Have Sonos, considering a Bluesound addition

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by cdash99, Nov 11, 2017.

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  1. cdash99

    cdash99 Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Mass
    I’m curious if anyone is running more than one of in home wireless systems.

    My situation is follows, I’m running a variety of Sonos players in the house (Play 1 or 3 depending on the room), mainly to have access to my library plus Apple Music for casual listening.

    In my home office, where my primary rig is located and where I do my primary listening, I have an Audioengine D2 (HiRes peer to peer wireless DAC) going directly from my Mac desktop to my receiver, running Pure Music (files on the Mac) or JRiver (duplicated files on a NAS).

    I’m generally happy with the above setup, except that when I’m pushing the Mac on work or home projects the Audioengine connection sometimes drops out. Since I’m not sure if the problem is the DAC or Mac, and I don’t want to chase my tail trying figure out if this can be fixed with a Jitterbug or similar product, I’m thinking of taking the Mac out of the equation entirely.

    My alternatives are as follows:

    • Sonos Connect - advantages are that I’m already on the ecosystem and Apple Music is native to the app (though a few features on Apple Music itself aren’t available on the Sonos version). The main disadvantage is that it won’t access the files on my HiRes library, which is modest in size but one I’m fiercely proud of!
    • Bluesound Node 2 - advantages are that it will access the HiRes library and eventually allow me to sample Tidal at some point in the future should I make a conscious decision to reduce my LP and CD/SACD purchases in the future. Disadvantage is that Apple Music is not one of the supported streaming services.
    • Leave things as with the Mac and Audioengine unit and look for tweaks.

    The reason for considering the Bluesound unit is that both they and Apple have indicated that it will support AirPlay 2 once it’s released. This would be a game changer for me in terms of streaming Apple Music from a phone or tablet (or, conceivably, iTunes via the Mac).

    Sorry for the lengthy question, but if anyone has ideas on either tweaks to the current setup or thoughts on running multiple streaming hardware in their home, feel free to pass along.

    Also, please refrain from Apple Sucks types of replies, as I’m not moving off their hardware or streaming services.

    Thanks in advance for your input.
     
  2. Whistlerskibum

    Whistlerskibum Forum Resident

    Location:
    Whistler, BC
    Have two bluesound nodes connecting office and living room systems, very pleased with product use tidal hirez subscription to demo albums for future vinyl purchases.

    Would recommend the bluesound product no experience with sonos however so I’m a bit biased.
     
  3. cdash99

    cdash99 Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Mass
    Anyone with both units in their homes? Are they wifi hogs, or any other unintended results?
     
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