This is a great thread. I have a newer node 2i with an USB output. I hooked up an Ares II with a good quality coax cable and noticed a significant reduction is sound quality. I could have come to the conclusion that the Ares II is a POS, but....., I hooked it up to my older SACD player and heard a very significant improvement in sound quality. The USB sounds like it might be the solution to the problem. Thanks to all of the commenters.
Bluesound Node 2021 DAC - I sold my Denafrips Ares II
I assembled my system last summer, after 20 odd years in the hifi wilderness. I’ve never been a vinyl guy, so wanted all the convenience of streaming, plus a CDP for my old collection.
I went for the latest iteration of the Bluesound Node - N130, a Naim Nait 5si and a pair of Quad S2 speakers, and Audiolab 6000CDT.
From reading various forums, watching YT videos, you know the script; I convinced my self that I needed an external DAC, as the majority view seemed to be that the BS Node DAC wasn’t very good. As I hadn’t owned hifi since the late 90s (Naim Olive) bi-amped system and Audo Alchemy DDE, I had no reference for how DACs sounded these days.
Anyway, in my new found conviction that I must purchase an ext. DAC, I purchased a Denafrips Ares II. Got it, plugged it in, and didn’t look back. I was content, it sounded good.
Then, about 2 months ago, I was fiddling around inside the Bluos app, with the subwoofer crossover, with a mind to buying a sub to supplement the LFs on my little Quads, and I had the belated brainwave to a/b the Node DAC and the Denafrips. I whipped out some spare ICs and off I went.
OK, I felt like such a fool, really stupid - I a/b’d for literally hours, trying to convince myself that the Ares II was night and day difference - it must be right? The Node DAC is sub-par, not good enough, mediocre, if things I read were correct.
But, in my system, to my ears, this wasn’t the case; I had difficulty discerning any significant improvements, certainly not £800 (£600 pre-owned) worth of difference.
I’m not knocking the Ares II, but in my system, the cost and the difference it made - and the difference between it and the much maligned Node DAC could not be justified sitting in my system at that cost.
Feeling like a complete tool, for rushing headlong in to the DAC game, I re-sold the Denafrips, bought a REL T5x and here I am.
I’m not going to look a further fool and say the Node DAC is the best, but i feel it is criticised unduly, at least the newest version at any rate.
Thanks for reading, I’m not sure this is a cautionary tale, but I just thought the experience worth sharing
- ...
- 91 posts total
@painter24 Yes indeed, reached out to Alvin and he confirmed that the USB out on the new node is the best way to hook it up. He said the coax out on the node may not be compatible with the denefrips in high res possibly due to a lower the normal voltage output, however I heard a significant drop in sound quality on anything streamed whether high-res or CD quality. When using the USB out from the node, the data retrieval is handled by the dac, and since the dac is of a higher quality it will result in better sound quality. When using the coax out on the node, the dac now has to try to correct the information and apparently is not doing a great job of it due to incompatibility issues. Hence the lower sound quality when using coax. This obviously could all change if using a different streamer.
|
I had a Node 2 since 2017 and it recently bricked, and it is apparently quite an expensive repair, so Lenbrook offered me a replacement at a discount which I took them up on. I'm pleased with the sound of the new NODE. I gave it a good listen just last evening. I'm using a NAD C388 integrated amp with an internal Node 2i expansion card and the outboard NODE sounds slightly better to me. I also recently purchased a pair of the new KEF R3s which I am using in conjunction with a pair of Martin Logan 12" powered subs equipped with built-in ARC. I had the system cranked last night for about an hour or so and I can say that I am immensely satisfied with my selections for a change. |
Hi, Just one last share from me in this thread; not related to the Ares II but the Node and the effect of using its sub-out and inbuilt crossover. The REL was a new experience for me, I've never owned a Subwoofer before. That was an eye (or ear) opener in and of itself, but initially I hooked it up via the Nait 5si speaker outputs and the hi level connection on the REL, which was great, no problem. Took a bit of trial and error blending the REL in with my mains, but no headaches. But the thing that got me here in the first place; playing around with the cross-over in the Node was something I really wanted to try. I tried the first connection method, because that's what REL recommend, and this seems to be the majority consensus. I lived with this for a while, but like an itch you have to scratch, I really wanted to try the low level RCA connection, from the Node, utilising its subwoofer settings/crossover. Found a pre-owned 5m Chord Clearway sub RCA lead from you know where, for a steal and set everything up. I'm not going to say that the low-level connection is better than a feed direct from the amp, probably not, but I didn't set out to compare. What I wanted to explore was what effect cutting the LFs from my amp/speaker's workload would have. To me, after tweaking the REL crossover/volume settings, and getting it to blend with my mains, with a Node crossover at 80hz, the bass reinforcement I was getting just sounded great to me. The real surprise for me (this is probably old news to most vets on Audiogon, but a fresh experience to me), was the change to what I was now getting from my Quads, obviously due to the decreased workload on my amp, and also the Quads. To be honest, I was shocked. I won't spout a load of hyperbole, just to say, the Quads just seemed to be working more effortlessly, they sound less uptight, if that makes any sense whatsoever. Added some clarity & smoothness. I find it really difficult to vocalise this stuff while at the same time trying not to sound full of BS. Hope I've succeeded 😊 Anyway, thanks so much for everyone's thoughts and for sharing your experiences, I've really enjoyed it. Happy listening! 👂👍😊
|
- 91 posts total