Getting Bluesound Node2i tomorrow. anyone else have one of these?

I pulled the trigger on this as I am new to this and don't have an extensive collection of quality digital media, YET. This should do the trick for the next few years. Any thoughts?
Polk Audio SDA SRS 2.3 TL
Polk Audio SDA 2B TL mod
Carver M 1.0 MK2 Opt 2 x2
Carver CT Seven Preamp
Bluesound Node 2i

Comments

  • deronb1
    deronb1 Posts: 5,021
    I have the node 2. Love it!
  • steveinaz
    steveinaz Posts: 19,521
    edited May 2019
    I have the 2i, love it. Connect an external hard drive to it, loaded with flacs. I run mine via digital coaxial to my PS Audio Stellar Gain Cell DAC/PRE.
    Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
  • tophatjohnny
    tophatjohnny Posts: 4,162
    Hear nothing but good things about it so you should be off to a great start. Congrats.
    "if it's not fun, it's not worth it & remember folks, "It's All About The Music"!!
    *****************************
  • jbail2011
    jbail2011 Posts: 102
    This node 2i is fantastic!
    Polk Audio SDA SRS 2.3 TL
    Polk Audio SDA 2B TL mod
    Carver M 1.0 MK2 Opt 2 x2
    Carver CT Seven Preamp
    Bluesound Node 2i
  • gudnoyez
    gudnoyez Posts: 8,056
    Enjoy your Node 2i, I recently picked up a Node 2, been busy to mess around with it much but the times I have I've throughly enjoyed it. Great addition to your rig, and not having to pay a arm and a leg for a decent streamer is even better.
    Home Theater
    Parasound Halo A 31 OnkyoTX-NR838 Sony XBR55X850B 55" 4K RtiA9 Fronts CsiA6 Center RtiA3 Rears FxiA6 Side Surrounds Dual Psw 111's Oppo 105D Signal Ultra Speaker Cables & IC's Signal Magic Power Cable Technics SL Q300 Panamax MR4300 Audioquest Chocolate HDMI Cables Audioquest Forest USB Cable

    2 Channel
    Adcom 555II Vincent SA-T1 Marantz SA 15S2 Denon DR-M11 Clearaudio Bluemotion SDA 2.3tl's (Z) edition MIT Terminator II Speaker Cables & IC's Adcom 545II Adcom Gtp-450 Marantz CD5004 Technics M245X SDA 2B's, SDA CRS+

    Stuff for the Head
    JD LABS C5 Headphone Amplifier, Sennheiser HD 598, Polk Audio Buckle, Polk Audio Hinge, Velodyne vPulse, Bose IE2, Sennheiser CX 200 Street II, Sennheiser MX 365

    Shower & Off the beaten path Rigs
    Polk Audio Boom Swimmer, Polk Audio Urchin B)
  • jbail2011
    jbail2011 Posts: 102
    gudnoyez wrote: »
    Enjoy your Node 2i, I recently picked up a Node 2, been busy to mess around with it much but the times I have I've throughly enjoyed it. Great addition to your rig, and not having to pay a arm and a leg for a decent streamer is even better.

    Tidal and the node 2i are a game changer! The music quality is awesome. I didn't expect it to perform this well.
    Polk Audio SDA SRS 2.3 TL
    Polk Audio SDA 2B TL mod
    Carver M 1.0 MK2 Opt 2 x2
    Carver CT Seven Preamp
    Bluesound Node 2i
  • gudnoyez
    gudnoyez Posts: 8,056
    jbail2011 wrote: »
    gudnoyez wrote: »
    Enjoy your Node 2i, I recently picked up a Node 2, been busy to mess around with it much but the times I have I've throughly enjoyed it. Great addition to your rig, and not having to pay a arm and a leg for a decent streamer is even better.

    Tidal and the node 2i are a game changer! The music quality is awesome. I didn't expect it to perform this well.

    I agree with you , if you have it hooked up to your router with the stock Ethernet cable try replacing it with a Pangea Ethernet cable and Pangea power cord, this with Tidal is a good match, I new you would enjoy it great performance for the price.
    Home Theater
    Parasound Halo A 31 OnkyoTX-NR838 Sony XBR55X850B 55" 4K RtiA9 Fronts CsiA6 Center RtiA3 Rears FxiA6 Side Surrounds Dual Psw 111's Oppo 105D Signal Ultra Speaker Cables & IC's Signal Magic Power Cable Technics SL Q300 Panamax MR4300 Audioquest Chocolate HDMI Cables Audioquest Forest USB Cable

    2 Channel
    Adcom 555II Vincent SA-T1 Marantz SA 15S2 Denon DR-M11 Clearaudio Bluemotion SDA 2.3tl's (Z) edition MIT Terminator II Speaker Cables & IC's Adcom 545II Adcom Gtp-450 Marantz CD5004 Technics M245X SDA 2B's, SDA CRS+

    Stuff for the Head
    JD LABS C5 Headphone Amplifier, Sennheiser HD 598, Polk Audio Buckle, Polk Audio Hinge, Velodyne vPulse, Bose IE2, Sennheiser CX 200 Street II, Sennheiser MX 365

    Shower & Off the beaten path Rigs
    Polk Audio Boom Swimmer, Polk Audio Urchin B)
  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,557
    @joecoulson Pangea ethernet cables!
  • halo
    halo Posts: 5,616
    Congrats on your new acquisition!

    I've had the Node 2i for a little while now and the sound quality is quite good; no complaints there. However, I am a little unnerved about the user interface software, especially the album artwork having to be manually uploaded/input by me.

