2. digital
  3. 150726-135602

bluesound node 2i with chord quest

I am an old school listener.  I have a Wadia 581SE player, a deHavilland Ultraverve tube preamp modified with Duelund caps, a big Bryston 14bsst amp, B&W 802 diamond speakers, Purist cables and power cords and all run through an Isotek Aquarius noise filter. I have about 3,500 cd's.  
A few months ago my Wadia took a dump and the only people supposedly "certified" to fix it is George Meyer audio in Los Angeles.  After spending 1500.00 and having to send it back and forth twice from Wisconsin, the player seems to be working well again.  This has led me to consider High end lossless streaming which is totally new to me.  I have begun some research and the more I read, the more I am confused.  I have "sort of" (for whatever reason) been looking at running a Bluesound Node 2i into a Chord Qutest DAC as well as finding a way to electronically begin storing my collection of CD's.  I did look at the Aurender A10 for streaming and storage but I think it might be a little more than I can pay now.  
One of the problems with the streaming is I have no hard connection internet near my dedicated listening area
and, unless I tear apart my finished basement, may have to use wifi to stream...which I understand is not as sonically good as ethernet hard connection. I was a long time Audiogon member back about 12 years ago but have been away for awhile.  Anyone willing to guide me with some helpful advice would be appreciated.  I understand that there is lots of ways that I might proceed.  I am intrigued though with the Chord-Bluesound node connection.  I love my deHavilland preamp and the Chord has voltage input choices where I could match up nicely with the preamp.  Also, with the preamp I could switch between my streaming configuration and my old Wadia when I feel like it.  High quality sound is the bottom line for me.  I listen to mostly jazz but have everything.  Thanks, Jim
pfeiffer
big_greg
6,646 posts
 
You'll probably get different opinions about the ethernet cable.  In general, I'm not a big cable person.  I have upgraded almost all of the cables in my systems from stock and can hear some differences, but not enough that I want to join the megabucks cable club.  I would get a CAT6 cable from Monoprice.  But that's just me.  
mahler123
3,362 posts
 
I prefer Ethernet to WiFi, but this is more a historical thing, as I had significant WiFi issues in the past.  I have the Node 2, not the 2i, and my understanding is the 2i has better WiFi.  I had an IT,guy check my WiFi using an app on the iPhone and apparently it’s ok now, but you have to be vigilant that your ISP isn’t throttling your bandwidth.
  My advice to the OP would be to make sure that the WiFi is optimized to the part of of the house where the Node2 will be residing.  Then stream away with the Node2i and see what you think.  Most dealers will let you have a trial period.
  If you do decide to Ethernet the house, I wouldn’t get hung up on which cable.
Basic Cat5 sounds the same to me as Cat 6 although I am sure that you will find many here that will describe a myriad of differences...
big_greg
6,646 posts
 
There are a lot of variables to consider regarding wifi and whether that will be good enough for your system.  First, what kind of download speeds do you have?  Are you using the built in wifi in the router supplied by your internet provider, or do you have a better after-market wireless router?  How far away from the router are your devices, etc.?

I have 70MB download speeds and my wireless download speed is the same at the location of my main system from my aftermarket router.  They are not so good when I connect to the Crapcast router provided by my internet provider.
More to discover