Best Digital Music Streamers: 2023 Buying Guide
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I agree with much of what you say and I have an earlier Grace Link which I use in the Garage. Where we disagree is in your assertion that the Grace Link is sound wise the equal of any of the above mentioned units. The overall fidelity of your system will determine whether the increased fidelity of the more expensive units is detected.
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Geoffrey,
Having never listened to the Grace Link, I can’t comment on its performance. Having listened to everything in our guide, I would agree with what you write 100%.
“The overall fidelity of your system will determine whether the increased fidelity of the more expensive units is detected.” — 100% this.
Best,
Ian White
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Well, to be honest I have never “listened” to the Grace Link but I have listened to music played by it. It sounds like music. Sinatra is Sinatra not an artificial “Simnatra” ala Beatlemania…”Not the Beatles but an incredible simulation” mind you, but to be frank, the real Frankie.
I listen via headphones and have two such set ups with the Grace Link. I have Grace Digital table radios too. I like the radios as they visually remind me of ’60s table radios and again, I hear music.
But yes, I under stand what you are both saying. I think speakers are probably the most important part of the equation but I could be wrong. I have Klispch for my two main listening/viewing areas. But NOT their subwoofers. I do not much care for those, especially so the front firing ones. YUCK!
ORT
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If you are not looking for it to be a DAC, then the key to choosing the best streamer is the software and the extent you believe that software will be maintained and upgraded into the future. I am a fan of the Bluesound OS since it is comprehensive in its access to services (unlike ROON that only has two streaming service choices), has a intuitive interface, and is with a company that has been around awhile and appears committed to maintaining the software.
I will reserve judgment on how the streamers actually “sound.” A competent DAC should clean-up and problems with the digital signal. This is one of those areas where sound quality differences are likely pretty subtle.
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Bob,
BluOS is excellent. I’ve used it daily for almost two years and it only continues to get better.
I have 5 different streamers at home and they all sound “different” but I think that has more to do with the design of the output stage and choice of DAC chip than anything else.
Best,
Ian White-
Couldn’t agree more. The sound of the streamer, in my opinion, is mostly dependent on the DAC/output and not the streamer itself. I use an excellent Schiit DAC that I prefer over the MQA enabled internal one on the Node.
My real point is that steamers should be evaluated more as software than hardwware. Is it functional, stable, and what are the features.
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Likewise…I have used BluOS since 2017, and I should add that for a computer audio neophyte like myself, it was great to have available Bluesound’s excellent support, which is unfortunately now getting somewhat less responsive to both increasingly strong sales and the fact that it is handling all of NAD’s support issues as well.
I just recently acquired the new NODE which has a distinctly improved physical interface, although I don’t use that so much since my iOS devices are everywhere. I have lost count of how many updates Bluesound has issued in the past five years.
Be forewarned though, my 2017 Node 2 bricked and I was informed that the repair would be too costly to consider and the manufacturer offered me the new NODE at a discount, which I went with. Hopefully the defective power supply problem is a thing of the past. Meanwhile, avoid buying a used Node 2 because it probably will be a doorstop before long.
I also have a Nose 2i expansion card in my C388 integrated amp for a backup 🙂
I tried out a Cambridge EVO 150 a while ago which was a terrific amp, but I ultimately rejected it due to the cheesy app and returned home to BluOS. -
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The streamer does matter a bit. The typical way to hear an amp is to use a full range speaker without a driver. The typical was to hear a dac or streamer is to use headphones. You can follow the logic for order of importance.
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Hello ! Will a Bluesound node plug into my Sugden A21 se signature will give me great sound using tidal mqa ? Or should i look for a better one like the CXN V2 , arcam st60 , or a Lumin…? Thanks a lot !
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Stephane,
It really depends on the tonal balance of the Sugden (great amp BTW) and the speakers. The NODE is rather warm sounding. The CXN V2 from Cambridge Audio is a really strong choice.
