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New Bluesound Node vs Cambridge CXN v2 for High Res Streaming?

Sorry if this is a duplicate of some sort (lots of threads to sort through) but I was hoping to get some help from you guys.

I’m considering a high res streamer with particular interest in the new Bluesound Node and the Cambridge CXN v2. I’m most concerned with the ability to get the full resolution of my high res tracks into my stereo system for high res listening (obviously streaming from my Iphone/IPAD via Airplay isn’t going to cut it). I currently have Amazon Music HD and Qobuz.

What are some of the differences between the 2 streamers with regards to high res streaming? I’ve heard the sound quality is superior in the CXN v2 but I also do not believe it even supports Amazon Music HD. I also heard that Bluesound Node has support for the upgraded Bluetooth Aptx and better support for Roon and Qobuz compared to the CXN. Is that correct?

Other considerations to ensure I can get max quality streaming from the highest number of services between the 2 devices?
tistru
rvpiano's avatar
rvpiano
2,659 posts
 
Sorry to throw a monkey wrench into the discussion, but after many A-B comparisons, in general the Chromecast sounds better than the Sondstream despite the occasional higher sampling rate.
Oh well it was a nice thought.
mahler123
3,336 posts
 
I agree with you
passingcloud
3 posts
 

Hi. Reviving this old topic as I am looking at both of these streaming devices and can’t quite make a decision. 
I am mostly concerned with SQ on the digital outputs. Does anyone have any insight. I appreciate it’s going to be affected by the DAC, I currently have a Chord Mojo (and will possibly upgrade to Hugo) and I prefer the USB, but that’s not a deal-breaker. I know the node has USB out (if Bluesound have managed to get it working correctly). 
I use both qobuz and local flac files via Roon so integration with Roon is important too. 
If I am using an outboard DAC then is there much difference in SQ between these two streamers? 
Someone mentioned here that the Cambridge doesn’t so full resolution unless using their app? Is this correct? Will it give full res using Roon? Chromecast is not an option as I can’t stand non-gapless, although having chromecast would be a plus for using things like SoundCloud.
 

Any further thoughts on these two streamers would be much appreciated.  

painter24's avatar
painter24
288 posts
 

Just a heads up on the Node's USB output when using the Node as a Roon Endpoint - there are still issues with the implementation of this from Bluesound's side of things.

On their Support/Community site,  they state the Firmware that opened the USB output is still in Beta. I've used the USB out to my DAC,  and like many others have had to revert to a digital coax connection for Roon as crackles and pops make listening impossible. 

Hopefully this will be fixed with a future Firmware update,  but at the moment it's an issue. But just to emphasise,  digital coax output to a DAC works absolutely fine with the Node as Roon Endpoint

passingcloud
3 posts
 

Ok. Thanks for that. I was aware that it could be an issue, but was hoping it had been sorted by now. 
I guess really my question is which sounds better (if we discount the internal dacs) or are they going to be pretty much the same. If so the I guess it just comes down to features/size etc. 

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