Audioengine B1 Premium Bluetooth Music Receiver

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Khorn, Jul 9, 2017.

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  1. Khorn

    Khorn Dynagrunt Obversarian Thread Starter

    I'm really intrigued by this thing. As I have about 70 or so full albums on my iPhone/iPad it would be great to be able to send them to my system. Does anyone here have one or experience using one? Are there any alternative suggestions?
     
    SirMarc likes this.
  2. Colin M

    Colin M Forum Resident

    Are you in a WiFi environment? Then I'll go with a Chromecast Audio device. Far cheaper, no range issues and better sound. However, if you mean the full albums are within apple music, it may not be applicable to you.

    Google Chromecast Audio review
     
    Last edited: Jul 9, 2017
  3. Helom

    Helom Forum member

    Location:
    U.S.
    I have the B1. It works great for all Bluetooth needs and has the aptX codec which does seem to sound a little better when using a compatible device, though it's still compatible with all Bluetooth codecs (except the newest aptXHD). It won't matter with your itunes files as Apple uses AAC.

    I also have the Bose Soundtouch Wireless link. It has Bluetooth, (sans aptX) does wireless streaming, and costs less.

    Both have great range and can output digital and analog signals. The B1 probably has the better range of the two.
     
    Last edited: Jul 10, 2017
  4. Upstateaudio

    Upstateaudio Senior Member

    Location:
    Niskayuna, NY
    I also own the B1 use it with my ipad and Macs for background listening in my secondary system. I am very pleased with the sound.
     
  5. JakeMcD

    JakeMcD Forum Resident

    Location:
    So Central FL
    I use the B1 daily. It locks on to my wireless signals from a variety of devices like a hungry pitt bull.
     
    SBurke likes this.
  6. Mike-48

    Mike-48 A shadow of my former self

    Location:
    Portland, Oregon
    I heard the B1 at a friend's house recently. He has an enjoyable mid-range system, and I thought the B1 sounded pretty good. Compared to a streamer made from a Raspberry Pi with a HiFiBerry DAC (total cost ~US$140, assembly ~30 mins), the B1 was somewhat less dynamic to my ears. Of course, the Pi streamer requires a DLNA controller on the phone and WiFi in the area, whereas the B1 just needs bluetooth on the phone. So I would say I was impressed by the B1, though personally, I'd use WiFi.

    (Anyone wanting more info on the Pi streamer, please PM me. I'll send the writeup I made for our audio club.)
     
  7. Khorn

    Khorn Dynagrunt Obversarian Thread Starter

    Thanks for all the opinions. I want to set up a NAS system in the future and download HD Audio files but as this will be a major investment I'm not going to rush into it. I've been offered a good deal on the MELCO N1A but I haven't really had much time to think about it.

    I think the B1 will be a fun unit to use and it will give access to my system for all the music on my iPad & iPhones.

    I just ordered the B1 today and am really looking forward to hearing this thing in action!
     
  8. Mike-48

    Mike-48 A shadow of my former self

    Location:
    Portland, Oregon
    @Khorn : have fun with it!
     
    Khorn likes this.
  9. Khorn

    Khorn Dynagrunt Obversarian Thread Starter

    :righton:This is nuts! I tried to by this thing all over town but nobody here had any in stock. I was told by most it would take a few days or weeks to get in. I figured the best way to order was through Amazon but I noticed on their site the company they get it from and went to their site and started to order one. Just to be sure I called them and got one of the owners and asked him how long it would take to get here. He told me it would only be a few days so I went back on line and ordered one. Now this place is all the way across the country and it blew my mind that after ordering yesterday afternoon it arrived today!! Apparently they ship everything no charge (free) by Purolator. :righton: Good show!

    I'm really looking forward to hooking it up and will post my impressions ASAP.
     
    Last edited: Jul 13, 2017
  10. Khorn

    Khorn Dynagrunt Obversarian Thread Starter

    I must say this is a wonderful little doohickey that does everything advertised and sounds great too! Anyone wanting to add Bluetooth to their system should check this out as its great "bang for the buck".
     
    Shiver and Helom like this.
  11. SBurke

    SBurke Nostalgia Junkie

    Location:
    Philadelphia, PA
    Any further thoughts on this device? It looks pretty good. If I connect a phone or computer to it via Bluetooth, is there any restriction on what kind of software I need to use for playback?

    The easily available information about the aptX codec and aptX HD is rather frustrating -- how do I know if my device (Microsoft Surface Pro with W10 or iPhone 7) will put that out?
    Better sound, with only a 3.5mm connection? That's a little surprising. What am I missing?
     
  12. UnityCoupled

    UnityCoupled Forum Resident

    We use a B1 with our Niles whole-house system and the fidelity and wireless range are as advertised. The receiver is 75 feet away and separated by two walls from the streaming tablet, and we rarely get dropouts. In open air I can stream to it from 214 feet away before the connection starts to struggle.

    You can still use any playback software/app with bluetooth audio.

    The aptX website lists all devices that support the codec and it appears the Surface Pro and the iPhone are not on the list, so I would guess they don't have it.
     
    Last edited: Aug 21, 2018
    SBurke likes this.
  13. SBurke

    SBurke Nostalgia Junkie

    Location:
    Philadelphia, PA
    Thank you, that's helpful.

    Looks as if aptX may be available for Bluetooth with Windows 10, per this page: Bluetooth
     
  14. SirMarc

    SirMarc Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cranford, NJ
    With the onboard dac in the Chromecast Audio, 3.5 to RCA, it will decode up to 24/96 files, but the cool thing is, in the 3.5mm jack is a mini optical out that you can send to a dac and decode whatever your dac can handle. Very cool little device...
     
    SBurke likes this.
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