Best,
Ian White
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I have just read that the CXN V2 does not fully support MQA masters from Tidal…by the way my Loudspeakers are Kudos C20 ( Sugden + Kudos + all Chord company cables ) Now is my only choice under 2k the Bluesound…?
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Stephane,
MQA support should not be the benchmark for a streamer. I use TIDAL all the time and I don’t think the differences are that huge. The NODE is really good but I think the Cambridge sounds a lot better with most hi-res PCM tracks.
Why not use your phone with a Dongle DAC that supports a full MQA pack/unpack? Cheaper and something you can also use with headphones.
Best,
Ian White
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What about the Wiim Mini for $99? Stream Qobuz and everything else at 24/192 without buying a PC or spending 500+, and an expected firmware update to output optical at 24/192 to an external DAC. Shouldn’t cost thousands just to use a streaming service on your gear.
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Daron,
I have one. It’s on our to-do list for early March. Along with another 20+ reviews coming in the next 2 weeks.
It’s decent. Not awesome but certainly ok from the digital output.
Ian
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The field of streamers is a confusing one; too many devices focusing on wireless and other over complicated future-fi’d hoopla. I want a simple device that plugs into my Ethernet and streams Qobuz at its highest resolution into my DAC while I remote-control it from my iPhone. I have zero need for multi-room wireless, no Bluetooth, no file storage, just simple high quality streaming into my system. The Andover is hardly enough but the Node, excellent though it may be, is maybe too much. Anything in between? A Raspberry Pi feels a little too project-y at this particular point in my life.
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Steven,
That’s a fair question.
I own both the Songbird and NODE and consider the Bluesound streamer to make the most sense for me personally.
I don’t think there is a better option below $550 if you don’t want to build your own. Sonore get rid of the microRendu which was quite solid once it was properly configured.
Best,
Ian White-
Thanks for the reply, Ian. Seems there’s a sizable hole for some manufacturers to fill but they’re all too busy chasing the not-quite-there promise of wireless.
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Steven,
I think Andover or Schiit Audio are the most likely to fill that hole. I’ve heard rumors about a forthcoming one from Schiit. We will see.
Best,
Ian White
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If you don’t mind a little DIY Raspberry Pi running MoOde Audio (or another similar OS) into your DAC of choice is hard to beat from a purely sound quality perspective. I spent $100 to set up an RPi streamer that runs into my CXA81 DAC I can’t justify paying 5x,10x more for a streamer. Seems like the DAC is a bigger factor in SQ based on my testing of the RPi into other DACs I own.
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so few streamers offering Chromecast, but more than half the world using Android phones. What gives?
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I have an audioengine B-fi that I like. But recently switched from apple to Android. The audioengine app works for tidal, but I can’t get radio options. All my searching and I can’t find a decently priced chromecast streamer, which is annoying because Spotify connect can see the audioengine B-fi from the app, so it’s a software not hardware issue.
I’m an inch away from a raspberry pi and schiit dac. But I am not certain that’s the direction I want to go. As a network admin by day, I don’t want to mess with crap at the end of the day. I just want to hit “cast” and go at the end of the day.
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Any plans for testing windows systems I too am looking for a simple streamer that just works.
What about windows based systems. I look on amazon and I see little windows mini pc’s,I would also like to run app’s like Kodi,and a small pc seems like my best option,not mention that I already know how to operate it. -
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Good grief. Omitting the IOTAVX NP3 was rather dumb. I have the Node 2i, which is the same price, and the NP3 does a great job streaming while doing so much more (CD, radio, USB input, Bluetooth, etc.). Compatible with all major streaming services — I use it with Qobuz and love it. Plus the NP3 has an excellent remote. Best of all, I don’t have to keep going through the constant hassle up updating the BlueOS software like with the Node 2i, which honestly has made that unit a borderline nightmare. If I had to do it over again I would jettison the 2i in favor of a second NP3. Like I say, it was dumb to omit the NP3 from this list of music streamers.