    I would also like a more user-friendly way to shuffle through the tracks on my networked hard drive as I had with roon essentials on my previous streamer, the Elac Discovery.
    Audio: Polk S15 * Polk S35 * Polk S10 * SVS SB-1000 Pro
    HT: Samsung QN90B * Marantz NR1510 * Panasonic DMP-BDT220 * Roku Ultra LT * APC H10
  • ambiophonics
    ambiophonics Posts: 715
    edited January 2020
    Does the Node2i require you to use their software to stream qobuz? I currently use a Chromecast Audio and have a drop-down menu within the Android qobuz app to choose it as a playback device.
    2 Channel - Polk SDA-2BTL, Carver TFM-35, Peachtree iDAC, Qobuz streamed via Episode Lynk using bubble UPnP server
  • rooftop59
    rooftop59 Posts: 7,952
    @steveinaz do you think there is any SQ improvements over you old squeezebox touch with ci audio ps you used to have? I have that same setup as a secondary streamer and am contemplating the node, but only if there a clear SQ improvement. The functionality of the SBT and roon is awesome and the SQ is pretty darned good imho...
    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; Squeezebox Touch with Bolder Power Supply
    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
    Cambridge Azur 551r; Polk RT25i; ACI Titan Subwoofer
  • treitz3
    treitz3 Posts: 18,230
    I have the Node2 and you will be better served with an external DAC. With that, you are very close to CD quality sound. The only really noticeable difference is what I would describe as a mid-bass suck out. You still have it and hear it but it's not at the same level of the rest of the frequency range. This is true IME whether or not you have 100K of front end gear on Vandersteen's or a starter system.

    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. ~
  • deronb1
    deronb1 Posts: 5,021
    I love the Node2. I am using its' internal DAC with AQ Golden Gate out to the Yammy. USB into it from an external HD. FLAC files sound great and am verry happy with the app.
  • mantis
    mantis Posts: 17,031
    I have mixed feelings about it. The setup took forever to link I had it hard wired to the network and it just didn't want to connect. I had to reset it right out of the box a few times and then it works.
    Just a few months later maybe 2 now its already acting up. Could be a bad unit but so far I'm not very happy with it.
    it's not as polished as HEOS or SONOS which SONOS is a bit unfair they have been in the game since 2006. They claim earlier but we didn't see them until 2006.
    Good luck with the setup, report back your experience I'm curious to know how to went.
    Dan
    My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
  • steveinaz
    steveinaz Posts: 19,521
    edited January 2020
    rooftop59 wrote: »
    @steveinaz do you think there is any SQ improvements over you old squeezebox touch with ci audio ps you used to have? I have that same setup as a secondary streamer and am contemplating the node, but only if there a clear SQ improvement. The functionality of the SBT and roon is awesome and the SQ is pretty darned good imho...

    Hard to say because I bought the power supply shortly after getting the Touch. Keep in mind, mine was run digitally to my external DAC. I run my Node 2i digitally as well. I prefer the Node 2i as it has far more sources of music, and the interface is easy. With the Touch, I bought the Logitech remote w/screen as well---so this isn't needed with the Bluesound, and the Touch screen remote was NOT cheap. IMO, the upgraded power supply would likely be more advantageous if you were using the analog outs on the Touch.

    Another benefit with the Node 2 (2i) is the ability to plug your hard drive straight in, no network needed. This is what I do with a Western Dig 2TB external drive.
    Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
  • rooftop59
    rooftop59 Posts: 7,952
    steveinaz wrote: »
    rooftop59 wrote: »
    @steveinaz do you think there is any SQ improvements over you old squeezebox touch with ci audio ps you used to have? I have that same setup as a secondary streamer and am contemplating the node, but only if there a clear SQ improvement. The functionality of the SBT and roon is awesome and the SQ is pretty darned good imho...

    Hard to say because I bought the power supply shortly after getting the Touch. Keep in mind, mine was run digitally to my external DAC. I run my Node 2i digitally as well. I prefer the Node 2i as it has far more sources of music, and the interface is easy. With the Touch, I bought the Logitech remote w/screen as well---so this isn't needed with the Bluesound, and the Touch screen remote was NOT cheap.

    My SBT runs coax out (with the enhanced digital output applet) to my Cambridge 851c dac. I use roon so software doesn’t matter. So I am just wondering if there is any improvement purely as a digital streamer...
    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; Squeezebox Touch with Bolder Power Supply
    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
    Cambridge Azur 551r; Polk RT25i; ACI Titan Subwoofer
  • steveinaz
    steveinaz Posts: 19,521
    Tough to say as I never a/b'd them, what I can say is that I LOVE my Node 2i, and it sounds fantastic via my Benchmark DAC2 DX.
    Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
  • Mikey081057
    Mikey081057 Posts: 7,127
    I had the Node2 and loved it... I upgraded to the Lumin U1 mini and love it... The Node2 and 2i are great bang for the buck and the app is fine too. I use roon with all of various devices I have and highly recommend it as well. Many devices, 1 interface + more....
    My New Year's resolution is 3840 × 2160

    Family Room| Marantz AV7704| Usher Dancer Mini - 2 DMD Mains |Usher Dancer Mini-x DMD's Surrounds | Usher BE-616 DMD Center | SVS Ultra Rear Surrounds | Parasound Halo A21 | Parsound Halo A52+ | MIT Shotgun S3's | Dual SVS SB 4000 Ultras | Oppo UDP 203 | Directv Genie HD DVR | Samsung 75" Q8 QLED | PSAudio Stellar GCD | Mytek Brooklyn DAC+ | Lumin U1 Mini | HP Elite Slice PC | ROON'd for life |

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