times. He's in IT for a living so he can unbug stuff much better than I can.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
  • VR3
    VR3 Posts: 28,674
    Make sure you pick up the linear power supply upgrade for it
    - Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit.
  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,183
    VR3 wrote: »
    Make sure you pick up the linear power supply upgrade for it

    This plugs into the wall via a removable C7 power cord.
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
  • invalid
    invalid Posts: 1,367
    You can get a linear power supply for the blue sound node
  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,937
    Yeah I don't think you can get LPS for this since the PSU is internal:
    8w5eynm35orb.png
  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,183
    Damn you and thank you at the same time! I am a huge believer in a solid ps being the number 1 thing. I will most likely do the upgrade, but maybe after the warranty is up.....lol. I've book marked the info for later.
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
  • VR3
    VR3 Posts: 28,674
    Yeah it definitely isn't a linear power supply
    - Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit.
  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,183
    All I need is the cable. I have the Welbourne Labs lps from my SQB Touch which is 5v 3A.
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,183
    VR3 wrote: »
    Yeah it definitely isn't a linear power suppl
    Clipdat wrote: »

    I saw that one. About $75US. So then if I got this I would just need the 5v 3A lps, which I have?
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,937
    Yeah, that's my understanding.
  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,183
    I'll have to look into that
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
  • rooftop59
    rooftop59 Posts: 8,121
    heiney9 wrote: »
    I pulled the trigger. I've been on the fence for awhile and for the $$ and how I'm going to use it, it appears to be a winning product. Streaming from my own music server and streaming hi rez music from Qobuz and others. I'll probably use both the Blue interface as well as Roon with EE Mini Max Plus dac.

    I will be very interested in your thoughts compared to the SBT, which is what I run, because I also have considered the NODE. Will you use an external DAC? With my SBT, I have WIFI turned off, the enhanced audio output applet installed, and a bolder external power supply, all of which improve the sound quality (the PS is definitely the most obvious improvement). I have compared my SBT to the Cambridge CXN and 851N, and honestly though an external DAC I cannot hear any significant improvements or advantages from either Cambridge...perhaps I'm just not a real audiophile lol...
    Living Room 2.2: Usher BE-718 "tiny dancers"; Dual DIY Dayton audio RSS210HF-4 Subs with Dayton SPA-250 amps; Arcam SA30; Musical Fidelity A308; Sony UBP-x1000es
    Game Room 5.1.4:
    Denon AVR-X4200w; Sony UBP-x700; Definitive Technology Power Monitor 900 mains, CLR-3000 center, StudioMonitor 350 surrounds, ProMonitor 800 atmos x4; Sub - Monoprice Monolith 15in THX Ultra

    Bedroom 2.1
    Harmon Kardon HK3490; Bluesounds Node N130; Polk RT25i; ACI Titan Subwoofer
  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,183
    rooftop59 wrote: »
    heiney9 wrote: »
    I pulled the trigger. I've been on the fence for awhile and for the $$ and how I'm going to use it, it appears to be a winning product. Streaming from my own music server and streaming hi rez music from Qobuz and others. I'll probably use both the Blue interface as well as Roon with EE Mini Max Plus dac.

    I will be very interested in your thoughts compared to the SBT, which is what I run, because I also have considered the NODE. Will you use an external DAC? With my SBT, I have WIFI turned off, the enhanced audio output applet installed, and a bolder external power supply, all of which improve the sound quality (the PS is definitely the most obvious improvement). I have compared my SBT to the Cambridge CXN and 851N, and honestly though an external DAC I cannot hear any significant improvements or advantages from either Cambridge...perhaps I'm just not a real audiophile lol...

    It's been a while since I used the SQB Touch. I will be using an outboard dac just like I did with the SQB. I am excited to get something new and try it out.

    I will be doing the upgrade to get rid of the switching power supply, but best to wait until the warranty is up or at least 90 days to make sure there are no issues.

    I have been trying to find something less expensive than the Node, since I have my own modded dac and ripped music. But I am very curious about the hi-rez subscription streaming services like Qobuz. There were definitely others in the running, but those I felt like I'd be paying for features I didn't need. Arcam, Cambridge and Aurilac?

    It will be here tomorrow and over the weekend I'll at least get the hi-rez streaming going.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
  • tratliff
    tratliff Posts: 1,701
    edited August 2022
    I will be interested in your thoughts once you get it going.