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Kellen,
Why do readers assume that we get to listen to everything in a category? It doesn’t make the list until we get to try it ourselves.
Best,
Ian White
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ORT
February 27, 2022 at 3:41 pm
I own two and have given as gifts to friends and family 4 more of Grace Digital’s excellent Grace Link.
$179.99 and every time they get in they are soon SOLD OUT. The last time I bought a couple, Grace Digital said they had 500 hundred arrive and they sold out in a day or two. Why? Because this is an excellent product that makes (Buddha but I loathe this term) “streaming” easy and affordable.
I have no doubt that Andover Audio’s device is nice, I have three of their Spinbase turntable platorms and have given away one to my daughter and her family. They make an excellent product.
At this moment I am listening to one of my all-time favorite albums – The 50th Anniversary Edition of George Harrison’s “All Things Must Pass”. It is being sent from one of my Grace Links to an affordable DAC my S.M.S.L. (no stoopid MQA allowed!) and from there to an S.M.S.L. SP200 and then to a pair of Sennheiser HD6XX from Drop. What does this more than affordable, more than competent set up sound like playing George Harrison?
George Harrison.
People do not want to (Paraphrasing Alert!)”…strain at a bit to swallow a lie”. They desire to listen to the soundtrack that IS their lives.
The Grace Link does that. That is really all any audio device need do. I do not count bits. I do not look in on the sampling rate. I do not want MQA. I could give an airborne intercourse about what I shall now call Romper Roon Ready.
What I do want is to see the Album artwork (if available) and the artist’s name along with song and album title. I am now well in to being a seasoned citizen and on weekends I often go and mount TVs for friends and family. I even did one for a Buddhist Temple a couple of years back as a friend is Buddhist. I also set up modest home theaters for a great many folks. I do not charge people as it is a pleasure being of service to these folks.
What this has shown me is that people, young and old alike, want simplicity in their entertainment. They want to push a button and turn on their personal musical WayBack Machine (Mr. Peabody and Sherman!) and hear their music. They want to see the artwork and associated information if available. They don’t give a hoot about the sampling rate, the number of bits or what frAudiophile (NOT you guys and you know that) feeeeels about a circuit that neither they nor said frAudiophile understand.
Push “ON” button of WayBack Machine, select preset and volume – ENJOY! My older brother used to be more in to audio and he is now on his third AV which I have given him. He had some problems with the internet tuner and when I visited him and his wonderful wife, I fixed it and showed him how to do so. Then to make certain that would never happen again I sent them a Grace Digital Grace Link to hook into one of the digital (coax) inputs.
He and his wife really like it. I also sent them two of Grace Digital’s stand alone radios for use in other rooms.
Trust me on this. I am not come to make waves, I am here to simply state what I know. Exempli gratia? I used to own and use a Squeezebox Radio. It was great but is now kinda sorta OOB. Out of Bidness. Some folks will go on and on (kinda like I am doing here, LOL!) about how the Squeezbox was “light, airy, full of presence, blah, blah, blah… ad nauseam. I call B.S. it is just a box of parts and has no genie inside. It either works as advertised or does not.
I am certain every thing you mention in your list does just that. So too does the Grace Link. I think, not feeeeeeeeeeeeeel, it is as good as any device you noted above and far more affordable than many and easier than all of them.
Do I have to order one (when they are available again – SOLD OUT!) and send it to you? I may just do that. I know some of the folks at Grace Digital and have met them face to face. They are good people who work hard to make a fine product and sell it at a very affordable price.
Let me know, brother. By the belly of the Buddha, I can ramble on, eh? I do not expect this to make it to being posted but I do hope you do me the honor of reading it. I am sincere in my words and as they sang in “The Music Man”, “How can there be any sin, in sincere”.
In all ways and for always, be well.
ORT