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How Good Is Audio Quality When Using An Amp's Bluetooth Connection

My Rotel Integrated Amp has bluetooth capabilities. Was wondering if anyone has experience streaming music in a high end audio system using the bluetooth connection versus apple airport express or other devices? What is the quality of the audio signal when using bluetooth? I have heard that it is not good and that signal is compressed. Almost all of my audio files are AIFF.
joscow
sfar's avatar
sfar
1,758 posts
 
I've asked the same question and found this to be a pretty helpful explanation of the issues.
https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/1305-does-bluetooth-really-sound-worse/

jtucker
77 posts
 
I have a bluetooth adapter for both headphones and my main system.  I find the sound to be noticeably inferior in both cases.  I would compare it to the difference between redbook CD and mp3.  It is not unlistenable, but it is easy to tell the difference.
mike_in_nc
1,147 posts
 
Bluetooth is generally inferior to wired or WiFi connection. If both sides support aptX, quality takes a step up; if they support LDAC, another small step. Still, for my main system, I'd prefer an uncompressed connection.

At AXPONA, Audioengine was demonstrating their speakers with Bluetooth. In my opinion, they did themselves a great disservice, as the sound was pretty flat and gray.
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