    Just this week I picked up a Lumin U2 Mini and have it being fed to the DAC in the Norma integrated. Configuration was a breeze. I currently have a 30 day trial of Tidal and also NAS and USB hard drive. I only have about 8 hours on the DAC, streamer and cable. So, I’m letting it play 24/7. Looking forward to getting some hours on it and then some critical listening.
    2 Channel Rosso Fiorentino Volterra II, 2 REL Carbon Limited, Norma Revo IPA-140B, Lumin U2 Mini, VPI Prime w/SoundSmith Zephyr MIMC, Modwright PH 150, Denon DP-59l w/Denon DL-301MKII, WAY Silver 3 Ana+ Speaker Cables, WAY Silver 4+ Interconnect Cables, AudioQuest Niagara 7000 w/Dragon and Hurricane Power Cables
  • VR3
    VR3 Posts: 28,674
    @tratliff pick up the s booster and don't look back... Huge gains in that with the lumin
    - Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit.
  • tratliff
    tratliff Posts: 1,701
    edited August 2022
    VR3 wrote: »
    @tratliff pick up the s booster and don't look back... Huge gains in that with the lumin

    Not sure that is designed for the U2 Mini. The U2 Mini does not use a wall wart. Am I missing something?
    2 Channel Rosso Fiorentino Volterra II, 2 REL Carbon Limited, Norma Revo IPA-140B, Lumin U2 Mini, VPI Prime w/SoundSmith Zephyr MIMC, Modwright PH 150, Denon DP-59l w/Denon DL-301MKII, WAY Silver 3 Ana+ Speaker Cables, WAY Silver 4+ Interconnect Cables, AudioQuest Niagara 7000 w/Dragon and Hurricane Power Cables
  • VR3
    VR3 Posts: 28,674
    edited August 2022
    The u2 mini has an internal switching power supply just like the u1 mini.

    The s booster is a substantial improvement.

    Looks identical to the u1 mini, the same conversion kit should work7w7bksv7wbk3.jpg
    - Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit.
  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,428
    I am liking how Qobuz sounds with my revamped setup. The musicality of the Arcam/L800 pairing continues to put a smile on my face, and with the limited time I get in the sweet spot these days, the convenience of turning things on and listening is priceless.
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,937
    VR3 wrote: »
    The u2 mini has an internal switching power supply just like the u1 mini.

    The s booster is a substantial improvement.

    Looks identical to the u1 mini, the same conversion kit should work7w7bksv7wbk3.jpg

    LOL. The man has just dropped a lot of coin on some high end components. Let him get used to the U2 Mini stock for a few months at least. Sheeeesh! :p
  • jbreezy5
    jbreezy5 Posts: 1,141
    Clipdat wrote: »
    VR3 wrote: »
    The u2 mini has an internal switching power supply just like the u1 mini.

    The s booster is a substantial improvement.

    Looks identical to the u1 mini, the same conversion kit should work7w7bksv7wbk3.jpg

    LOL. The man has just dropped a lot of coin on some high end components. Let him get used to the U2 Mini stock for a few months at least. Sheeeesh! :p

    That’s not how we roll on this forum! 😂
    CD Players: Sony CDP-211; Sony DVP-S9000ES; Sony UDP-X800M2 (x2); Cambridge Audio CXC

    DACs: Jolida Glass FX Tube DAC III (x2); Denafrips Ares II (x2)

    Streamers: ROKU (x3); Bluesound Node 2i and Node N130 w/LHY LPS // Receivers: Yamaha RX-V775BT; Yamaha RX-V777

    Preamps: B&K Ref 50; B&K Ref 5 S2; Classe CP-800 MkII; Audio Research SP16L (soon)

    Amps: Niles SI-275; B&K ST125.7; B&K ST125.2; Classe CA-2300; Butler Audio TDB-5150

    Speakers: Boston Acoustics CR55; Focal Chorus 705v; Wharfedale Diamond 10.2; Monitor Audio Silver-1; Def Tech Mythos One (x4)/Mythos Three Center (x2)/Mythos Two pr.; Martin Logan Electromotion ESL; Legacy Audio Victoria/Silverscreen Center; Gallo Acoustics Reference 3.1; SVS SB-1000 Pro; REL HT-1003; B&W ASW610; HifiMan HE400i

    Turntable: Dual 721 Direct-Drive w/Audio Technica AT-VM95e cart

    Cables: Tripp-lite 14ga. PCs, Blue Jeans Cable ICs, Philips PXT1000 ICs; Kimber Kable DV30 coaxial ICs; Canare L-4E6S XLR ICs; Kimber Kable 8PR & 8TC speaker cables.
  • tratliff
    tratliff Posts: 1,701
    VR3 wrote: »
    7w7bksv7wbk3.jpg

    Hmmm, I get it now. Rather interesting and not much $$$’s. I’ll do more research.
    2 Channel Rosso Fiorentino Volterra II, 2 REL Carbon Limited, Norma Revo IPA-140B, Lumin U2 Mini, VPI Prime w/SoundSmith Zephyr MIMC, Modwright PH 150, Denon DP-59l w/Denon DL-301MKII, WAY Silver 3 Ana+ Speaker Cables, WAY Silver 4+ Interconnect Cables, AudioQuest Niagara 7000 w/Dragon and Hurricane Power Cables
  • VR3
    VR3 Posts: 28,674
    I had the u1 mini with the s booster and went to the u1 and there was virtually no difference.

    U1 mini stock to the s booster, night and day, well worth the 500 dollars or so
    - Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit.